protect and serve;

Salt Lake City, UT – Last September, Agnes Martinez was looking for a place she and her dog could sleep for the night. Houseless at the time, she parked her car in a commercial area south of downtown Salt Lake City. Soon after, she was confronted by two Salt Lake City Police officers in an encounter that would end with the loss of her left leg.

Now, Martinez is suing the two officers — Paul Mullenax and Lane Wolfenbarger — for using excessive force during an arrest that left her with a debilitating injury, violating her Fourth Amendment rights. What’s more, her lawsuit claims that the Salt Lake City Police Department (SLCPD) is using excessively violent take downs for nonviolent offenders and training its officers to disregard people’s civil rights.

Martinez, at 5 feet 2 inches tall and 57 years old, hadn’t been parked for long on the night of September 1, 2023 when SLCPD officers Wolfenbarger and Mullenax approached her vehicle during what they called a “proactive patrol,” according to the complaint in a civil suit filed in July in US District Court.........more.......