DENVER — A man pleaded guilty on Friday in connection with a 2022 Denver police shooting downtown that left multiple bystanders injured.
Jordan Waddy pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit possession of a weapon by a previous offender, which is a Class 6 felony, according to the Denver District Attorney's Office. His sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 30.
The shooting happened around 1:30 a.m. of July 17, 2022, as bars were letting out in Denver's Lower Downtown (LoDo). Denver police were attempting to take Waddy, who was 21 at the time, into custody after he was allegedly involved in an altercation outside of Larimer Beer Hall.
According to body camera video, Waddy pulled a handgun from the side of his hoodie's front pocket, threw it onto the ground and raised both hands in the air as police began firing at him from the front and the side. He was among a crowd of people.
In total, six people, plus Waddy, were injured. The six people were bystanders and suffered non-life-threatening injuries from a "direct or indirect result of the officer-involved shooting," according to Denver police.
READ MORE: Witness recounts 'traumatic' moments after officer-involved shooting in downtown Denver
Waddy was charged with three counts of possession of a weapon by a previous offender and one count of third-degree assault, according to the Denver District Attorney's Office.
In August 2022, Denver District Attorney Beth McCann announced that she was opening a grand jury investigation. In January 2023, that grand jury indicted one of the three involved police officers, Brandon Francisco Ramos, on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges: two counts of second-degree assault - reckless, three counts of third-degree assault – knowing/reckless, three counts of third-degree assault – negligence with a deadly weapon, one count of prohibited use of a weapon, and five counts of reckless endangerment. In the aftermath, Ramos, who joined the department in 2019, was suspended without pay due to the felony charges, which is standard protocol, according to DPD.
Ramos pleaded not guilty to the charges against him in September. His jury trial is set to start Feb. 20, 2024.
Four of the people injured in the shooting — Bailey Alexander, Yekalo Weldehiwet, Willis Small IV and Mark Bess— filed a lawsuit against Ramos in April 2023. The plaintiffs are asking for compensatory and consequential damage, but a specific amount was not listed.
