Excessive Force Complaint Sustained In Mark Hays Case -Updated

Originally posted at 02:08 on 12/16/08, updated 13:52 on 12/16/08

The Seattle Police Department's Office of Professional Accountability's Civilian Auditor released her biannual report recently and in it was a revelation that I wasn't aware of. It appears as though the OPA, the SPD's internal investigations division, may have found that officers used excessive force when they arrested Mark Hays and Michael Lujan earlier this year.

If you didn't remember, Mark Hays and his friend were walking back from a night out when they apparently jaywalked in front of an unmarked SUV full of undercover Seattle Police officers. The plainclothes officers, part of the "proactive policing" "Anti-Crime Team" yelled at the pair and told them they could be arrested for pedestrian interference. The pair apparently told the officers where they could put their interference and the officers piled out of their unmarked SUV and started arresting them.

What happened next, supposedly in front of several witnesses, is a matter of dispute. Officers allege that when they began arresting Lujan on charges of pedestrian interference that Hays jumped on one officers back, even though witnesses who talked to reporters but later refused to testify said they never saw Hays tackle an officer.



The ACT officers then arrested Hays for assaulting an officer and pedestrian interference, an arrest that was also partially caught on a responding unit's dashcam, as seen above courtesy of The Stranger's coverage of the incident. That video shows an ACT officer repeatedly punching and kneeing Hays after he was under control and face-down on the ground even as the cruiser approached the scene, and then showed even more punches and knees hit Hayes afterward as well.

Hays was later found guilty of assaulting an officer when none of the witnesses testified but Lujan was found innocent of pedestrian interference, essentially meaning that the initial excuse to effect the brutal arrest of Hayes was unfounded.

The SPD OPA Auditor, Katrina Pflaumer, had this to say about her review of a case that had some remarkable similarities with the Hays arrest...

"In another case I agreed with a Sustained finding for excessive force where the back-up officer’s in-car video had recorded the interaction. The officer had been jumped on from the rear as he took control of the subject’s jay-walking friend. When the attacking young man was down and under control, the officer continued to use punches and knee strikes, which he claimed were necessary to control resistance. In the majority of cases, the in-car videos I have seen support the officers. In this case, however, the video was at 180-degree variance with the officer’s perceptions or recollections and a Sustained finding was recommended by OPA and confirmed by the Chief."

While this finding may have been noted in a previously released monthly report from the OPA, generally the description of events in those findings are intentionally left vague, which makes it difficult to determine which person's complaint that finding is related to, but the description the auditor supplied leaves few reasons to doubt as to who this case is referring to... but because the OPA lacks any transparency, it's impossible to determine for certain if they are talking about the Hays case.

One point to remember is the recent contract changes between the city and the police union states that any officers who are found to have lied during an internal investigation are to be fired. The auditor, in this observation about the case, appears to be hinting that she felt the officer in question lied by saying his testimony was a 180 degree contradiction of the video evidence... but we've not heard of any officers being fired from the SPD recently.

But, interestingly enough, the auditor's report doesn't end there as she describes an identical case involving the same officer and, if the case is the Hays case, a member of the rather infamous SPD ACT.

"I was troubled by a case with very similar circumstances three months later, involving the same officer, same kind of strikes delivered, same justification claimed, and same words spoken; but where no in-car recording was available. In that case a person with a felony warrant fled from the officers, was tackled, and was delivered knee strikes in the mid-section during handcuffing. Since the officers’ testimony was consistent and supportive of each other, the result was a finding of Exonerated. The Director and I agreed that, despite some similarities, there was no evidence available to sustain an allegation of excessive force against the employee."

As we covered shortly after the Hays incident, the SPD ACT is responsible for a large number of excessive force complaints due to their aggressive form of "proactive policing" methods. It should be interesting to see if a civil case does develop from this case, if it is the Hays case, as Hays reportedly told reporters that he was in talks with civil rights attorneys shortly after his arrest. Per departmental policy, there has been no word on how the officer was disciplined, or if any discipline had been given over the sustained finding at all.

UPDATE 12/16/08-13:48:
I just realized that this finding may have actually been reported in one of the monthly OPA reports back in October, but the description of the complaint was so vague that there would be no way to link the finding with the case. I covered that report here back in October too... Just struck me now that the two were likely linked.

