A Colorado Springs man is suing his public defender and the El Paso County sheriff, claiming he was falsely imprisoned for a crime he did not commit, though he ultimately pleaded guilty. Tyrin Gill filed a lawsuit in El Paso County District Court on Feb. 21, claiming false imprisonment, first-degree kidnapping, first-degree official misconduct, and human trafficking and slavery. El Paso County Sheriff Joe Roybal and Jackson Strain, Gill's former public defender who, according to his LinkedIn webpage, works for the Colorado State Public Defender's Office, are named as defendants. In an interview with The Gazette on Thursday, Gill claimed local law enforcement officials kidnapped him when they arrested him at his apartment building on Oct. 13 and then falsely imprisoned him at the El Paso County jail until Feb. 20. Gill said on Oct. 13 he left his apartment off Stetson Hills Boulevard on Colorado Springs' east side, intending to walk to a nearby grocery store, when several law enforcement officials "ambushed" and arrested him in the stairwell of the apartment building. The officials told him they were arresting him because he failed to register as a sexual offender, Gill said. "I said, 'You have the wrong guy. I've never been accused of such a thing, nor is it in my record,'" he said. As they placed him in the back of a patrol car, Gill said when he asked to see a warrant for his arrest one of the law enforcement officials "pulled up a computer screen I could barely see and suggested I consider that a warrant." Gill said he was charged with invasion of privacy, a misdemeanor, and held at the El Paso County jail until mid-February. Court documents he shared with The Gazette show he was accused of, and later pleaded guilty to, "unlawfully and knowingly" observing or photographing "the intimate parts of J.C., without the victim's consent, in a situation where the victim had a reasonable expectation of privacy" on or around April 1, 2023. He said while jailed he repeatedly told his attorney, Strain, he was innocent of the crime and should be released from the jail. Gill could not post his $15,000 bond. His public defender, Strain, eventually came to him with a guilty plea and said if Gill signed it, he would receive 120 days of time served, Gill said. "My public defender wasn't giving me advice," Gill said. Neither El Paso County nor the El Paso County Sheriff's Office provided comment, citing the pending litigation. The Colorado State Public Defender's Office did not immediately return a call seeking comment Friday. As of 3:15 p.m. Friday, neither Roybal nor Strain had filed any answers to Gill's Feb. 21 complaint, court records show. Gill said he pleaded guilty to invasion of privacy so he could leave the jail, though he maintains his innocence. He said he lost his apartment during the time he was jailed and was not able to continue online college courses he was taking before his arrest. He is now homeless, he said. "They cost me time; they cost me property and freedom; and psychological, vocational and financial stress," Gill said. He seeks $25,000 in restitution.
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