Former La Mesa officer on trial for filing false police report

A former La Mesa police officer lied on a police report to justify what was becoming a very public and controversial arrest, a prosecutor alleged Wednesday, while a defense attorney said his client's report was a completely truthful account that sustained multiple reviews by his superiors despite the scrutiny the police department was under.

Opening statements and testimony began in the trial of Matthew Dages, who is accused of lying about the basis of his May 27, 2020, arrest of Amaurie Johnson, a young Black man who was waiting for friends outside an apartment complex near the Grossmont Transit Center.

Johnson's arrest was captured on video and circulated over social media, sparking particular condemnation in the wake of the in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, which occurred two days earlier.

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