But again, because of the way the OPA is set up to protect officers, even when they have been found to break the rules, it's impossible to tell if this is the Hays case for certain, even though the similarities are very striking.

SPD Officer Shoots Unarmed Attorney Three Times And Then Sues Him

In June of 2006, off-duty undercover Seattle Police officer Zsolt Dornay, then member of an SPD "proactive policing" Anti-Crime Team (ACT), was driving his motorcycle down a dual-use pedestrian and vehicular alleyway behind Pike Place Market where several nearby taverns were sending their patrons home for the night at the time. Why the officer chose to drive through Post Alley at that time of night, in an area he was well familiar with, instead of nearby main roads is a matter of contention, but witnesses allege that he was gunning his engine in an aggressive manner as he drove through the crowd that numbered at least 75 to 100 people according to most witness accounts.

Post Alley, where the incident occurred, shown in center.

Witnesses allege that as he drove through the crowd he hit a female paralegal with his side mirror which sparked an argument between the woman and the plain-clothed off-duty officer and the woman put herself in front of his bike during the exchange. Witnesses also state at this time that the officer drove forward while the woman was hanging on to his windshield which then caused his bike to tip. At this point, witnesses state that the officer grabbed the woman and threw her forcefully against a nearby door which sparked the nearby crowd to grab the officer.

At this point witness testimony diverges as many witnesses who gave SPD officers testimony later recanted when interviewed by Kent Police investigators when they were brought in to investigate the matter. Some witnesses who later changed their story say their testimony was altered or pressured by SPD officers. Video evidence of what happened also appears to have been lost by the Seattle Police Department who stated to Kent Police investigators that there was no video taken despite there being several nearby cameras that were trained on the site where the attack took place. As a result, there appears to be no way to confirm whether the officer's story or all the witnesses are right about what happened that night.

But witnesses agree that, at this point, the officer was attacked by at least 4 people in the crowd that came to the woman's defense and, in the course of the attack, the officer fired his duty weapon 5 or 6 times into the crowd and shot a nearby unarmed defense attorney 3 times in the abdomen. Witness accounts vary, at worst they say the attorney's involvement was limited to trying to grab the officer to pull him off the woman, others say he never even touched the officer, but all accounts agree that nobody saw him punch or otherwise assault the officer who alleges that he fired into the crowd in self defense and shot the 52 year old lawyer because he was mortally afraid of the lawyer.

The incident drew a great deal of media attention because the officer in question, a second generation cop, had a previous history of problems in the department, and even a possible criminal past. As a result, in a rare step, the SPD turned to an outside department to investigate the incident, the results of which ended up with no charges filed as prosecutors stated that the crowd had some justification to interceded on behalf of the woman who was attacked by the officer.

The problems in this officer's past that prompted this rare move by the SPD include:

• In 1984 he was allegedly arrested and plead guilty to charges of 2nd degree burglary, 3rd degree theft, and criminal trespass as a juvenile.

• In 1991 he was allegedly arrested again and charged with attempting to elude officers in a Grays Harbor incident, the case was ultimately transferred to superior court at the defendant's request and no mention of the case exists in any records afterward. In fact, when questioned about his criminal history by the KIRO 7 news reporters that discovered these court records, the police department stated that the department has no knowledge of such records, nor did they have his initial application for employment or background check in order to ascertain whether these criminal incidents were mentioned on his application... Seems that they conveniently lost his file.

• In 1995 a sustained finding of conduct unbecoming and improper use of force was found against him in an off-duty road rage incident where he assaulted someone at gunpoint. The incident alleges that he chased another motorist for several miles to the victim's workplace while shouting obscenities and "flipping him off", he then held a gun to the victim's head and hit him several times with the gun while grinding his face into the pavement of a parking lot. He only lost 15 vacation days as a result of that sustained finding.

