Galileo Wise Sues Boulder Police Officers for Tackling Him Off His Bike and Detaining Him Without Legal Justification

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Media Contact: Anna DelValle

July 22, 2026

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Galileo Wise Sues Boulder Police Officers for Tackling Him Off His Bike and Detaining Him Without Legal Justification

Boulder, Colo. – Today Grata Law and Policy LLC filed a complaint in Boulder District Court on behalf of Galileo Wise, a Boulder County teen who was riding his bicycle through the underpass at College and Broadway when he was tackled and detained by a group of Boulder police officers pursuing a suspect who had robbed a bank across town. Police heard on their radios that the suspect had “tan skin” and was wearing a “lime green shirt” and “clear glasses.” Although Galileo didn’t match that description in any respect, police stopped him and forced him to the ground because, in their words, they saw a bicyclist wearing something “greenish.”

At the time the officers forced 17-year-old Galileo to the ground, a tracker in the money taken by the bank robber was essentially stationary at a nearby Starbucks. Galileo had not been in the Starbucks and was not stationary – he was riding his bicycle. But for no other reason than that he was in the general vicinity and was wearing something “greenish,” Boulder police forced Galileo from his bike to the ground without probable cause or reasonable suspicion, causing him injuries.

After realizing that the teenager they were detaining didn’t bear any resemblance to the bank robber, an officer then lied to Galileo to justify the arrest. Boulder Police Officer Austin Myers stated that the suspect reportedly was wearing “tan clothing and green clothing” and was “on a bike” when that was not in fact the suspect’s description. Officers also told Galileo that the suspect’s tracker had pinged at “pretty much your exact location,” which again was untrue. Officer Myers then spoke to Galileo’s mother and father on the phone and made similar false statements to each of them.

The case was reviewed by Boulder Police Department’s Professional Standards Unit, the City’s Independent Police Monitor, and Boulder’s Police Oversight Panel. After that review, the Boulder Police Department Sergeant on the scene, Sgt. Steven Faber, was found by Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn to have wrongfully extended the detention of Mr. Wise after any reasonable suspicion dissipated, which is a violation of the Boulder Police Department’s internal rules.

As for deciding to take down a youth on a bicycle, ultimately, the police concluded the suspect “might have been on a bus,” which should have been obvious at the time the police were monitoring the tracker in the money, because the robber’s path matched the HOP bus route exactly from the 29th Street Mall to College Ave.

About two hours later, the bank robber was apprehended. He looks nothing like Galileo.

Galileo Wise

Apprehended bank robber

Dan Williams, counsel for Mr. Wise, said: “This lawsuit seeks to hold the Boulder Police Department responsible both for the injuries caused by their overzealous officers pouncing on someone simply for wearing something ‘greenish,’ and for lying about it after the fact.”

Mr. Wise is represented by Dan Williams and Clarice Tenorio of Grata Law and Policy LLC. The complaint filed in Boulder District Court can be found here.

Bodycam footage from the encounter can be found here.

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