Former La Mesa officer s appeal rejected by city
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and last updated 2020-12-09 21:09:35-05
LA MESA, Calif. (KGTV) â A personnel appeal board rejected an appeal filed by former La Mesa Police officer Matthew Dages, who was fired over a viral video showing him push a man into a seated position at a trolley stop.
Dages was terminated in August over the video that surfaced in June, showing him push a black man into a sitting position on a bench, and handcuffing him and arresting him at Grossmont Trolley Station.
The man, 23-year-old Amaurie Johnson, was told he was arrested for assaulting an officer.
Firing of La Mesa officer accused of excessive force upheld
The municipal personnel appeals board on Wednesday affirmed the termination of former Officer Matthew Dages, City Manager Greg Humora announced. Author: City News Service Updated: 1:39 PM PST December 10, 2020
LA MESA, Calif. A city review panel has upheld the termination of a La Mesa police officer fired last summer for his actions during the videotaped and widely protested arrest of a young Black man at Grossmont Transit Center.
The municipal personnel appeals board on Wednesday affirmed the termination of former Officer Matthew Dages, City Manager Greg Humora announced.
On Aug. 7, then-La Mesa Police Chief Walt Vasquez fired Dages after several months of complying with necessary legal protocols and procedures, including an external investigation by independent investigators, according to a city statement. Dages appealed the decision a week later.