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Couple gets $1.6M after incident involving Las Cruces police

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — A federal jury has awarded $1.6 million in damages to a woman and her husband over a 2013 incident involving two Las Cruces police officers. The Las Cruces Sun-News (http://bit.ly/2kEoqhH) reports the verdict was reached last Friday after a five-day trial in U.S. District Court. According to the newspaper, a Las Cruces police officer threw Jillian Beck onto gravel and slammed her face into rocks — causing profuse bleeding, a broken nose and a fractured wrist. Jurors also concluded another policeman unlawfully seized and arrested Andrew Beck after officers were called out to a January 2013 dispute between neighbors. The couple filed a civil-rights lawsuit against the two officers, who are still employed by the city. The Becks were awarded $1 million in punitive damages and $600,000 in compensatory damages.