• In 2003 he was accused, along with one other ACT officer, in the widely publicized beating of a 57 year old homeless Native American (in the same area of Post Alley as the incident above). The victim, Nix, was beaten so badly that he nearly died four days later in jail when he collapsed in a shower from a lacerated spleen and several other severe internal injuries. He flat-lined at least twice before surgery that was needed after he nearly bleeding to death after being denied medical care in jail. Nix also alleged that after the beating officers paraded him in front of prisoners and allegedly issued a warning to them that "This is what happens when you mess with the Sgt. In charge of narcotics." Prosecutors dropped all charges against the victim after testimony from several witnesses, some who claimed officers came at them with their clubs and said "you want some of this?", indicated the officers attacked him so quickly he likely wouldn't have known that it was police officers who were beating him.

Photo taken of 65 year old Nix's injuries after a 2003 arrest by SPD ACT Officers

• In 2005 he was accused, along with two other ACT officers, of strip searching three black men, yanking on their testicles, and conducting an invasive body cavity search against policy. Findings partially sustained for strip-searching all three men in front of each other in the same room, a finding that resulted in "re-training".

• 2006: The Post Alley incident noted above.

Additionally, recent reports in the press concerning the possible racial bias of obstruction arrests indicate that this officer is reportedly 12th in the entire department of 1,200 in the number of controversial "stand-alone obstruction" charges issued, (local lawyers sometimes refer to these charges as "contempt of cop"). There have also been several other abuse complaints filed against this officer, though no others are known to have been sustained.

This year, the attorney Dornay shot 3 times filed suit against the officer. In a move highly reminiscent of the infamous SLAPP suits filed by the police guild in the 90's to frighten victims into not reporting abuse, the officer is filing suit against the attorney that he shot, in addition to another suit he filed against the people he alleges attacked him, at the expense of the city who retains a private law firm under a no-bid contract to defend officers against civil rights lawsuits. The city, in fact, has paid the private lawfirm $76,000 in taxpayer funds so far in it's effort to allow this officer with a checkered past to sue the unarmed civilian that he shot while off-duty.

Predictably, as a result, the officer has found himself placed in the media's eye yet again, giving the city of Seattle and it's problematic police department yet another black eye, and it's taxpayer citizens yet another hit in their pocketbooks in the process... more than this, we wonder, what will the toll be in human suffering next time.

The officer in question is still on the SPD payroll, reportedly now as a narcotics officer.

Sources for this story:
A Tale of Two Cops: Seattle Post Intelligencer
Witnesses Give Differing Views Of Fight In Post Alley: Seattle Post Intelligencer
Police Shooting Leads To Two Lawsuits: Seattle Post Intelligencer
Controversial Seattle Police Officer Files Civil Suit: The Stranger
Seattle Officer Accused Of Unecessary Force: KIRO 7 News
The Cops' Credibility Gap: The Seattle Weekly
Shielded From Justice: Human Rights Watch
Law Firm Gets Millions To Defend Cops: Seattle Post Intelligencer

Becoming The Monster: Problems With Proactive Policing

He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you. -Friedrich Nietzsche

One of the more recent trends in policing is the use of nearly autonomous elite police units that are trained to be more aggressive than regular officers and are sent into higher crime areas of cities to do whatever it takes to make arrests. Sometimes referred to as "proactive policing teams" because their mandate is to "go out and arrest criminals before they commit crimes", these units work with very minimal oversight and are encouraged to use whatever tactics they can get away with in order to get results.

While it's difficult to argue against their effectiveness in reducing crime rates, the no-holds-barred methods they use are starting to cause headaches for many municipalities, so many in fact that several have been disbanded in disgrace in recent years.

Most of these problems should have been foreseen because of their very nature; being close-knit and insular teams of officers trained to use highly aggressive tactics who have very little oversight, these elite teams have been prone to corruption by nature and are shown to have little problem with punishing the innocent and guilty alike... but because of their effectiveness city governments were all too willing to overlook the numerous complaints of brutality and corruption that continuously racked up against them.

After several scandals involving these elite police units have surfaced across the US, people are starting to ask questions about how these units are proactive, how they make determinations of guilt that are not based on hard evidence and fact, but on presumptions and profiles instead. Also in the magnifying glass are how insular and unaccountable these teams are and how this predisposes them to the corruption and other color of law abuses that have been forcing cities to disband their elite units. People are wondering whether these elite and aggressive units might just be turning into the very monsters they seek to fight.

