Colorado State Patrol fires trooper alleging falsification of taser records, excessive force
The Colorado State Patrol has concluded one of its troopers, Amber Garcia, used excessive force when she tasered a driver seven times in 35 seconds in 2024 in Saguache County. But that's not what got Garcia fired last year. CBS News has learned the State Patrol ultimately terminated Garcia after concluding she falsified records related to her Taser certification and training.
"It is my finding that Trooper Amber Garcia was not certified nor authorized to carry and use the EMDT(Electro -Muscular Disruption Technology) weapon that was used against the motorist on May 4, 2024," wrote CSP Major Brett Williams in a 2025 memo summarizing CSP's findings. Williams said terminating Garcia was "more based upon the integrity and being untruthful more than the use of force."
Internal CSP records and sworn deposition testimony provide new details about both the use-of-force investigation and the agency's subsequent decision to terminate Garcia.
Garcia referred questions to her attorney, who said, "We have no comment at this time."
The CSP findings stem from a roadside encounter in Saguache County that was captured on both dashboard and body-worn cameras.
Travis Tomlinson lives in Moffat and says on May 4, 2024, he was driving home on Highway 285 after running errands. His route home took him past Trooper Garcia, who had stopped another motorist for speeding.
Tomlinson, driving an SUV, passed the traffic stop and veered over the white line separating the travel lane from the shoulder where Garcia had stopped the other motorist.
Garcia immediately broke off from the traffic stop and pursued Tomlinson, who pulled over as soon as he saw Garcia behind him.
Tomlinson immediately got out of his SUV and began walking toward the trooper, who immediately unholstered her Taser.
The interaction was recorded by a camera mounted on the dashboard of the CSP vehicle and by Garcia's body-worn camera.
"Stay in the car now," shouts Garcia.
"This is my ground," responds Tomlinson.
"Get on the ground then," commands the trooper.
Tomlinson says, "This is my ground, I'm an American..you hear me? This is my f---ing ground" and then turns to head back to his vehicle.
Garcia is seen on video using her Taser, hitting Tomlinson in the back. She did not warn him of what she was about to do.
Tomlinson, 34, is seen falling to the ground, and Garcia continues to shout orders at him.
According to the law enforcement investigation, Garcia activated her Taser seven times in a row in about a minute, with the State Patrol concluding that three to four of those activations occurred after Tomlinson was already incapacitated by the initial Taser deployments. CSP says the trooper admitted Tomlinson could not comply with her commands because "I had put him in NMI (neuromuscular incapacitation)."
"I can't, I can't," Tomlinson continually replies to the trooper's commands. Several times Tomlinson can be heard yelling, "help help."
As a result of the encounter, Tomlinson was charged with obstruction of a peace officer and failure to yield to a peace officer. Those charges were later dismissed by District Attorney Anne Kelly's office.
Garcia admitted during CSP interviews to using excessive force. "I mean yeah," she said, "I pulled the trigger a bunch of times."
In an interview with CBS Colorado, Tomlinson, who has several previous arrests in southern Colorado, said, "I was in fear for my life. I thought I was going to die. It was definitely excessive force after the first pull," said Tomlinson. "To get tased again and you're paralyzed. She's telling you to roll over, do this, do that, and you can't do anything. And then you get tased again."
His lawyer, Sarah Schielke, said, "There was absolutely no reason for that use of force and the fact she (Garcia) did it over and over again makes it torture."
Last month, Tomlinson's attorney, Schielke, filed a federal lawsuit against Garcia, alleging the former trooper violated Tomlinson's constitutional rights.
The Colorado State Patrol declined to comment, citing the pending federal lawsuit filed by Tomlinson.
While CSP investigators questioned Garcia's actions, prosecutors ultimately reached a different conclusion. Garcia later told her supervisors she was scared during the Tomlinson interaction, that he was not complying with her orders, and that she believed she had activated her Taser only two to three times, not seven.
The State Patrol turned its findings over to local District Attorney Anne Kelly, with CSP Major Brett Williams indicating he had an expectation Garcia would likely face criminal charges, stemming from the roadside Taser incident.
Kelly said it was a "tough call," but in December 2024, she declined to file charges against Garcia, saying she did not believe a jury would convict the trooper.
CSP investigators concluded Garcia used excessive force during the encounter. Kelly, however, reached the opposite conclusion.
Kelly defended the decision to dismiss the criminal charges filed against Tomlinson following the traffic stop.
"She (Garcia) has every reason to believe this individual meant to do her harm and I believe her use of force was absolutely justified," Kelly told CBS Colorado. "Mr. Tomlinson never should have done what he did. I stand by that decision," said the prosecutor.
Although Garcia avoided criminal charges, CSP's internal review later revealed questions about Garcia's Taser certification and training records.
The agency concluded that Garcia "was not in compliance in completing her required (Taser) training" in the first quarter of 2024. CSP found she was not certified or authorized to carry the Taser she used on Tomlinson.
Major Williams later testified during a sworn deposition that Garcia had been untruthful about completing her training before the required deadline and had falsified documents, raising concerns about her "integrity and credibility."
"She had falsified her training logs and provided information that was not truthful during the administrative investigation," said Williams.
"She attempted to conceal that she had not completed the training within the first quarter as required. I would not consider her for rehire with the State Patrol."
The Colorado Peace Officer Standards and Training Board now lists Garcia as having been terminated by CSP and as having a credibility report on her record for untruthfulness.
Despite the findings that led to her dismissal, Garcia later landed another job in law enforcement in southern Colorado.
Anne Kelly, the district attorney who declined to file charges against Garcia, hired her as an investigator, two months after the CSP fired Garcia. Kelly said she believes CSP's investigation into Garcia's Taser certification was flawed.
"It doesn't hold water. She did nothing dishonest. I would say I have a lot of questions for the Colorado State Patrol about the procedure they used to make this (Taser certification) determination. From my perspective, I have absolutely no concerns about the credibility of Amber Garcia. I didn't have any concerns when I hired her, I don't have any concerns today," said Kelly.
Kelly said Garcia was "by far" the most qualified candidate for the investigator position, had received positive references from a previous police department, and "is an asset to our community and our office. We are lucky to have her." The prosecutor said she had no previous relationship with Garcia and did not know her before the 2024 Taser incident.
Kelly had her own office investigate Garcia's Taser certification. That review concluded "CSP was unable to articulate with specificity the precise statement alleged to be knowingly false. This inquiry identified insufficient evidence to conclude that Garcia knowingly made an untruthful statement."
Travis Tomlinson told CBS he still suffers some physical issues related to the 2024 Taser incident. He is also facing a new criminal case being prosecuted by Kelly's office. Court records show he has been charged with multiple felony assault charges, false imprisonment and felony menacing. He is scheduled for trial in July.
