Jury Awards Woman $3.76 Million After Police Officers Raid Her Home, Violate Her Constitutional Rights

On Friday, a jury in Denver awarded a 78-year-old resident $3.76 million after determining that two Denver Police officers were guilty of violating her constitutional rights.

Retired postal worker, Ruby Johnson, resided in the same home for over 40 years. On Jan. 4, 2022, a SWAT team conducted a raid and ransacked Johnson’s home.

The officers had been looking for stolen items and proof of a truck theft which Johnson was not a part of. Last year, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against the police department on behalf of Johnson.

Documents show that a search warrant was issued after officers had gotten a supposed location notification from an iPhone’s “Find My” app, possibly linked to the stolen car case that Detective Gary Staab was in charge of. But, the exact location couldn’t be determined, and the ACLU stated that there was “no basis to identify and search Ms. Johnson’s home.”

The jury agreed with the ACLU and awarded  $1.26 million in compensatory damages and $2.5 million in punitive damages to Johnson. The jury found two officers hastily went after, got, and conducted a search warrant that violated Johnson’s right to not experience unreasonable search and seizure. It was also found that many of Johnson’s possessions had been destroyed during the raid.

Because of the violation of privacy and the trauma that she experienced during the raid, Johnson was forced to move to a new residence.