Watch: Bodycam video shows Kenneth Espinoza being tased after heated argument with Colorado cop

Body camera footage released on Monday, April 24, showed Kenneth Espinoza being tased in the face by two deputies with the Las Animas County Sheriff’s Office during his arrest.

Kenneth Espinoza was arrested in November 2022 following a heated altercation with an officer after his son was pulled over by cops for a traffic citation.

On the day of the arrest, Kenneth Espinoza and his son were driving separate cars, taking one of the vehicles to a dealership when the latter was pulled over by cops for a traffic citation. After his son was stopped by the officers, Espinoza pulled over behind them to wait for his kid.

Shortly after, an officer, identified as Deputy Henry Trujillo, confronted Espinoza for making an unauthorized traffic stop. The confrontation escalated into a heated altercation resulting in Espinoza being tased during his arrest.

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Kenneth Espinoza plans to file a civil lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Office

As per News Nation, months after the incident, Kenneth Espinoza is reportedly gearing up to file a civil rights lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Office for using excessive force during the arrest. Espinoza claimed that he was tased 35 times during his arrest. However, the sheriff's office has contended that Espinoza was only tased once.

Bodycam video of the incident released this month showed Deputy Trujillo walking up to Kenneth Espinoza’s car, which had stopped on the side of the road to wait for his son, who was pulled over by the cop for a traffic citation.

The clip showed a seemingly irate deputy chastising Espinoza for stopping without cause and hindering police procedure. In response, Espinoza can be heard, saying “I am waiting for my son,” as the deputy gets increasingly annoyed at the Colorado man and yells at him to leave.

The video then shows a seemingly belligerent Espinoza and the irate deputy getting into a heated argument before Espinoza pulls away to leave, but then the deputy changes his mind and starts yelling at him to stay.

As Espinoza began pulling away, bodycam video from another deputy caught multiple officers trying to restrain him at the scene. The video showed officers twisting Espinoza’s arm in a violent attempt to stop his hand from reaching the wheel. The deputy is then heard threatening Espinoza to get out of the car, saying:

“You’re gonna get lit up”

Meanwhile, another clip showed an officer entering Espinoza’s vehicle from the passenger's side and tasing him in the face before pushing him out of the car. As the two deputies proceed to handcuff Espinoza, the video shows the taser being jabbed into his back and neck as he struggles against the assault.

Addressing the assault, Espinoza’s attorney, Kevin Mehr, told Fox 21 News:

“He jabs him with the end of the taser. I count in the car about 15 times… Then again, about seven times during this interaction.”

According to his attorney, in the lawsuit, which will be filed in the coming weeks, Espinoza supposedly mentions that deputies tased him 35 times. However, in a statement, the Las Animas County Sheriff’s Office disagreed with the assertion and said:

“Mr. Espinoza was tased one time. This was confirmed by the data obtained from the tasers of Lt. Trujillo and Deputy Noel.”

As per Fox 21 News, Espinoza is not facing any charges in the incident. However, the Sheriff’s office said that the actions of the deputies involved in the incident are under review.