LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The Clark County School District on Friday released nearly 2,000 pages of emails and documents related to a confrontation recorded last year between an officer and a Durango High School student. The officer involved was later cleared of any wrongdoing.
The incident, which was caught on camera in February 2023, caused an outcry across the country and prompted the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada (ACLU) to file suit over body camera footage, which was released in January of this year were made public.
Judge orders CCSD to pay ACLU $36,000 in attorney fees
“There was no firearm pointed at our clients,” ACLU director Athar Haseebullah said in January after the footage was made public. “This was a BS justification for stopping and accosting children.”
ACLU responds to bodycam release, accusing Clark County School District of cover-up
In the series of documents released Friday, one statement referenced two calls prior to the incident in question, citing examples of teenagers “pointing or pulling weapons,” putting officers on “high alert.”
Also included was a photo of unknown teens making what appeared to be fleeting hand gestures.
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Another photo from what appeared to be CCSD police showed several emojis of police officers with guns pointed at them.
In a subsequent document, law enforcement officials said they “do not recognize” the account associated with the photo as a Durango High School student.
According to court documents, the officer involved, Lt. Jason Elfberg, was not disciplined, but emails shed some light on an internal investigation.
Several showed correspondence with an outside agency regarding a “use of force” investigation.
Video of Durango High School incident released
All this came two months after a judge ordered CCSD to pay the ACLU $36,000 in attorney fees. Access to CCSD internal investigative interviews and files was also prohibited.
Also included in the documents were several copies of what appear to be presentations of the use of force policy.
All of the emails in Friday’s documents spanned from just after the incident in February 2023 to a few months later.
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