Assault charge dropped against woman in Fort Collins police video

Charges against a woman thrown to the ground by police in Old Town have been modified but her trial will go forward.

A judge on Friday ruled against a motion to dismiss charges against Michaella Surat, a Fort Collins woman who became the subject of a viral video in Old Town when she was arrested in April.

Surat can be seen in a 9-second video being thrown to the ground by a police officer outside Bondi Beach Bar, and police have maintained that the way the arrest was handled was relatively standard after they say Surat had assaulted an officer.

She faces charges of resisting arrest and obstructing a peace officer. Surat was previously charged with third-degree assault and obstructing a peace officer, and she pleaded not guilty in July.

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The District Attorney's Office filed a motion to amend the third-degree assault charge on Aug. 23 to resisting arrest.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Mitch Murray said while he couldn't comment on this particular case, the DA's office will sometimes amend charges that police bring forward after reviewing facts of a case.

Surat's attorney David Lane filed a motion on Aug. 28 to dismiss Surat's charges "for outrageous police misconduct."

"... the Fort Collins police department, with the aid of their willing accomplices in the District Attorney's office, are falsely prosecuting Michaella Surat while ignoring the felony assault committed against her by Fort Collins police officer Randall Klamser," the motion stated.

"The Defendant's motion is factually and legally unsound," the response from the 8th Judicial District Attorney's Office stated. "The doctrine of outrageous governmental conduct is not appropriate in this case." "

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Judge Joshua Lehman said the cases cited in the motion to dismiss did not appear to support a similar situation to Surat's. While the video of her being thrown to the ground "is shocking," it's not shocking in the same sense as the cases cited and is "much less shocking" when the entire video of the arrest is played and the full context is seen, he said.

Lehman also denied Lane's argument to call Klamser to testify before the court regarding  allegations that he lied in his police report about the incident.

However, the judge said information about allegations of perjury or lying were not included in the motion to dismiss and it wouldn't be appropriate to only call Klamser to testify before a trial while he is being accused of a felony crime.

A three-day trial has been set for Jan. 8-10.

Reporter Saja Hindi covers public safety and local politics. You can follow her on Twitter @BySajaHindi or email her at shindi@coloradoan.com.

Previously:Court date for woman in Old Town arrest video postponed