For example:

Chicago Illinois, Special Operations Section (SOS)
In the city of Chicago, the now infamous Special Operations Section (SOS) units were disbanded after serious allegations of corruption and color of law abuses that included brutal assaults, falsifying information on reports, home invasions, theft, and even a plot to murder fellow officers who were suspected of turning them in. All this after the infamous Area 2 torture scandals that are still leaving the CPD in a tainted legacy of low morale and intensely poor community relations... as well as numerous dropped prosecutions and millions of dollars in settled and pending legal actions.

Greensboro North Carolina, Special Intelligence Section (SIS)
Another elite proactive anti-crime unit similar to the SOS was disbanded over charges of racism after it was discovered that they were targeting black officers and kept a "black book" that they used to specifically target only black officers in attempts to implicate them in various crimes within a mostly white police department.

Los Angeles California, Elite Metro Unit May Day Scandal
These elite anti-crime units are specially trained to use aggressive tactics and fall back quickly on use of force that goes counter to any standardized use of force continuum that dictates when and what type of force is appropriate for a given situation. LAPD's Elite Metro Unit is an example of this when televised video showed they opened fire on civilians and reporters at a peaceful immigration protest on May 1st. These units have been disbanded and investigations are ongoing after the city initially defended the unit's tactics until the videos of the unprovoked attack surfaced.

Los Angeles CA, The C.R.A.S.H (Rampart) Scandal
Probably the most infamous elite proactive police unit scandal in US history involved the LAPD's elite CRASH unit whose officers were charged with regularly making false arrests, giving perjured testimony, framing innocent people, and even for murder and other criminal activities so much so that they seemed as if they were no different than the criminals they were supposed to be fighting.

Toronto Canada, "Team 3" Scandal
Problems with autonomous elite police units aren't limited to the US. In Toronto an elite unit called "Team 3", aka "Johnny's Boys", had been disbanded after investigators found drugs at one officer's house, along with guns, knives and a ledger that appeared to be a record of a "slush fund" of personal and business expenses. Additionally, there were also allegations that officers had threatened one potential witness and bribed another, and that some had lied in court about their investigative techniques. All this led to charges of theft, forgery, and fraud against 8 officers that were dropped after prosecutors took too long turning over evidence.

Seattle has it's own elite proactive police units, the "Anti-Crime Teams" or ACTs. They too have had a growing number of complaints piling up against them, they have been the subject of some very high profile cases of abuse and have also demonstrated a willingness to punish the guilty and innocent alike. We wonder, in the process of the city defending these units at all costs and refusing to reign them in if Seattle might be building it's own tragic scandal to match those of Chicago and Los Angeles and all these other cities who ignored the warning signs in exchange for political quick fixes and expediency.

We wonder... In comparison, just how bad will Seattle's scandal be in comparison to the others that have come before it... the others that have left lessons in their mistakes and follies for those who are smart enough to learn from them?

Video Of Hays Arrest Released

Busy day...

The Stranger has put up the video of the brutal assault on Mark Hays by the Seattle Police Department's "Anti-Crime Team" for jaywalking has been put up on YouTube...



Sorry, I'm not offering any additional commentary, my head hurts so bad today it's making me feel like throwing up, watching this brings up some painful memories... and watching this might make you feel the same way.

Damn shame, poor guy got this brutal treatment for jaywalking.

A Busy Seattle Police Misconduct News Day

Today was a fairly busy news day in regards to police misconduct in Seattle.

First there was the Mark Hays trial results, as mentioned below.

Then there was the $20,000 police brutality settlement (was that only what the city paid or the total settlement?) in the Claxton case, as mentioned on the sidebar.

Finally, it seems that the ACLU of Washington has taken it upon themselves to push an initiative to repeal anti-marijuana laws while still remaining silent about the deadly civil rights abuses that have occured in the King County Jail. Hey, I'll admit that I'm staunchly anti-marijuana and anti-drug use so I might be a bit biased concerning the ACLU's priorities, but people are dying in that jail because their civil rights are being violated, this seems more problematic to me than some pot-heads having the right to smoke themselves stupid... especially in Seattle where the government legislated that the police must make pot-related offenses the lowest enforcement priority possible.

