A former Fort Lewis College police officer had his law enforcement certification revoked by the state’s Peace Officer Standards and Training Board earlier this month after he was sentenced to four years in prison on a domestic violence charge.
Garrett McCoy, 35, pleaded guilty on May 23 to a felony second-degree assault, which stemmed from a February domestic violence incident in which he strangled his then-girlfriend.
He was employed by the college when the incident occurred and when he was arrested in March. McCoy joined the department in December 2014, said FLC spokeswoman Nardy Bickel. He was formally placed on paid administrative leave on March 29, according to documents obtained through a Colorado Open Records Act request.
The college provided accounts of two internal investigations into McCoy, one in which he was exonerated in 2023 and one related to the 2024 criminal charges.
His employment with the FLC Police Department was formally terminated May 2 on the basis that the permanent restraining order filed against him barred him from possessing a firearm, which is an essential minimum requirement of the job.
According to an arrest affidavit, McCoy was served with a protection order by a La Plata County Sheriff’s Deputy on March 12 restraining him from contacting his girlfriend of five years.
Minutes after the deputy handed McCoy the order, he called the protectee twice. A week later, law enforcement responded to a report of a disturbance at McCoy’s residence.
During the course of the investigation, the protectee told law enforcement that McCoy had begun to physically abuse her beginning in June 2022. During one such incident, the victim threatened to call 911.
“Garrett had responded that he was 911, and he would hunt her down and kill her if she called,” the deputy wrote in a second arrest affidavit. “(The victim) told me that Garrett is an avid hunter and had access to a large number of firearms. (The victim) explained that due to his threats and the fact that he worked in law enforcement she was afraid of reporting the assaults.”
The victim described in detail at least a half dozen incidents of domestic violence. McCoy, who was often under the influence of alcohol when the incidents occurred, would frequently take the victim’s keys and cellphone from her and prevented her from leaving the premises on more than one occasion. Her recounting was supported by photos of injuries with corroborating timestamps linked to the events that caused them, text messages, and interviews with family and friends to whom the victim turned for support.
The felony assault and kidnapping charges upon which McCoy was arrested were tied to an event that occurred on Feb. 5 or 6. McCoy arrived home after work around 9 or 10 p.m., intoxicated, and proceeded to shove the victim to the ground. He repeatedly strangled her, took away her keys and cellphone, and threatened to kill her.
McCoy was charged by the 6th Judicial District Attorney’s Office with second-degree assault and second-degree kidnapping. The latter charge was dropped and McCoy pleaded guilty to the assault charge under the terms of an agreement that capped his potential incarceration at four years.
A second-degree assault charge carries a presumptive penalty range of two years to six years in prison. McCoy was sentenced to the maximum allowable four years in prison on Sept. 6. He will go before the parole board in October 2025 and will be barred from possessing firearms for life.
Under Colorado law, a peace officer who is convicted of a felony shall have their certification suspended or revoked by the Peace Officer Standards and Training Board, which operates under the state’s Attorney General’s office.
The board revoked his certification at a meeting Dec. 6, according to the state’s database.
rschafir@durangoherald.com
