GRAPHIC: Lawsuit alleges deputies used stun gun on Colorado man 35 times

DENVER (KMGH) - A Colorado man is seeking justice after witnessing his father getting assaulted by police officers.

Nate Espinoza said his father was not a threat to the officers but said they treated him like he was.

His family is now suing the sheriff’s office as well as the officers involved. Nate Espinoza is demanding justice for his dad.

GRAPHIC WARNING: Video includes content that some may find disturbing.

“We were taking his truck to the shop. We weren’t there to bother nobody,” Nate Espinoza said.

The incident happened on Nov. 29.

Nate Espinoza said what was supposed to be a normal day with his dad, Kenneth Espinoza, escalated very quickly.

Nate Espinoza said he was pulled over by Las Animas County Sheriff’s Deputy Mikhail Noel for an alleged traffic violation.

Body camera footage shows things escalated within a matter of minutes when Deputy Henry Trujillo approached Kenneth Espinoza’s truck parked behind his son on the side of the road.

The video shows both deputies pulling out their guns.

A short time later, Kenneth Espinoza is shown handcuffed and then put into the back of a police cruiser when he is stunned in the face by Trujillo.

“He was tased approximately 35 times, including once in the face. One of the probes went into his mouth,” said Kevin Mehr, Kenneth Espinoza’s attorney.

Mehr said both deputies used their Tasers on Kenneth Espinoza.

“That’s what Mikhail Noel is doing repeatedly when he has that Taser in his hand, and he’s jabbing it over and over and over again,” Mehr said.

Kenneth Espinoza filed a lawsuit over the weekend against Noel and Trujillo as well as the sheriff’s office for the alleged assault.

After all that unfolded, the lawsuit says Trujillo went back to the patrol vehicle to get Kenneth Espinoza’s information.

Kenneth Espinoza did not comply, and body camera footage shows Trujillo grabbing him and slamming him on the ground. He was still handcuffed.

The deputies are shown patting him down and then putting him in the back of the cruiser.

“It sure felt like discrimination,” Nate Espinoza said.

The lawsuit alleges police reports made by the officers showed false or minimized statements from that day and goes on to detail Trujillo’s criminal history.

“I do not believe he is legally eligible to be post-certified and has essentially been impersonating a peace officer for the past 21 years,” Mehr said.

Trujillo was found guilty of harassment in 1998 and has had multiple restraining orders filed against him.

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