Arrest of Robert Seacat

Last updated

Arrest of Robert Seacat
DateJune 3–4, 2015 (2015-06-03 2015-06-04)
Duration19.48 hours [1]
Location4219 South Alton Street
Greenwood Village,
Colorado
, United States
Coordinates 39°38′26″N104°52′52″W / 39.640660°N 104.881046°W / 39.640660; -104.881046
TypePolice standoff
Cause Shoplifting
Motive Resisting arrest
TargetRobert Jonathan Seacat
Participants
Outcome
  • Seacat apprehended
  • Residence destroyed
Property damageUS$450,000 (2015)
 (eq. $578,000 in 2023)
Charges 32 criminal charges
Litigation Lech v.
City of Greenwood Village

The arrest of Robert Jonathan Seacat was the culmination of a destructive 19.48-hour standoff with American police in June 2015. After being chased by police for stealing clothing from a Walmart, Seacat barricaded himself in a house at 4219 South Alton Street in Greenwood Village, Colorado. By the time Seacat was finally extracted from the premises, the house had been destroyed by law enforcement in their efforts to flush him out. The homeowner—Leo Lech—filed a lawsuit against the municipality for compensation, but was ruled against by the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit; he appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States, but the court declined to hear the case.

Contents

Background

Robert Jonathan Seacat (also Robert Seakat) was born in Kansas on May 6, 1982. As of June 2015, he was 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall, weighed 175 pounds (79 kg), was residing in Aurora, Colorado, [2] and was married to Ramona Vitalyevna Grabchenko. With previous convictions for drug possession, aggravated motor vehicle theft, and burglary, on June 3, 2015, Seacat also had three outstanding warrants: two for illegal drugs and one for aggravated motor vehicle theft. [1] As of January 2024, he was six feet (1.8 m) tall and weighed 180 pounds (82 kg). [3]

Leo and Alfonsia Lech bought the house at 4219 South Alton Street, Greenwood Village, Colorado for their son, John. In June 2015, John Lech was living in the house with his girlfriend—Anna Mumzhiyan—and her nine-year-old son; [4] John Lech paid his father US$1,300(equivalent to $1,671 in 2023) per month for the house. [5] John Lech would later tell police that he kept an unloaded pistol and 20-gauge shotgun in the master closet, while ammunition was kept elsewhere in the house. John Lech's 2003 Nissan Xterra was parked in the garage attached to 4219 South Alton; it was valued at $4,400(equivalent to about $5,700 in 2023). [1]

Standoff

According to a police affidavit, it was June 3, 2015 when Seacat shoplifted two belts and a shirt from a Walmart in Greenwood Village, Colorado. After assaulting a uniformed Aurora Police Department (APD) officer—John Reiter—with his gold-colored 1999 Lexus GS300, Seacat fled in the vehicle. Reiter soon found the abandoned car at the nearby Dayton station and radioed for a tow; after watching Seacat run across northbound Interstate 225, a by-stander alerted the officer that she saw Seacat holster a .380 ACP semi-automatic pistol when he crossed the rail platform. Reiter lost track of Seacat and returned to the Lexus to inventory its contents: $27 in cash, 12.5 grams (0.44 oz) of psilocybin mushrooms, 45 grams (1.6 oz) of cannabis, and an unidentified 2.9-gram (0.10 oz) blue pill. [1]

Between 1:43–1:54 pm, a perimeter was established by Greenwood Village (GVPD) and Aurora police. At 1:54 pm, Seacat entered the home at 4219 South Alton Street in Greenwood Village, twice tripping the security alarm as he did so. Inside the home was the nine-year-old son of resident Anna Mumzhiyan, and when he exited the house at 2:17 pm, the child described Seacat as the man currently inside the house. After Seacat began opening the garage doors, APD officer William Woods drove a marked departmental sport utility vehicle (SUV) into the garage door to block egress; Seacat responded by blindly firing his pistol through the garage door, striking the SUV approximately one foot (0.30 m) from Woods. [1]

GVPD Commander Dustin Varney arrived at South Alton Street, took command of the situation, and summoned GVPD SWAT as well as further assistance from the APD, the Arapahoe County sheriff's office, and the Douglas County sheriff's office. GVPD officer Mic Smith, a SWAT negotiator, engaged with Seacat over the telephone; by 6:08 pm, Seacat ceased communicating with police, despite the application of inductive irritants. [1]

At 10:38 pm, SWAT entered the house and used a stun grenade to conceal their movements, but were driven back outside by gunshots (though criminalists would later establish that they were not fired upon). During the next 10.2 hours, a Lenco BearCat was driven through the front door, tear gas [1] and 40 mm grenades were repeatedly launched inside, shots were fired upon the house, and explosives were detonated to destroy several exterior walls. Ultimately, "the home was utterly destroyed" [6] by the time Seacat was apprehended in the upstairs bathroom. According to police, at the time of his arrest, Seacat was carrying a loaded & chambered Glock 19 and 6.68 grams (0.236 oz) of suspected methamphetamine. [1]

