Washington State Considers Ending 'Virtual License to Kill' Given to the Police

[99th_Monkey]

2. Yah, that's some sick shit alright

Examining official records obtained through a freedom of information request, the Spokesman-Review newspaper found that only one officer has faced criminal charges for the unlawful use of deadly force while on duty: Spokane Officer Karl Thompson, who was sentenced to four years in a minimum-security prison for the 2006 beating death of mentally handicapped Otto Zehm at a convenience store.

At the time of his trial, Thompson was on track to become Spokane’s police chief. He was not convicted of criminal homicide, but rather of excessive force and concealment of evidence. Despite being the exceptional episode in which a Washington police officer was held legally accountable for killing an unarmed citizen, the Otto Zehm case offers a compelling study of the culture of arrogant privilege and institutional dishonesty that has been nurtured by Washington’s use-of-force law.

Thompson was the first of seven officers who responded to a call that Zehm, an unemployed janitor, was acting strangely at a convenience store. Upon his arrival, Thompson ordered Zehm to to drop the two-liter bottle of Pepsi he was about to purchase. Puzzled, Zehm reasonably asked, “Why?” Interpreting that momentary act of non-compliance as unlawful resistance and perhaps a threat to officer safety, Thompson lit into Zehm with his nightstick, clubbing him first in the legs, then on the shoulders, neck, and head. The Spokane PD’s use-of-force policy defines blows to the head as lethal strikes that are justifiable only when a suspect threatens the life of a police officer or bystanders.

As the security video documented, Zehm never put up a fight. He retreated from Thompson and then made a pitiable attempt to use his bottle of soda to deflect blows aimed at his face.

“All I wanted was a Snickers bar,” Zehm whimpered as Thompson beat him.

The assailant escalated by tasering the victim at least three times. Thompson was eventually joined by six other other police officers. Eventually, Thompson was actually sitting on Zehm, who was face-down on the floor.

The victim was hog-tied in a “four-point restraint,” meaning that his hands were shackled to his ankles. Department policy guidelines emphasize that suspects restrained in this fashion are never to be placed face-down since this posture can result in “positional asphyxia.” Yet Zehm was left in that position for about seventeen minutes, and at one point an officer actually pulled his feet backward – which increased the risk of suffocation by placing pressure on the victim’s diaphragm.



After emergency personnel arrived, they were instructed to dig the Taser barbs out of Zehm’s flesh. They were also asked to provide a “non-rebreathing” oxygen mask; this was placed over the victim’s face, supposedly to prevent him from assaulting the officers by spitting on them. This mask was not designed or intended to be used without being attached to an oxygen supply. Once the mask was placed on Zehm’s face, the traumatized and panicking man – who was already at severe risk of hypoxia – was forced to breathe through an easily obstructed opening roughly the size of a quarter.

Zehm died at a nearby hospital about two hours after the gang assault – but the Spokane PD was not finished with him.

Within hours of the victim’s death, Police Chief Jim Nicks told the media that Zehm had “lunged” at Thompson, thereby threatening his life. Other officers claimed that Zhem had a prior arrest for assaulting an officer. Both claims were conscious, deliberate lies. Two weeks later, Detective Terry Ferguson, who “investigated” the incident for the Spokane PD, filed a report claiming that none of the seven officers who assaulted Zehm committed a crime.

Detective Ferguson had little time to investigate what was done to Zehm, because she was too busy investigating the victim. She persuaded a judge to issue warrants to pry into every aspect of Zehm’s medical, employment, and personal history, on the pretext that the deceased was suspected of “assaulting a police officer.” This was actually an unsuccessful effort to exhume something – anything – that could be used to denigrate the victim. (It’s worth remembering that officer-involved deaths are usually investigated as “suspected assaults on law enforcement,” rather than as suspected criminal homicides.)

Under the pressure of a threatened lawsuit, Spokane County Prosecutor Steve Tucker released the video recordings of the assault, which he and the police had previously suppressed. The recordings contradicted every critical element of Thompson’s version of the event, beginning with the claim that Zehm had “lunged” at the officer.

With no criminal charges filed against Thompson, Zehm’s family announced its intention to sue the City of Spokane, and the U.S. Justice Department began a civil rights inquiry. In March 2009 – three years after the killing – Chief Anne Kirkpatrick (who had replaced Chief Nicks) issued a public statement offering her “unequivocal support” to Thompson. “Based on all the information and evidence I have reviewed, I have determined that Officer Karl Thompson acted consistent with the law,” Kirkpatrick insisted.

A few months later, Chief Kirkpatrick assigned Thompson – who was, recall, the subject of a federal civil rights investigation – to help train other Spokane police officers how to deal with “high-risk liability incidents.”

After emergency personnel arrived, they were instructed to dig the Taser barbs out of Zehm’s flesh. They were also asked to provide a “non-rebreathing” oxygen mask; this was placed over the victim’s face, supposedly to prevent him from assaulting the officers by spitting on them. This mask was not designed or intended to be used without being attached to an oxygen supply. Once the mask was placed on Zehm’s face, the traumatized and panicking man – who was already at severe risk of hypoxia – was forced to breathe through an easily obstructed opening roughly the size of a quarter.

Zehm died at a nearby hospital about two hours after the gang assault – but the Spokane PD was not finished with him.

Within hours of the victim’s death, Police Chief Jim Nicks told the media that Zehm had “lunged” at Thompson, thereby threatening his life. Other officers claimed that Zhem had a prior arrest for assaulting an officer. Both claims were conscious, deliberate lies. Two weeks later, Detective Terry Ferguson, who “investigated” the incident for the Spokane PD, filed a report claiming that none of the seven officers who assaulted Zehm committed a crime.

Detective Ferguson had little time to investigate what was done to Zehm, because she was too busy investigating the victim. She persuaded a judge to issue warrants to pry into every aspect of Zehm’s medical, employment, and personal history, on the pretext that the deceased was suspected of “assaulting a police officer.” This was actually an unsuccessful effort to exhume something – anything – that could be used to denigrate the victim. (It’s worth remembering that officer-involved deaths are usually investigated as “suspected assaults on law enforcement,” rather than as suspected criminal homicides.)

Under the pressure of a threatened lawsuit, Spokane County Prosecutor Steve Tucker released the video recordings of the assault, which he and the police had previously suppressed. The recordings contradicted every critical element of Thompson’s version of the event, beginning with the claim that Zehm had “lunged” at the officer.

With no criminal charges filed against Thompson, Zehm’s family announced its intention to sue the City of Spokane, and the U.S. Justice Department began a civil rights inquiry. In March 2009 – three years after the killing – Chief Anne Kirkpatrick (who had replaced Chief Nicks) issued a public statement offering her “unequivocal support” to Thompson. “Based on all the information and evidence I have reviewed, I have determined that Officer Karl Thompson acted consistent with the law,” Kirkpatrick insisted.

A few months later, Chief Kirkpatrick assigned Thompson – who was, recall, the subject of a federal civil rights investigation – to help train other Spokane police officers how to deal with “high-risk liability incidents.”