Ruby Johnson, 77, has lived in her house for 40 years. After a Denver police SWAT raid, she’s afraid to be home.

Johnson sues Denver Police Department detective who led case, alleging search violated her civil rights

By ELISE SCHMELZER | eschmelzer@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: December 1, 2022 at 6:00 a.m. | UPDATED: December 1, 2022 at 5:08 p.m.

Ruby Johnson, 77, is afraid to be alone in the house where she’s lived for 40 years because of Denver police.

Denver police officers dressed in military-style SWAT gear on Jan. 4 descended on Johnson’s Montbello home to serve a search warrant. Johnson, in her bathrobe, opened her door when an officer on a bullhorn told anyone inside to come out. Officers carrying rifles stood on her lawn next to an armored tactical vehicle. One officer held the leash of a German shepherd K9.

Once inside her home, Johnson said, they smashed a door to her garage with a battering ram, broke apart a ceiling panel, broke the head off of a beloved collectible doll and left the house in disarray.

They were looking for a stolen iPhone that had pinged near her home. The iPhone was believed to be inside a stolen truck along with several guns. But police found nothing inside Johnson’s home.

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