What's more, it seems we missed that, on Febuary 8th, the ACLU of Washington issued a letter to encourage the city of Seattle to implement the police accountability reforms that were recommended by the mayor's OPARP panel. Oddly enough, the ACLU addressed this letter to the city council, of all people! The council has been supportive of the reforms, pending their own SCCPAP panel's review, while the Seattle Police Officer's Guild has been insistent in it's reluctance towards oversight improvements... This seems to show how out of touch the ACLU is about the real and severe civil rights issues that exist in Seattle by ignoring the well-publicized problems at the jail and showing their ignorance of the well documented problems with the guild's resistance to oversight reforms at the same time.
With "friends" like this, who needs abusive cops?

Mark Hays Case Update: Hays Found Guilty

The Stranger reports that Mark Hays was found guilty of obstruction and assaulting an officer today, after days of jury deliberation and despite reports that several independent witnesses contradicted police assertions that Hays had attempted to tackle an officer prior to the video taped vicious beating Hays received from undercover officers stemming from nothing more than a jaywalking offense.

The Stranger writer who posted this story is unaware as to whether Hays' defense was permitted to show the SPD dash-mounted video of Hays' head being repeatedly smashed into the pavement by several undercover SPD officers, whether the contradictory witness testimonies from multiple bystanders was permitted in the trial, nor whether the undercover ACT officers' history of misconduct and brutality complaints were permitted either.

There has been no word on whether Hays or Lujan are still pursuing civil cases against the city in relation to this case.

UPDATE: However, there was this reply posted in the comments:

I can tell you that the video was played for the jury multiple times. There was only (one) witness that came forward besides the suspects and added nothing to the night's events besides what was on the video already. Bottom line is: if you witness something like this and are bothered by it--COME FORWARD AND TESTIFY! The fact that there were apparent "witnesses" to the event and no one came forward with a statement ruined Hays' case.

As mentioned previously, there were numerous witnesses who told The Stranger's Jonah Spangenthal-Lee that Hays did not attempt to tackle the undercover officers, contrary to police testimony. But, if the person who posted that comment was at the trial, it appears as though these witnesses were too afraid to come forward and contradict the police at trial.

I have some empathy for those frightened witnesses, experiencing or witnessing police brutality is very traumatic and changes your life forever, it makes you question your basic assumptions about society and it forces you to fear the ease with which police can abuse citizens. But as I say repeatedly... if people don't stand up against abusive officers, they'll be free to brutalize more people. Or, as some people tell me when I waver about writing this blog, the police are more likely to abuse you again if you are a victim instead of a critic.

Stranger Reporter Describes SPD Brutality Video

There's another Hays Case update over at The Stranger's blog (SLOG) where Jonah Spangenthal-Lee describes a video he watched of the Hays and Lujan case where undercover SPD "Anti-Crime Team" officers repeatedly bashed Hays' head into the pavement in front of a stunned crowd of witnesses over an alleged jaywalking offense.

Jonah says the video, which he claims to have viewed thanks to a source other than the SPD (who have refused repeated FOIA requests for that video), as coming from a patrol car mounted camera that responded to the incident aftewards but captured officers repeatedly pummeling and grinding Hays' head into the pavement that left pools of blood on the ground and on the officers while he was face-down on the ground and witnesses were screaming that he didn't do anything and asking for badge numbers.

The questions in my mind at the moment are, where did Jonah get a tape of a camera mounted on a patrol car when the SPD is notorious for denying access to such videos?

My first thought is the defense, but I know someone put the fear of god almighty into my defense lawyer who, while we're on great terms, instantly goes silent whenever I ask for the video and pictures the police have of my blood soaked and mangled face from last year.

Also, how did Jonah get access to disciplinary records for the ACT when reporters often site the SPD as the only department in the state that keeps it's disciplinary records secret?

Sure, the accounts of the SPD's ACT are documented in news articles all over the place, but I'm not aware of anyone ever being given access to SPD disciplinary records, it's a pretty big thing with them and the SPOG.

In either case, the video did not capture the begining of the incident, where officers claim Hays tackled them despite the absence of this claim from any of the several witnesses who watched the incident. Hays faces trial for assaulting an officer on Jan 22, again, despite witness accounts calling the officers' claims into dispute.