Aftermath

In their subsequent search of the house, police found Lech's over and under shotgun unloaded and still in its case. In the master bathroom, police found a loaded Glock 17, 322.54 grams (11.377 oz) of suspected methamphetamine, 1.75 grams (0.062 oz) of methadone, 0.47 grams (0.017 oz) of diazepam, 29.86 grams (1.053 oz) of suspected heroin, 17.5 pills of methylphenidate, 2.44 grams (0.086 oz) of clonazepam, 2.25 grams (0.079 oz) of cannabis, 61 packets of buprenorphine/naloxone, digital weighing scales, dozens of single-use baggies, used syringes and pipes, cash, and multiple cell phones. Another 3.60 grams (0.127 oz) of suspected methamphetamine was found in the bathroom where Seacat was captured. Anthony Costarella, a GVPD officer specialized in narcotics, argued that this cache evidenced Seacat as a drug trafficker. [1]

It was determined that, during the standoff with police, not only was Seacat experiencing the effects of intentionally-ingested methamphetamine, but also from packets of drugs he had swallowed: [5] at Swedish Hospital on June 6, Seacat defecated seven baggies that, with the addition of a Mecke reagent, tested positive for 10.95 grams (0.386 oz) of heroin and 21.19 grams (0.747 oz) of methamphetamine. [1]

On June 9, Detective John J. Carr of the GVPD applied for an arrest warrant on Seacat. [1] The same day, the Arapahoe County, Colorado district attorney filed 32 charges against Seacat: 17 counts of attempted murder in the first degree, one count of first-degree burglary, one count of menacing, one count of attempted motor vehicle theft, four counts of criminal possession of a weapon, three counts of drug possession, one count of trespass, and four counts of being a habitual criminal. [2] In August 2016, Seacat's jury trial was scheduled for that October 4. [5]

As of January 2024, Seacat (inmate number 145189) was imprisoned in the Sterling Correctional Facility for 20 separate convictions, with an estimated mandatory release date of March 3, 2061. He is next eligible for parole on October 4, 2035. [3]

Lechs' litigation

[T]he residence had significant damage to all of the upper floor walls, basement back yard doors and front door. [… A]ll of the rooms in the home had damage and that the amount of debris both inside the home and outside the home was significant.

Detective John J. Carr, GVPD [1]

When he returned to his house, Leo Lech said that it looked like Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad after Operation Neptune Spear: "[p]rojectiles were still lodged in the walls. Glass and wooden paneling crumbled on the ground below the gaping holes, and inside, the family's belongings and furniture appeared thrashed in a heap of insulation and drywall." Varney defended the police's actions by saying, "My mission is to get that individual out unharmed and make sure my team and everyone else around including the community goes home unharmed […] Sometimes that means property gets damaged, and I am sorry for that." [6] The National Tactical Officers Association supported Varney's assertion that appropriate force was used in the Seacat standoff. [5]

The rebuilt house (June 2024) 4219 South Alton Street in Greenwood Village, Colorado (3 June 2024).tif
The rebuilt house (June 2024)

Due to the extensive damage, the house was eventually condemned by Greenwood Village, and the remains were razed. [7] John Lech, his girlfriend, and her son, moved into his father's home 30 miles (48 km) from Greenwood Village. The distance of the relocation forced John Lech to change jobs. The city refused to compensate the Lechs, and instead offered $5,000(equivalent to $6,427 in 2023) "in temporary rental assistance and for the [home] insurance deductible." [6] Alleging that the house's value was $450,000(equivalent to $578,436 in 2023), [5] the Lechs refused the

In 2016, [7] Leo Lech, his wife Alfonsia Lech, and John Lech filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado against the participating police officers and Greenwood Village under the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article II, Section 15 of the Constitution of Colorado. [4] They claimed that they deserved compensation for "their property [being] seized by the government for public use" (Lech v. City of Greenwood Village), [6] and were willing to settle with the city for $600,000(equivalent to $761,730 in 2023). [5] Instead, the defendants requested and were granted summary judgment by the district court, which ruled that "when a state acts pursuant to its police power, rather than the power of eminent domain, its actions do not constitute a taking". [4] In the past, both the Minnesota and Texas Supreme Courts have sided with litigants whose houses were damaged or destroyed by police actions. The Lechs appealed the ruling to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (10th Cir.). [6]

