Former Tacoma police officer He was hired as a sheriff's deputy in a neighboring county. — despite being involved in acts of violence. Manuel Ellis' fatal arrest 2020 — I quit my new job after just two days.
Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders said in a written statement Wednesday that he did not anticipate the strong community opposition to the hiring of Deputy Christopher Burbank, which Sanders said included death threats against Burbank's family. It was also included. Sanders said Burbank resigned effective immediately.
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Burbank and two other officers, Timothy Rankin and Matthew Collins, were each cleared of criminal charges by a Pierce County jury. last december Ellis' death left an unarmed black man shocked, beaten and tied face down on the sidewalk, gasping for breath.
Rankin was charged with manslaughter, and Collins and Burbank were charged with manslaughter and second-degree murder. Their lawyers argued that Ellis' death was caused by a lethal dose of methamphetamine and heart disease, not the actions of the officers. The Pierce County Coroner ruled the death a homicide and said the death was caused by a lack of oxygen during physical restraint.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle is still investigating, and federal civil rights charges are possible. A wrongful death lawsuit against Tacoma is pending.
“In making the decision to hire Deputy Chief Burbank, we did not consider the larger impact on the community and instead made the decision based on the business needs of resolving TCSO's staffing crisis,” Sanders wrote. Ta. “Additionally, I completely misjudged the community about the investigation and jury process that Deputy Burbank completed. While I recognize the harm this has caused to marginalized communities, I completely misjudged the community about the investigation and jury process that Deputy Burbank completed. I was there.”
Among those who criticized the hiring decision was Matthew Ericksen, an attorney for Ellis' family, who said in an email Tuesday that he would be scared if Ellis lived in Thurston County. . He pointed to video evidence showing Burbank used a Taser on Ellis three times, including while putting another officer in a chokehold.
Ericksen said Wednesday that his family is relieved that Burbank has resigned. Ericksen said that between the outpouring of criticism over the hiring and the Washington state Capitol's decision this year to bar police from bonding with suspects, a legal change made in the wake of Ellis' death, the family has He said he was even more confident that he would not be forgotten.
“It's clear that the public still remembers Manny and the horrible things that happened to him,” Eriksen said. “Manny's death was 100% preventable, and the people of Washington know it.”
Like many law enforcement agencies across the country, the Thurston County Sheriff's Office is struggling with staffing shortages. A Facebook post announcing the hire said Burbank would “provide immediate relief to the Patrol Department.”
The sheriff responded to criticism of the hire Tuesday, saying Burbank underwent a two-month background check that included a polygraph test. Sanders emphasized that his office is working to improve crisis response by incorporating mental health co-responders, adding that dashboards and body-worn cameras help ensure transparency. .
But by Wednesday, it was clear the hiring was not going well, and Sanders apologized.
“Trust is gained in drops and lost in buckets,” he wrote. “To those who have lost faith in me or in what we are trying to accomplish at TCSO, I apologize for the disappointment.”
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On March 3, 2020, Ellis, 33, was returning home after buying donuts at a 7-Eleven in Tacoma, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of Seattle, when he and Collins and Burbank stopped at a red light. I passed a police car. internal.
Officers said they saw Ellis trying to open the door of a passing car at an intersection and when they tried to question him about it, Ellis became aggressive. Mr. Collins testified that Mr. Ellis displayed “superhuman strength” by lifting Mr. Collins off the ground and throwing him into the air.
However, three witnesses testified that they saw nothing of the sort. After what appeared to be a brief conversation between Ellis and her officers, both of whom were white, Burbank, who was in the passenger seat, threw open the door and pushed Ellis to the ground, police said. Rankin, who arrived after Ellis was already face down and handcuffed, knelt on Ellis' back.
Witnesses, one of whom yelled at the officer to stop attacking Ellis, and a doorbell surveillance camera captured video of part of the encounter. The video shows Ellis raising her hands in a surrender position as Burbank fires a Taser into her chest and Collins puts his arms around her neck from behind. Ta.
His death came nearly three months before the killing of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police sparked international protests against police brutality.
The Tacoma Police Department found that the officers did not violate its then-current use-of-force policy, which has since been updated and gave each of the three officers $500,000 in severance pay.
Pierce County, home to the city of Tacoma, settled part of a federal wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family for $4 million. The lawsuit is still pending against the city.
The case was the first under a five-year-old state law aimed at making it easier to prosecute police accused of improperly using deadly force.