While it doesn't look good, I certainly hope that Hays and Lujan are cleared of any wrongdoing, the reaction by the ACT officers was clearly over the top, something the witnesses have all said as well.

Hays Case Update

Again, from The Stranger... as you may recall the Seattle Police Department charged Hays with Assaulting an Officer after Hays was first restrained and then repeatedly had his face bounced off the pavement by undercover officers for jaywalking.

The officers claimed Hays had attacked them first after they restrained his friend, for jaywalking, but multiple witnesses have not corroborated the officer's accounts of the arrest. Instead dozens of bystanders seem to insist that Hays and his friend were tackled by the plain-clothes officers and brutally beaten by those officers even after they had been handcuffed for nothing more than, well, jaywalking.

Hays is due in court for assault on an officer on January 22. But, as you can see, it seems that the charges are trumped up as an excuse for the brutal over-reaction by the same group of undercover officers with a history of unprovoked attacks and who have been in the paper numerous times for beating jaywalkers and other assaults where they failed to announce themselves as officers until after the fact, as reported here.

Cases like this prove to me that nobody is safe in Seattle, especially not me. It's clear that the police here are free to attack anyone they want for any reason they want without fear of being held accountable... and worse, that they can punish the people they attack even more afterward by falsifying reports without any fear of being held accountable for it whatsoever.

I wish Hays the best of luck, but historically the SPD gets away with making these kinds of accusations, I hope he's one of the exceptions.

In the meantime, lord save me if the SPD spots me in public... because nobody else in Seattle will when they beat the life out of me.

Seattle's Criminal Anti-Crime Team?

SPD following a protest march in 2003

The Seattle Police Department's "Anti-Crime Team" is a group of about a half dozen undercover officers from each Seattle Police precinct that are supposedly set up to patrol Seattle's streets undercover to look for criminal activity. Lately, however, they have been in the news several times this year for apparently instigating several instances of violence. Seemingly not satisfied with looking for crime, they have apparently resorted to making crime happen instead.

However, this isn't a recent development for the SPD's ACT, instead they have a long history of misconduct and of employing officers with criminal backgrounds and a history of misconduct. Not only this, but they are seemingly above the law and immune from any attempts to discipline, even when they are found to be in the wrong by internal investigations.

The following are the documented cases of abuses by the SPD ACT, while a small part of the SPD itself, they do seem to contribute greatly to the SPD's poor reputation and massive credibility problems.

However, most painfully clear, is that when you fail to hold such overly aggressive officers accountable, as is clearly the case in Seattle, the number of cases of abuse will only continue to get more eggregious and more frequent.

Remember, these are only the cases that have been documented in the media:

Seattle Weekly “The Cops Credibility Gap”

07/02, Nix Case:
SPD ACT pepper sprayed, then tasered in the stomach and buttocks, slapped, and repeatedly kicked a 5’10 180lb 66 year old senior citizen until they cracked his ribs, ruptured his spleen, and lacerated his abdominal wall. ACT claimed Nix was making a drug transaction and allegedly punched officers repeatedly and was too fast for them to subdue. People familiar with Nix stated that he was slow moving due to medical problems.

The SPD and ACT officers lost the use of force report and the OPA investigation left them “administratively exonerated”. Nix was left in jail for 5 days before he finally collapsed in the shower and he was taken for emergency surgery to have his spleen removed.

The Stranger “Gil’s Boys”

08/05, Sandidge Case:
SPD ACT mistake two men with clean records for gang members, taser them both numerous times, then accuse them of obstruction and assault of an officer. Months later, during trial, it is revealed the officers lied on their reports and the two men were cleared.

The SPD OPA found the officers guilty of misconduct and recommended severe sanctions. Chief Gil Kerlikowske overruled the OPA findings without explanation. Two of the three are still on the elite SPD ACT, one is working in Narcotics.

