Lynnwood council agrees to ask AG to investigate jail death
LYNNWOOD — Tirhas Tesfatsion’s sister remembers her as incredibly loving.
If she saw someone who needed a pick-me-up, she would take off her earrings and give them to that person.
“She always had the most beautiful smile, the most loving human,” said Tesfatsion’s sister, who did not want to be identified by name. “That was her job. To love and give love and she should not have been taken away.”
Tesfatsion died July 13, less than 36 hours after being booked into the Lynnwood Jail for investigation of a DUI. The Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office determined she died by suicide. She was 47.
Members of Tesfatsion’s family rallied Monday evening outside Lynnwood City Hall. Under a framed portrait of the Lynnwood woman were half a dozen candles with crosses on them. Her family called for answers explaining how Tesfatsion died. Later, inside City Hall, they urged the city to hit the pause button on a new jail that would cost tens of millions of dollars, which was originally on the City Council agenda the same evening.
Under pressure from the vocal crowd, the council passed a motion to request a new independent investigation into the death through the state Attorney General’s Office.
https://www.heraldnet.com/news/lynnwood-council-agrees-to-ask-ag-to-investigate-jail-death/