Seattle Police Watchdog Releases 1st Batch Of Protest Findings

SEATTLE, WA — The Seattle Office of Police Accountability on Friday released its first major group of findings resulting from thousands of complaints and dozens of probes into allegations of officer misconduct during protests over police brutality and systemic racism that began in late May. The first completed case report was published in August.

Among the five latest cases, two officers will face some manner of disciplinary action.

OPA finds officer 'inadvertently' pepper-sprayed young child

According to the OPA, more than half of the 19,000 complaints stemming from the protests concerned a video of a young boy who was hit by pepper spray at a protest in downtown Seattle on May 30. Among the findings released Friday, OPA Director Andrew Myerberg found no misconduct in that case, ruling that the boy was not "individually targeted," based primarily on a review of body-worn camera footage and bystander videos.

(Warning: the video below contains profanity)

The OPA summarized its analysis of events in a news release published Friday:

"He and his father moved towards a protester who had grabbed an officer's baton and was pushing into the police line. An SPD supervisor used pepper spray to move the protester back. In response, the protester ducked, causing the pepper spray to inadvertently affect the boy and his father. OPA deemed the use of pepper spray on the protester consistent with policy based on the protester's actions. While the impact to the boy was an unfortunate result, he was not visible on the video at the time of the pepper spraying and therefore could not have been seen by the supervisor."

At the end of his closed case summary, Myerberg addressed potential criticism of his decision and noted that, at the time of the incident, a law narrowing the use of pepper spray did not exist, and "inadvertent" effects on bystanders were not addressed in department policy.

He continues:

"OPA understands that this decision will be unpalatable to some and perhaps to many. This is understandable. In some respects, it is unpalatable to OPA. In evaluating these cases, OPA is required to look at all of the facts, not just those presented on social media or captured in a short video. OPA is required to make decisions based on applicable policy and training, not just based on emotion or what feels good or easy in the moment. OPA is required to uphold the rule of law, not just reach a finding that may be the most politically expedient or that which we think will be most acceptable to demonstrators, officers, or some other group. In our current environment, where nuance is rare, facts do not always seem to matter, and people often make up their minds before having complete information, this is a difficult place to be. But this is where OPA will always find itself – trying to make sense out of split-second decisions in incredibly complex and human situations and striving to do so objectively, transparently, and honestly. This is the standard we have done our best to meet in this case."

Officer used improper force when putting knee on protester's neck, investigators find

In another case, Myerberg sustained two allegations against one officer for improperly placing his knee on a protester's neck during an arrest and making unprofessional comments to and about demonstrators. The OPA listed three specific comments in question, which included derogatory language toward protesters. In one comment listed by the OPA, the officer said "we'll [expletive] him up" when discussing a specific demonstrator. Myerberg found the comments violated department policies on professionalism.

Myerberg's second finding related to the same officer placing his knee on an arrestee's neck for 13 seconds. The incident was captured on video by Crosscut photojournalist Matt McKnight and shared widely on social media.

In his case summary, Myerberg wrote that the officer's action did not amount to "a neck or carotid restraint," which was discouraged by department policy, and "is not comparable to what occurred in Minneapolis," referencing the police killing of George Floyd that sparked protest movements across the nation.

"This does not excuse what [the officer] did here," Myerberg wrote. "Indeed, even if [the officer] placed his knee on [the person's] neck inadvertently and without impairing [their] breathing, it was still inconsistent with policy and training."

Myerberg found the force was neither necessary nor proportional and that the officer had alternative options for keeping the person subdued.

The OPA does not determine disciplinary actions, which can only be handed down by the police chief. Once Interim Chief Adrian Diaz has made a final decision, the OPA will update its report to reflect what actions were taken.

Second officer cited for unprofessional comments

In the only other report that resulted in potential disciplinary actions, Myerberg found that an officer violated professional standards after he was caught on video saying, "I have a [expletive] for this [expletive], if they cross the line, I will hit them."

According to the report, the officer told his supervisor he was quoting the movie Top Gun and "discussing tactics." Myerberg said the officer agreed to a "rapid adjudication," which allows employees to admit their conduct violated policy and accept the discipline without appeal and without undergoing a lengthy investigation.

The OPA said the interim chief's disciplinary decision is still pending.

Results from two other cases released Friday had no sustained findings, including one allegation that an officer pushed an elderly man and caused him to fall. The OPA's findings, in that case, were labeled "inconclusive." Myerberg wrote that investigators were able to verify "conflicts between officers and demonstrators" in the area at the time described, but did not find the incident described in body-worn camera footage or use of force reports.

According to the OPA, the person who filed the complaint did not have footage of the incident and only described the officer as wearing "full riot gear."

In another case, Myerberg rejected allegations of excessive force related to officers pushing protesters back from a Capitol Hill barricade on June 4.

OPA adds 23 new cases for a total of 118

Also on Friday, the OPA disclosed 23 additional probes into allegations of officer misconduct in recent weeks, for a total of 118 since protests began. Eight of the latest complaints relate to officers actions during a Labor Day protest outside the Seattle Police Officers Guild headquarters in SODO.

In an update posted on the demonstration complaint dashboard, the OPA wrote that the number of new cases curbed its ability to complete many on an accelerated timeline.

"OPA is working around the clock to complete these investigations. We initially aspired to finish most in under 90 days - half the time an investigation usually takes - but the continued influx of new complaints has made that impossible. Please bear with us as we do our best to provide both thorough and objective investigations under these circumstances."