KIRO TV “Seattle Officer Accused of Excessive Force”

06/06, Post Alley Case:
Off-Duty plain-clothes ACT Officer shoots a 55 year old local defense attorney three times outside of a downtown bar after the attorney witnessed the officer throw a woman against a wall over a dispute involving the officer’s personal motorcycle.
This same officer had a criminal record before becoming an officer and a history of misconduct prior to being promoted to the ACT that included a 1995 incident where he held a gun to someone’s face while off-duty over a verbal dispute while he was off-duty. He then ground the man’s face into the ground while repeatedly hitting him in the head with his loaded duty pistol.

Officer was cleared of any wrongdoing by the OPA.

Seattle PI “Jail Unlikely for Firing at Officers”

06/06, Toro Case:
Three plain-clothes ACT detectives in an unmarked SUV instigate a fight with a jeweler in his car at an intersection without identifying themselves which resulted in Toro fleeing because he thought he was being attacked by "gangbangers" which led to a drawn out high-speed chase through residential areas while the ACT officers repeatedly discharged their weapons at Toro, missing several times and hitting his car at least twice. Toro pulled ahead and fired back, disabling the ACT SUV by shooting out the front tires. Because the ACT was shooting wildly, never engaged their lights or sirens during the chase, and never identified themselves as police officers to Toro they recklessly endangered public safety.

Toro was never charged with a crime that would have justified the officers initiating the confrontation, but he plead guilty to misdemeanors associated with brandishing and discharging a weapon to avoid a felony charge associated with the shots that disabled the SUV.

The officers involved are still being investigated, though it's doubtful that any discipline will be issued for their reckless endangerment of public safety.

The Stranger, “Tase First, Ask Questions Later”

08/06, Claxton Case:
Aaron Claxton and his cousin, Leroy Gibbs were chased by the ACT in an unmarked black SUV on their way home from a basketball game. As Claxton pulled into his garage, the SUV sped up and pulled in front of the house. The two young men ran inside when chased by four men with guns, they tasered Claxton repeatedly when they caught him before finally identifying themselves by yelling, "Police! Roll over or I will Taser you again!"

Officers then had Claxton wait a half hour handcuffed in his driveway while they tried to figure out what to charge him with.

All charges were later dropped against Claxton, who is an athletic director at a local Boys and Girls club, for lack of evidence of any wrongdoing. The ACT officers were not disciplined for the attack but Claxton filed suit in Dec of 2007. (That suit was settled for a reported $20,000 in Febuary of 2008)

Seattle PI “Jaywalkers smarting after rude encounter with cops”

09/07, De Jong Case:
Canadian couple Kristen Heidt and her boyfriend, Benjamin De Jong, were walking from a Seahawks football game and an unmarked SUV screeched to a halt near Heidt. Several plain-clothes ACT officers jumped out and tackled Heidt, bruising and bloodying her without identifying themselves as police officers, De Jong ran up and yelled fearing his girlfriend was being attacked by thugs. Officers then tackled De Jong as well, leaving him bloody and bruised as well.

De Jong was charged and jailed for pedestrian interference and obstructing while his girlfriend was not charged in the incident though the initial excuse for the attack was that she jaywalked. SPD claims an internal investigation was initiated but no results as of yet.

The Stranger, “Head Banger”

11/07, Hays Case:
Michael Lujan and Mark Hays walked in front of an unmarked SUV and were chased by several plain-clothes ACT officers for jaywalking (obstructing traffic). They then tackled Lujan and Hays in front of several witnesses from a corner coffee shop and other local businesses who then stated that they witnessed ACT officers hold Hays down on the ground while one officer sat on hays’ head and repeatedly bashed his head into the pavement at least 15 to 20 times while yelling “stop resisting” when Hays was clearly not able to resist.

ACT officers claimed that Hays tackled them when he saw that they had detained Lujan, but witnesses only stated that they saw officers jump out of the SUV and tackle Lujan and Hays. Reportedly, no investigation has been initiated. Hays faces charges of assaulting an officer and obstruction, Lujan faces charges of pedestrian interference and obstructing traffic. (Hays was convicted of both charges in Febuary of 2008 because witnesses who told reporters that Hays did not attack the officer would not come forward at trial.)

SPD's Anti-Crime Taskforce in the News AGAIN?

Correct me if I'm wrong, readers, but this seems to be the FOURTH time that the SUV riding Seattle Police Department's Anti-Crime Taskforce has been in the news for alleged misconduct... I wonder if anyone other than myself sees or even cares that there is a definite pattern of abusive behavior here.

