A federal judge has cleared the way for a Golden man to sue law enforcement officers for the injuries and damage they caused in executing an early-morning, no-knock warrant as part of a largescale operation against the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club.

Dustin J. Ullerich’s civil rights lawsuit described in graphic terms how he was “literally disemboweled” when a member of Jefferson County’s regional SWAT team shot him in the abdomen after trying to smash open his door at 4 a.m. Ullerich, who was reportedly in a weeks-long coma from his injury, called the tactics “total overkill” and reckless.

Last week, U.S. District Court Judge Regina M. Rodriguez agreed Ullerich had plausibly stated a claim against three officers for unnecessarily breaking his home’s windows while executing the search warrant. A fourth officer, who actually shot Ullerich, did not seek dismissal of the excessive force claim against him. Rodriguez also permitted Ullerich to amend his lawsuit to describe how the other officers may have committed a constitutional violation by failing to intervene in the shooting.

John Burton, an attorney for Ullerich, said the case illustrates the risks of serious harm that accompany no-knock search warrants.

“The shooting of Breonna Taylor, which happened a mere four months after Dusty was shot, underscores how unreasonably dangerous this tactic is,” he said, referring to the Louisville, Ky. woman who police killed in March 2020 during a raid on her apartment. The officers involved are currently facing federal charges.

Burton declined to say whether Ullerich was, as prosecutors alleged, a member of the Hells Angels or its Denver chapter.

According to Ullerich’s lawsuit, investigators applied for a warrant to search his home in the 2300 block of Youngfield Street in Golden and also for his tattoo parlor. The Denver Post reported at the time that authorities executed 19 search warrants and arrested 12 people connected with the Hells Angels and another unnamed motorcycle gang in November 2019.

Ullerich specifically was suspected of kidnapping a Hells Angels member who fell out of favor with the group, tattooing over the man’s Hells Angels tattoos and threatening to kill him if he told anyone. Ullerich eventually pleaded not guilty and the federal criminal case against him is ongoing.

On Nov. 7, Ullerich claimed, SWAT team members from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and the Golden and Arvada police departments arrived at his home before dawn. The warrant authorized them to seize items related to Hells Angels membership, cell phones and iPads, and items likely to contain DNA evidence. 

“None of the items listed on the warrant is illegal to possess. Membership in motorcycle clubs is not illegal,” the lawsuit argued. Ullerich claimed that, given his lack of criminal history and the absence of weapons or narcotics among the sought-after items, police could have showed up “at a civilized hour” to search the home.

Nonetheless, despite SWAT officers allegedly deciding not to use explosives to breach the front door, they “needlessly” detonated flash grenades and shot less-lethal rounds through Ullerich’s windows. Golden police Sgt. Mark Donohue, who was reportedly directing the operation, yelled for Ullerich to come to the door.

Meanwhile, Jeffco sheriff’s Deputy Jordan Bybee allegedly tried unsuccessfully to break the front door with a battering ram. Deputy Anthony Brown then raised a shotgun in order to destroy the lock on the door. At the same time, Ullerich, who was unarmed, opened the door. Brown shot him.

“The ‘breach round’ hit Plaintiff flush in the right abdomen, causing a gaping wound out of which his guts spilled,” the lawsuit described. “Plaintiff almost died, and now must live the rest of his life with a hideous deformity and without most of his colon.”

The U.S. Supreme Court has previously endorsed police officers’ ability to avoid announcing themselves and knocking when executing a warrant, but only on a case-by-case basis and when the circumstances are reasonable. Accordingly, Ullerich filed suit against the officers and local governments involved in the raid — not challenging the constitutionality of the search warrant, but rather the alleged unreasonableness of its execution.

He claimed the destruction of his windows violated the Fourth Amendment’s prohibition on unreasonable searches and asserted Brown’s shooting amounted to excessive force. Ullerich also faulted the remaining officers for failing to intervene to stop Brown.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Kristen L. Mix reviewed the defendants’ requests to dismiss the case and issued a recommendation in July to allow only some of Ullerich’s claims to proceed.

She found Donohue, Deputy Nicholas Turco and Arvada Police Officer Bretton Clarke could be held liable for breaking Ullerich’s windows, actions that seemingly had no legitimate relationship to executing the warrant. Although there may have been a rationale for breaking the windows, such as allowing officers to be heard inside the home, Mix noted the defendants did not claim that was the reason for the damage.

She added the defendants, in her view, were not entitled to qualified immunity, which shields government officials from civil lawsuits unless they violate a person’s clearly-established rights. Mix believed it was clearly established that destroying someone’s property “for no reason in the execution of a warrant is unconstitutional under the Fourth Amendment.”

Although Brown did not seek to dismiss the excessive force claim against him for shooting Ullerich, the other officers sought dismissal of the allegations they failed to intervene. The defendants stressed in their arguments they did not know Brown would shoot Ullerich or have time to react to prevent it.

Mix was persuaded, finding Donohue, Clarke, Turco and Bybee did not have a “realistic opportunity” to intervene. Finally, she recommended dismissal of Ullerich’s claims against the Jefferson County sheriff and the cities of Golden and Arvada, concluding Ullerich had not illustrated that any policy of constitutional violations was responsible for his injuries.

Ullerich objected to Mix’s conclusions about his failure to intervene claim, arguing she had mistakenly considered what the officers could have done only at the time Brown pulled the trigger.

“Both Donohue and Bybee had ample time to tell Brown to put the shotgun away,” Ullerich’s lawyers wrote. The “appropriate tactic was simply to wait until the door was opened by an occupant.”

Rodriguez, the district judge, agreed with Mix’s analysis in an Aug. 17 order. She believed the “mere fact that Brown had taken out the shotgun and that he appeared prepared to use it to shoot at the door” was not a reason for the other officers to intervene.

Rodriguez also cast aside an objection from Turco regarding his liability for Ullerich’s home damage. She agreed with Mix that there was no indication breaking Ullerich’s windows was related to any specific law enforcement goal.

The judge signed off on Mix’s recommendation in its entirety, giving Ullerich 30 days to amend his lawsuit and attempt to bolster his failure-to-intervene claims.

The case is Ullerich v. Shrader et al.