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Two Alaska State Troopers have been charged with assault for pepper spraying, beating and ordering a dog to bite a man who they wrongly believed had a warrant out for his arrest in an allegation of police violence that the state’s top public safety authority called unprecedented.
Joseph Miller, 49, and Jason Woodruff, 42, were charged with fourth-degree assault, a misdemeanor, for beating 37-year-old Ben Tikka in Kenai, Alaska, according to charging documents filed this week.
After the incident, Tikka reported an open bite on his left arm, multiple fractures and lacerations on his triceps and head. The troopers mistook Tikka for his cousin, who has the same last name.
James Cockrell, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Public Safety, said in a news conference Thursday that he put both troopers on administrative leave and had been the one to refer their cases for a criminal investigation.
“I was totally sickened by what I saw,” he said, adding that they caused significant injuries. “I’ve been with this department for 33 years, and I’ve never seen any action like this before.”
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The incident began about 5 a.m. May 24 when police dispatchers received a call from a man asking whether he could camp in a public park. Law enforcement wrongly believed the man calling was Tikka’s cousin, Garrett Tikka, who had a warrant for failing to serve a 10-day sentence for driving with a revoked license, so dispatchers sent officers, including Miller and Woodruff, to detain him.
When they approached Tikka’s vehicle, the troopers saw him in the back and ordered him to get out of the car, citing a warrant for his arrest. When they knocked on the window of the car, according to authorities, Tikka did not respond.
Miller then notified Tikka that he was going to pepper spray the inside of the truck if Tikka refused to exit, according to court documents citing his body camera.
“Tikka — either you come out, or we’re going to bust out your window” and send in the dog to bite you, he said, court documents allege.
Tikka refused, saying there was not a warrant out for his arrest, the court documents state.
Miller then broke a back window of the car, as Woodruff threatened to send the canine into the truck, the court documents state, but Tikka still refused to leave. Miller then discharged pepper spray into the vehicle, causing Tikka to scream from the irritant and finally open the car door, the court documents add.
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Miller also inadvertently stunned a third officer who was not charged in the incident, court filings state.
Stills from the body camera show Tikka crouched next to the black truck with blood on his forehead and the dog leaping onto him. Tikka’s pants are partially down his legs, revealing his underwear.
“My hands are behind my back, sir, please stop,” Tikka said as the dog pounced on him, according to the court filings. Woodruff continues to give the bite command. Tikka’s face and head were “bleeding profusely,” the filings stated.
“Please, stop you guys I am not a criminal,” Tikka said, according to the court filing.
“You were told,” Miller replied, the court filings state. “You were given so many opportunities, man.”
At no time during the encounter, the charging documents note, did any officer ask the man in the car what his name was. They only addressed him by Tikka.
Medical responders eventually transported Tikka to a hospital. On the ride, another trooper confirmed it was Ben Tikka, not Garrett Tikka, who had been hit, bitten and arrested. Police had charged Ben Tikka with three counts of fourth-degree assault, though the Kenai District Attorney’s Office later dropped those charges.
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Woodruff wrote that Tikka had resisted arrest and that other officers couldn’t control him, which is when he commanded the dog to attack, according to the charging documents. But the video showed Woodruff ordering the dog to bite even as Tikka was being apprehended, including one bite that lasted 66 seconds, according to the court documents.
Joseph Miller, 49, and Jason Woodruff, 42, were charged with fourth-degree assault, a misdemeanor, for beating 37-year-old Ben Tikka in Kenai, Alaska, according to charging documents filed this week.
After the incident, Tikka reported an open bite on his left arm, multiple fractures and lacerations on his triceps and head. The troopers mistook Tikka for his cousin, who has the same last name.
James Cockrell, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Public Safety, said in a news conference Thursday that he put both troopers on administrative leave and had been the one to refer their cases for a criminal investigation.
“I was totally sickened by what I saw,” he said, adding that they caused significant injuries. “I’ve been with this department for 33 years, and I’ve never seen any action like this before.”
...
The incident began about 5 a.m. May 24 when police dispatchers received a call from a man asking whether he could camp in a public park. Law enforcement wrongly believed the man calling was Tikka’s cousin, Garrett Tikka, who had a warrant for failing to serve a 10-day sentence for driving with a revoked license, so dispatchers sent officers, including Miller and Woodruff, to detain him.
When they approached Tikka’s vehicle, the troopers saw him in the back and ordered him to get out of the car, citing a warrant for his arrest. When they knocked on the window of the car, according to authorities, Tikka did not respond.
Miller then notified Tikka that he was going to pepper spray the inside of the truck if Tikka refused to exit, according to court documents citing his body camera.
“Tikka — either you come out, or we’re going to bust out your window” and send in the dog to bite you, he said, court documents allege.
Tikka refused, saying there was not a warrant out for his arrest, the court documents state.
Miller then broke a back window of the car, as Woodruff threatened to send the canine into the truck, the court documents state, but Tikka still refused to leave. Miller then discharged pepper spray into the vehicle, causing Tikka to scream from the irritant and finally open the car door, the court documents add.
...
Miller also inadvertently stunned a third officer who was not charged in the incident, court filings state.
Stills from the body camera show Tikka crouched next to the black truck with blood on his forehead and the dog leaping onto him. Tikka’s pants are partially down his legs, revealing his underwear.
“My hands are behind my back, sir, please stop,” Tikka said as the dog pounced on him, according to the court filings. Woodruff continues to give the bite command. Tikka’s face and head were “bleeding profusely,” the filings stated.
“Please, stop you guys I am not a criminal,” Tikka said, according to the court filing.
“You were told,” Miller replied, the court filings state. “You were given so many opportunities, man.”
At no time during the encounter, the charging documents note, did any officer ask the man in the car what his name was. They only addressed him by Tikka.
Medical responders eventually transported Tikka to a hospital. On the ride, another trooper confirmed it was Ben Tikka, not Garrett Tikka, who had been hit, bitten and arrested. Police had charged Ben Tikka with three counts of fourth-degree assault, though the Kenai District Attorney’s Office later dropped those charges.
...
Woodruff wrote that Tikka had resisted arrest and that other officers couldn’t control him, which is when he commanded the dog to attack, according to the charging documents. But the video showed Woodruff ordering the dog to bite even as Tikka was being apprehended, including one bite that lasted 66 seconds, according to the court documents.