1. The Toro case in the paper today, chasing a guy in their SUV without identifying themselves as police or turning on their sirens or lights.
2. chasing another guy in their SUV and then tasering him in his own driveway before they bothered to identify themselves as police.
3. Jumping out of their SUV and bashing a jaywlker's head into the pavement 20 times in front of several witnesses.
4. Jumping out of their SUV and assaulting a girl from Canada and her boyfriend, for jaywalking, without identifying themsleves as police.

...because it's pretty obvious that the police chief doesn't seem to notice or care that his officers are apparently rampaging through the streets and terrorizing citizens without a care in the world.

SPD Sued Again in Another Undercover Assault

Seattle's The Stranger has yet another report of a lawsuit filed against the Seattle Police Department.

It appears that the SPD undercover Anti-Crime Team has a history of attacking people because... yes, it's about the same ACT who repeatedly tasered someone MISTAKENLY identified as a gang member this summer, jumped two jaywalkers and repeatedly bashed one's head into the pavement after he was restrained last week, and yes, the same officers who assaulted a Canadian woman and her friend for jaywalking last month.

This time, in August of 2006, it appears that an athletic director and employee of the year from the Seattle Boys & Girls Club, Aaron Claxton, was heading home from a late night basketball game and has he pulled into his driveway an unmarked SUV sped up to the front of his house as several unidentified armed men jumped out and ran up to him and a friend. The armed men allegedly did not identify themselves and used a taser to subdue Mr. Claxton, handcuffed him, and then let him sit in his driveway for 20 minutes.

When Mr. Claxton asked officers why they were taking so long to do anything, they replied, "we're trying to figure out what to charge you with." Eventually they decided to charge him with obstruction, speeding, and running a stop sign... all of which were later dropped due to lack of proof.

By the way, this is the same ACT that, despite findings of wrongdoing from the SPD Office of Professional Accountability, the police chief repeatedly exonerated out of hand with no explanation. Seems that maybe there should be some accountability at the top of the SPD too.

Anonymous Tip

A witness claims to have seen police misconduct in the second jaywalking assault by undercover Seattle Police officers this month.

This one occurred on November 23, 2007, and the witness has posted his accounting of events over at The Stranger Weekly forum here. (A previous story from earlier this month about undercover officers assaulting a Canadian couple for jaywalking after a football game is here) Seems to be a pattern developing.

Last night in the UDistrict around 8:45 I was at the corner of University and 45th waiting to cross the intersection, while two guys were in the middle of the crosswalk heading towards me despite the “Don’t Walk” sign. With their arms around each other, they seemed to be assisting one another with the cross. Why they needed assistance is subjective, but the taller of the two appeared to be injured, drunk off his ass, or other.

An unmarked black SUV then pulled between us, impeding their progress on the crosswalk. Four “undercover” (street clothes with POLICE vests) officers then got out of the SUV and approached the two “jaywalkers.” The shorter of the two men then started to run, but was taken to the ground and restrained shortly after by one of the officers. The remaining three officers took the injured guy to the ground and proceeded to use excessive force. While two of the officers attempted to restrain the guy (he was struggling), the third officer repeatedly punched him (at least 10 times, maybe 20). As this was going on, another witness was yelling, “Stop hitting him! Stop hitting him! You can’t do that in public!”

I found it hard to believe that three officers needed to use excessive force on one guy. I know most of you weren’t there, but does this sound justified? The Seattle Police have a track record of using excessive force in unnecessary situations.

The witness later states that he doesn't know who to contact regarding what he saw. While I did let him know about the Seattle Police Department's Office of Professional Accountability complaint process... unfortunately, even if he did use it, the complaint would be dismissed based on past findings by the SPD OPA and by the constant SPD police chief exonerations that occur even when the OPA finds wrongdoing.

Even so... It is nice to see that some people who witness police misconduct are willing to step up and try to do what's right.

UPDATE:
The Stranger Weekly just ran a story about it, seems there were several witnesses to this case of brutality, which occured mere days after the city settled a lawsuit for brutality. The Stranger's story is Here and on the sidebar.