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WEST JORDAN — A judge is considering whether there is enough evidence to order a jury trial for a Salt Lake police officer charged with ordering a police dog to bite a man who prosecutors say was submissive and had his hands in the air.
Nickolas John Pearce, 40, of Herriman, was charged in 3rd District Court with two counts of aggravated assault, a third-degree felony. One count was dismissed without prejudice Tuesday because of issues with a witness appearing at the hearing. That charge could be refiled. In the count that was dismissed, Pearce was accused of lifting a police dog to bite a woman who was in a car.
In the remaining count, Pearce is accused of ordering K-9 Tuco to bite Jeffery Ryans during a domestic violence police call on April 24, 2020. Charging documents say Ryans, a Black man, had his hands raised and was on his knees when Pearce ordered the K-9 to engage Ryans and "continually praised and encouraged K-9 Tuco."
Ryans testified Tuesday that it "felt like forever," when the dog was biting him, although it was less than a minute.
Ryans was assisted to a chair on the patio afterward and said he was in shock at the time. He was taken to the hospital with injuries, including severe leg trauma that required multiple surgeries, he said. He is still receiving physical therapy and said he does not have feeling in a portion of that leg.
He said he was surprised by police, and by the attack because he was not running or fighting. Ryans testified that he did everything the police asked him to do and was "totally cooperative." The dog attacked when he was already on the ground, he said.
Ryans said the event ruined his life "110%," and said he lost his job and his marriage because of what happened.
Ryans pleaded guilty to breaching a protective order, which ordered him to stay away from the location where the arrest occurred, but he said he had believed the protective order was not in effect at the time.
Salt Lake police officer Cody Orgill testified that investigators were told that day that a man inside was violating a protective order, and he had been there a few months before when Ryans was arrested. The officer said he had responded to physical abuse calls related to Ryans in the past, and because he heard that a child had called, he responded assuming there was current physical abuse.
"Get on the ground, get on your knees, right now," police officers are heard saying in body camera videos of the events played during Tuesday's preliminary hearing. "Get on the ground, get on the ground ... or you're going to get bit."
Orgill said it took a minute for Ryans to get on the ground from what he could see, although he said he was on the other side of the fence and had an obscured view.
Ryans can be heard in the video screaming in pain, and cursing while the dog is biting and after the dog is called off. He said he was on the ground when the dog bit.
"You're listening right now, you weren't listening a moment ago," an officer told Ryan after the event on the video. "You should have listened, man, I told you to get down on the ground."
Deputy district attorneys Jesse Bushnell and Andrew Dressing said police force, including K-9 dogs, should be used with the greatest restraint and only after discussion, negotiation or persuasion.
Officer Kevin Jewkes, who also responded that day, said Ryans was not moving to the ground until Pearce kicked him in the leg, following a police maneuver.
"He'd been told several times to get on the ground and he never got down on the ground," Jewkes said.
He said he was putting handcuffs on Ryans, and as soon as he told Pearce that the handcuffs were on, Pearce told the dog to release and the dog followed the command.
Wendell Nope, a K-9 training supervisor who testified at the hearing, said the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training K-9 program teaches officers not to use an aggressive declaration, like Pearce used in this instance when saying, "Or you're going to get bit," which he said increases the likelihood that the person police are interacting with will respond aggressively.
Nope also said police using K-9 units are taught to use "extreme discretion" when deploying a dog, especially if the hands can be seen or a person is in a submissive posture.
He said dogs should be used when people are engaging in violent or dangerous behavior and there is an immediate threat. He said the video shows Ryans' hands were at his head and he didn't see anything in the video that suggests Ryans was making movements that could be considered resistance.
"I just don't see it, where he was actively resisting. He was slow to respond," Nope said.
Nope said handlers should look for the first opportunity to reasonably remove the dog from the situation.
He said he saw multiple points during the video where the dog could have been ordered to stop. Nope said the dog was engaged with Ryans for 45 seconds, but he saw two opportunities before then to tell the dog to stop biting as Ryans was not resisting. He acknowledged he was not there and has only seen body camera video, so he said he can't be sure those two times would have worked.
"The only purpose of the dog being used in the first place is to assist in the capture, to make that capture safer for the officers involved," Nope testified.
He said although it was good for Jewkes to let Pearce know when the man was handcuffed, Pearce should have already been looking for an opportunity to take the dog out of the situation.
This incident, and the subsequent release of body camera videos, led to Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall ordering Salt Lake police to stop using K-9s in apprehending suspects pending a review of the policies in 2020. In the audit, the Salt Lake City Police Department identified 19 incidents that it determined needed further review.
Judge William Kendall did not decide Tuesday whether there is enough evidence for the charges to proceed to trial. Pearce's attorney, Tara Isaacson, asked for time to file additional briefs rather than making closing arguments at the hearing.
Isaacson explained she needs additional time to file briefs because the case is unique. She said there are other similar cases around the country that were filed as civil cases, whereas this is a criminal case.
The attorneys and judge set a briefing schedule with filings and responses that will go until Dec. 9. After that point, Kendall said he will either call a hearing to announce a decision or file a written decision. Kendall said the case is not complex and that the "briefing should be appropriately brief."