In 2019, the three-judge panel of the 10th Cir. ruled against the Lechs, saying unanimously that the destruction of the house fell under police power and that eminent domain was not undertaken. The court sympathized with the Lechs, calling their circumstances "unfair", but ruling that police cannot be "burdened" with the consideration of collateral property damage when performing their duties. [6] The 10th Cir. also noted that "if police officers 'willfully or wantonly' destroy property", then they can be subject to tort law; Leo Lech was also unsuccessful in pursuing that avenue with the courts of Colorado. [7]

As of October 2019, Lech had incurred $28,000(equivalent to $33,368 in 2023) in attorney's fees. [7] On March 11, 2020, the Institute for Justice filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court of the United States. [8] The Supreme Court denied certiorari on June 29, 2020, letting the lower court's ruling stand. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arapahoe County, Colorado</span> County in Colorado, United States

Arapahoe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, its population was 655,070, making it the third-most populous county in Colorado. The county seat is Littleton, and the most populous city is Aurora. The county was named for the Arapaho Native American tribe, who once lived in the region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cherry Hills Village, Colorado</span> City in Colorado, United States

The City of Cherry Hills Village is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 6,442 at the 2020 United States Census. Cherry Hills Village is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenwood Village, Colorado</span> City in Colorado, United States

The City of Greenwood Village is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 15,691 at the 2020 United States Census. Greenwood Village is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centennial, Colorado</span> City in Colorado, United States

Centennial is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,418 at the 2020 United States Census, making Centennial the 11th most populous municipality in Colorado. Centennial is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor.

In tort common law, the defense of necessity gives the state or an individual a privilege to take or use the property of another. A defendant typically invokes the defense of necessity only against the intentional torts of trespass to chattels, trespass to land, or conversion. The Latin phrase from common law is necessitas inducit privilegium quod jura privata. A court will grant this privilege to a trespasser when the risk of harm to an individual or society is apparently and reasonably greater than the harm to the property. Unlike the privilege of self-defense, those who are harmed by individuals invoking the necessity privilege are usually free from any wrongdoing. Generally, an individual invoking this privilege is obligated to pay any actual damages caused in the use of the property but not punitive or nominal damages.

Brigham City v. Stuart, 547 U.S. 398 (2006), is a United States Supreme Court case involving the exigent circumstances exception to the Fourth Amendment's warrant requirement. The Court ruled that police may enter a home without a warrant if they have an objectively reasonable basis for believing that an occupant is or is about to be seriously injured.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Front Range Express</span>

Front Range Express was a commuter bus service that began in 2004 and operated between the cities of Colorado Springs and Denver, with stops along the way in Greenwood Village, Monument and Castle Rock in Colorado, USA. FREX operated on Interstate 25 except when exiting to make stops at each city. FREX served the southern portion of the Colorado Front Range and during its tenure was operated via different contracts by Veolia Transport & Laidlaw Transit. It was added as a part of Mountain Metropolitan Transit, which serves the Colorado Springs and El Paso County areas. In 2005, annual ridership was 118,389 and daily ridership was 464.

Hudson v. Michigan, 547 U.S. 586 (2006), is a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that a violation of the Fourth Amendment requirement that police officers knock, announce their presence, and wait a reasonable amount of time before entering a private residence does not require suppression of the evidence obtained in the ensuing search.

Homaidan Ali Al-Turki is a Saudi national convicted in a Colorado court for sexually assaulting his Indonesian housekeeper and keeping her as a virtual slave for four years. On August 31, 2006, Al-Turki was sentenced to 28 years in prison on twelve felony counts of false imprisonment, unlawful sexual contact, theft and criminal extortion. On February 25, 2011, he was re-sentenced from 28 to eight years for his good behavior in prison. Al-Turki maintains his innocence and blames anti-Muslim sentiment for the charges that led to his 2006 conviction and sentence in a case that has strained relations between the U.S. and the Saudi government.

Fellers v. United States, 540 U.S. 519 (2004), is a United States Supreme Court case regarding the Sixth Amendment's right to counsel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barack Obama assassination plot in Denver</span> Alleged assassination plot to shoot Barack Obama at the 2008 Democratic National Convention

Shawn Robert Adolf, Tharin Robert Gartrell and Nathan Dwaine Johnson plotted to assassinate Barack Obama, then the 2008 Democratic Party presidential nominee. The trio allegedly planned to shoot Senator Obama with a high-powered rifle during the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

Wilson v. Arkansas, 514 U.S. 927 (1995), is a United States Supreme Court decision in which the Court held that the traditional, common-law-derived "knock and announce" rule for executing search warrants must be incorporated into the "reasonableness" analysis of whether the actual execution of the warrant is/was justified under the 4th Amendment. The high court thus ruled that the old "knock and announce" rule while not a hard requirement, was also not a dead letter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sons of Silence</span> International outlaw motorcycle club

The Sons of Silence Motorcycle Club (SOSMC) is an international outlaw motorcycle club. Founded in Niwot, Colorado in the United States in 1966, the club has a membership of over 250, with 35 chapters based in 12 U.S. states and in Germany. The Sons of Silence are the sixth-largest motorcycle club in the world, behind the Hells Angels, the Bandidos, the Outlaws, the Pagans and the Mongols.

