The appeal of a former Tucson police officer who was fired for excessive force was rejected by a civilian review board Thursday, bucking a trend of reinstatements by the board that led city officials to request additional training for its members.
The decision came a little more than a week after the city’s Civil Service Commission sat through a nearly two-hour presentation and discussion about relevant Tucson Police Department operations and policies.
The three-person board voted unanimously to uphold the department’s firing of former officer Colin Klingler. He was fired last year for a February 2020 incident that resulted in an arrestee being sent to the hospital with a fractured skull.
Klingler was found to have violated several department policies, including use of force, failure to render medical aid, “callous disregard toward an injured person” and lack of regard for the suspect’s personal property.
On Feb. 13, former TPD officer Crystal Martinez saw a man on a bicycle commit a traffic violation and pulled him over, according to TPD’s executive review of the incident. The man had two outstanding arrest warrants and fled. Martinez caught up with him a short distance away, after which Klingler and others arrived to assist in the arrest.
The man was not complying with police commands. He rolled onto his stomach, pulling his hands under his chest. Klingler delivered several elbow strikes to his head and face. Over the course of a minute or so, Klingler used his elbows for several more hits, while telling the man to put his hands behind his back.
At some point, the man stopped talking and screaming and “his body stops moving, and his breathing is labored,” the report said.
Klingler then delivered a knee strike to the head, additional elbow strikes and finally “hammer fist strikes” while another officer put the man in handcuffs, the report said.
At the end of the final volley, it was noted that the man was bleeding from his ear. Klingler could be heard on body camera footage telling other officers the suspect might need medical attention.
“I rocked him,” Klingler said before laughing. He could also be seen in the video throwing the man’s bicycle, which crashes to the ground.
The man regained consciousness and refused treatment by paramedics, but was medically rejected for booking at the jail and sent to a hospital. An exam revealed face and skull fractures and he eventually needed surgery, according to the TPD report.
The department’s review found Klingler’s actions fell into the “serious misconduct” category of its discipline guide. The corresponding discipline was presumptive termination. Martinez — who was involved in a romantic relationship and living with Klingler — resigned before the investigation was complete.
During the three-day board hearing, seven witnesses testified for the city, including sergeants, lieutenants and members of TPD command staff who all told the board that Klingler’s actions violated policy.
While Klingler’s use of force was appropriate and proportional at first, once the man began to display signs of being unconscious, the use of force shifted to no longer reasonable, witnesses for the city told the commission.
TPD Chief Chris Magnus said his impression of Klingler’s behavior after viewing the body camera footage was “shocking, unprofessional and dangerous.”
During her closing argument, Assistant City Attorney Jennifer Stash reminded board members of testimony from a fellow officer that Klingler had fallen into a cognitive loop during the encounter and used head strikes without properly reassessing the suspect.
“Officer Klingler took an oath to safeguard and protect human life,” Stash said. “He was not able to exhibit self control and soundness of mind to know when to stop.”
Klingler’s attorney, Mike Storie, argued that as long as the man had a hand underneath his body, he still posed a threat to Klingler and other officers, saying that 70-80% of “bad guys” keep a weapon in their waist bands.
Storie also pointed to the fact that the case was reviewed twice by the Pima County Attorney’s Office for criminal charges — the first time he had seen that happen in 20 years — and both times, the office declined to file charges.
During his testimony, Klingler told the commission that when he saw an arrestee reaching for his or her waist area, he always assumed that person was reaching for a weapon, saying it would be dangerous not to.
Klingler acknowledged his treatment of the man was not ideal, saying “I could have treated him, like, better,” but said he was coming down from an adrenaline boost due to the interaction.
“I could have use better verbiage when trying to convey to the officers on scene that this guy needed some medical treatment,” Klingler said.
Storie pointed out that Klingler was not accused at any point of being untruthful. Klingler said that during his two-year career, he responded to close to 1,000 calls and made 130 arrests without being disciplined or receiving a complaint. He said his firing came down to Magnus’ decision that he was an unfit officer.
“I know what happens when you disagree with the Chief of Police,” Klingler said. “You’re thrown out on the street, no matter what you think.”
The board spent 20 minutes in executive session with its attorney before starting deliberations.
Commissioner Carol West pointed out that police use of force is a “large issue with the public” and said that the level of force Klingler applied didn’t match up with the bicyclist’s level of resistance.
Commission chair Thomas Palomares said the board’s job is to figure out if the city made the right decision and if it’s more probable than not that the allegations against Klingler are true.
“There are no winners in this decision,” Palomares said.
Palomares agreed that Klingler knew, or should have known, that his behavior could lead to disciplinary action.
“I believe Klingler acted within policy at all times, but I acknowledge that the violence contained in the body work camera would be shocking to any civilian,” Storie said after the commission’s decision.
Magnus said he’s pleased that the CSC upheld Klingler’s termination.
In December, Mayor Regina Romero told the Star that she and the city council would be requesting the CSC undergo training to ensure they understood TPD’s policies when it comes to use of force and the disciplinary process within the department.
The request came on the heels of the reinstatement of an officer who was fired after shooting six rounds into a car with deeply tinted windows when he did not know if there was anyone in the back seat.
In the past two years, the commission has reinstated four other officers who were fired for use of force, dishonesty or being charged with a crime. Magnus has said that he will not put officers fired for the aforementioned reasons back on the street, as that poses an unacceptable risk to public safety.
“There are times when police officers need to use force, but that force must be consistent with department policy,” Magnus said Thursday. “That was not the case here, and that’s why we made the decision to terminate this officer.”
