A former Keller police officer who resigned last year after the city agreed to a settlement with a man who accused the officer of excessive force and of profiling his son has pleaded guilty to official oppression in the same case.
Blake Shimanek was a sergeant with the Keller Police Department when he pulled over Dillon Puente on Aug. 15, 2020, for making a wide right turn.
Dillon's father, Marco Puente, soon arrived at the scene in a separate vehicle and started to record what was going on from across the street. That’s when video released by the department showed Shimanek order another officer, Ankit Tomer, to arrest the father and pepper spray him.
Shimanek was demoted and eventually resigned after the city agreed to settle with the boy's father for $200,000 in February 2021.
Get DFW local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC DFW newsletters.
On Thursday, Shimanek pled guilty to official oppression, a Class A misdemeanor, for his role in the arrest and pepper spraying of Dillon Puente.
According to the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office, the plea requires Shimanek to forfeit his peace officer's license, meaning he is barred from working in law enforcement in Texas, and he will be admitted to the Public Safety Employee Treatment Court.
The DA's office said on its webpage that the treatment court program "is designed to divert eligible public safety employees out of the traditional criminal justice process and into appropriate rehabilitative alternatives. After eligible defendants have been screened, assessed, and approved for participation into the program, he/she will promptly begin a treatment regimen that is specific to his/her needs."
"Our top priority is to make sure that he never works in law enforcement in Texas again," Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney Sharen Wilson said. "That has been accomplished. We also consulted with the victim and he agreed to this plea."
If Shimanek successfully completes the diversion program, the judge will later dismiss the case. The diversion program can last anywhere from nine months to two years.
If he fails, he will be sentenced for the offense. A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by a maximum fine of $4,000 and jail time of up to one year.