Michigan v. Summers, 452 U.S. 692 (1981), was a 6–3 decision by the United States Supreme Court which held for Fourth Amendment purposes, a warrant to search for contraband founded on probable cause implicitly carries with it the limited authority to detain the occupants of the premises while a proper search is conducted.

The Denver District Attorney's Office is responsible for the prosecution of state criminal violations in the Second Judicial District. Colorado has 64 counties within the 22 judicial districts in the State. The office is composed of approximately 75 attorneys and 125 support staff, who as a whole are responsible for more than 6,000 felony and 17,000 misdemeanor prosecutions annually. The elected District Attorney is the chief law enforcement officer in the City and County of Denver, and is responsible for the prosecution of violations of Colorado State Laws. The current Denver District Attorney is Beth McCann.

<i>Florida v. Harris</i> 2013 United States Supreme Court case

Florida v. Harris, 568 U.S. 237 (2013), was a case in which the United States Supreme Court addressed the reliability of a dog sniff by a detection dog trained to identify narcotics, under the specific context of whether law enforcement's assertions that the dog is trained or certified is sufficient to establish probable cause for a search of a vehicle under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Harris was the first Supreme Court case to challenge the dog's reliability, backed by data that asserts that on average, up to 80% of a dog's alerts are wrong. Twenty-four U.S. States, the federal government, and two U.S. territories filed briefs in support of Florida as amici curiae.

The shooting deaths of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams, two Black American individuals, occurred in East Cleveland, Ohio on November 29, 2012, at the conclusion of a 22-minute police chase which started in downtown Cleveland, when police erroneously claimed shots were fired at them as Russell and Williams drove by a squad car; the result of the shots was their vehicle's exhaust pipe backfiring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cannabis in Florida</span>

Cannabis in Florida is illegal for recreational use. Possession of up to 20 grams is a misdemeanor offense, punishable by up to a year in jail, a fine of up to $1000, and the suspension of one's driver's license. Several cities and counties have enacted reforms to apply lesser penalties, however.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colorado's 26th Senate district</span> American legislative district

Colorado's 26th Senate district is one of 35 districts in the Colorado Senate. It has been represented by Democrat Jeff Bridges since 2019, following the resignation of fellow Democrat Daniel Kagan.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Carr, John J. (June 9, 2015), Affidavit of Probable Cause for Arrest Warrant, District Court, Arapahoe County, archived from the original (PDF) on October 30, 2019, retrieved October 31, 2019
  2. 1 2 Brauchler, George H. (June 9, 2015), The People of the State of Colorado vs. Robert Jonathan Seacat, District Court, Arapahoe County, archived from the original (PDF) on November 1, 2019, retrieved November 1, 2019
  3. 1 2 "Offender Search". Colorado Department of Corrections . Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 Moritz, Nancy (October 29, 2019), Leo Lech; Alfonsia Lech; John Lech v. Chief John A. Jackson; Commander Dustin Varney; Officer Mic Smith; Officer Jeff Mulqueen; Officer Austin Speer; Officer Jared Arthur; Officer Bryan Stuebinger; Officer Juan Villalva; Officer Andy Wynder; Officer Anthony Costarella; Officer Bob Hasche, of the Greenwood Village Police Department, individually and in their official capacities; the City of Greenwood Village (PDF), United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, archived from the original (PDF) on October 30, 2019, retrieved November 1, 2019
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 McGhee, Tom (August 4, 2016). "Man Sues City for Damages to His Property". The Denver Post . ISSN   1930-2193. His home was destroyed when a gunman took shelter there last year.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Flynn, Meagan (October 30, 2019). "Police blew up an innocent man's house in search of an armed shoplifter. Too bad, court rules" . The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286. OCLC   2269358. Archived from the original on October 30, 2019. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Allyn, Bobby (October 30, 2019). "Police Owe Nothing To Man Whose Home They Blew Up, Appeals Court Says". NPR. Archived from the original on October 31, 2019. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  8. Institute for Justice (March 11, 2020), Lech v. City of Greenwood Village (PDF), Supreme Court of the United States, archived (PDF) from the original on May 28, 2020, retrieved May 28, 2020
  9. Order List: 591 U.S. (PDF), Supreme Court of the United States, June 29, 2020, archived (PDF) from the original on July 31, 2020, retrieved August 4, 2020

Further reading