Woman whose house Denver police burnt down settles for $95,000

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A woman whose house was burnt down by the Denver Police Department will get a $95,000 settlement from the city.

The payout appears on the Denver City Council agenda for Monday. Mary Quintana filed a lawsuit against the city in U.S. District Court.

According to Colorado Politics, Quintana told the site Denver police received a call about shots fired around 6th Avenue and Inca Street in Denver on the morning of Jan. 27, 2019. Officers found an ammunition cartridge outside Quintana’s home at 622 Inca St., Colorado Politics reported. They also discovered her son, Joseph Quintana, had a warrant.

Mary Quintana met officers outside her home shortly afterward, according to Colorado Politics, and gave them permission to enter. Law enforcement found Joseph Quintana in the basement, where he opened fire on the officers. After they retreated, Joseph Quintana continued to fire upon them, hitting another officer.

According to Colorado Politics, dozens of officers including SWAT officers arrived and deployed chemical weapons into her home, which set it ablaze. "Ms. Quintana hasn’t recovered from the loss of her home," her attorney, Joseph A. Salazar, told Colorado Politics. "Her possessions were destroyed, and the city pretty much thumbed its nose at Ms. Quintana."

Police settlements routine

Police payouts have become routine in Denver and appear on almost every other council agenda. Last week, the council paid $125,000 to Scott Carey, who filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against Mark Matthews claiming his civil rights were violated. The Denver Police Department declined comment.

A $15,000 settlement also was paid to Humberto Quintero, who was injured in a crash involving police. A man named Humberto Quintero is a famous baseball player from Venezuela, but the Denver Police Department would not confirm whether it is the same person. “We are not able to confirm whether or not the individual is a former baseball player,” the department wrote in a statement. “DPD did their own administrative review of the crash involving Mr. Quintero and found the incident to be preventable. The officer involved did receive a written reprimand.” The city attorney’s office declined comment on the settlement but in a statement said they do not believe Quintero is a professional baseball player.

Two council members – Sarah Parady and Shontel Lewis – have been monitoring every dollar spent on police payouts. Earlier this month, the council approved two lawsuit settlements totaling $465,000 for Nicolas Orlin and Shawn Murphy, who police allegedly shot in the face with projectiles during the George Floyd protests in 2020.

Journalist, activist, churchgoer receive thousands

Last month, the city paid $437,500 to a journalist who was shot by police with rubber bullets during a protest. In July, a man received $75,000 from police. He had been assaulted by police in his car while sitting peacefully in his church parking lot. Also that month, an activist for people experiencing homelessness shared a $100,000 settlement from the City and County of Denver with her husband after they accused police of violating their civil rights, according to the agenda . She also received a second settlement for $30,000, according to the agenda.

Millions paid out for police misconduct

In March, the council paid $20,000 to a man who alleged police falsely handcuffed him. In February, the council paid out $55,000 in settlements. Last year, in October, the council awarded $1.6 million to people injured in the summer 2020 protests. In September of last year, the council paid out more than $1.3 million. In August 2023, Denver paid out $4.7 million to people it had arrested for curfew during protests. In July of last year, the city settled two lawsuits against the police department for $305,000. That May, Denver paid $135,000 to settle two claims against the police department. In April 2023, the city paid a man $350,000 after he claimed Denver police violated his rectum with a police baton. In March of that year, the city settled half a dozen police lawsuits totaling $1.6 million.