Overview
- The Justice Department announced on Wednesday, Aug. 26 that it indicted 29‑year‑old Jacob Christopher Slawson on one count of deprivation of rights under color of law and one count of falsification of records.
- The indictment alleges Slawson punched a handcuffed arrestee in the face, knocked him unconscious, then pulled him from a patrol vehicle so that the man struck his head on concrete and suffered a serious injury.
- Prosecutors say Slawson later inserted false and misleading material into a fellow detective’s report with the intent to obstruct the investigation into the use of force.
- The San Carlos Apache Police Department says it opened an internal probe, placed Slawson on administrative leave, cooperated with the FBI and later dismissed him before he completed his probationary period while reviewing department policies.
- If convicted on both counts Slawson faces up to 30 years in prison, the indictment does not name the alleged victim or give a date or precise location for the incident, and the case highlights how federal civil‑rights enforcement can intervene in tribal and local policing disputes.