Officer(s) Involved: Denver police officer Try Smith, 50.
Synopsis: The Denver Police Department said Smith was arrested on 21 March 2025, in Brighton for investigation domestic violence and third-degree assault – domestic violence, both misdemeanors, for slamming his wife into patio furniture.
Officers initially responded to the home on a report of a domestic violence incident in progress. Smith was seen with visible scratches on his face, head and arms when police arrived.
Smith told the officers that he had been drinking alcohol and arguing with his wife of eight years outside of the home. When his wife began making remarks about their daughter cheating in school, he “reached his breaking point,” according to arrest records.
As the argument escalated, Smith admitted grabbing his wife by the arms and forcefully pushing her down into a patio chair. He then held onto her arms while she scratched at him.
Detectives saw the altercation in a video provided by Smith and said that Smith “slammed” his wife into the furniture with a significant amount of force.
The wife claimed that Smith grabbed her and she entered flight-or-fight mode. She admitted to scratching at him and attempting to choke him.
She also said Smith pushed her down in the kitchen after the altercation. Officers found no visible injuries on the woman.
Smith joined the department in 2007 and was most recently assigned to the Airport Police Bureau, according to Denver PD. He has been placed in a non-patrol assignment pending the outcome of the case.
Outcome: Smith was released from custody after posting a $2,500 personal recognizance bond. Smith has been placed in a non-patrol assignment and will remain in that role while the case goes through the courts, police said.
The police department’s administrative review of the incident will begin once the criminal case is adjudicated, and that administrative review process includes the Denver Department of Safety and the Office of the Independent Monitor, a civilian oversight agency, according to the agency.
