2300 E Union St
Seattle,WA 98122
USA
In response to video of a controversial SPD arrest at 23rd and Union was released late last month, the Seattle King County NAACP and the No New Jim Crow Coalition group are holding a rally Saturday against police brutality.
The rally gets under way at 3 p.m. Saturday at 23rd and Union.
Details from the Facebook event:
SPONSORED BY: Seattle King County NAACP, No New Jim Crow Coalition
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In Seattle, the steady stream of police brutality continues.
This past winter, Seattle Police Officer Faust beat Leo Etherly into submission. Dash cam video of the incident was just released.
The DOJ initially backed down when the police refused to give them this video. It took the threat of a lawsuit by a private attorney to force the SPD to show this video.
We cannot rely on the City of Seattle or the Department of Justice for police accountability. Time and time again, we see who the Seattle Police Department is best at protecting: themselves. We can no longer leave accountability in the hands of the police to police themselves. Instead, we leave this up to the will of the people.
Join this rally as we stand with Leo Etherly, and all victims of police brutality. This rally will be located at the original scene of the crime, on 23rd and Union.
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GOALS
–Bring pressure on the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the SPD to allow the release of all videos showing use of force to the general public in an expedited manner—without threat of lawsuits.
–Create impetus to force a policy of greater scrutiny on the small number of officers who are repeatedly involved in questionable use of force incidents.
–Organize a Citizen’s Review Board to report police brutality and misconduct
After having viewed the video I’d hope that a better mascot for the goals listed above would be used. I do not side with SPD on much of anything but this is the wrong catalyst for the conversations.
I’ll choose both sides. First of all there is no reason we, the public, should not have access to all police videos taken of people in public. Those cameras are our property collecting public information in public places. These videos should only be protected in cases where ongoing investigations could be jepardized or lead to retaliation against witnesses. These videos should be posted daily for the entertainment of the masses. Boo to SPD for hiding information they find embarrasing.
Yeah to SPD for punching that jerk in the face. Take him to the county line and tell him to keep moving. Not a welcome member of society.
I hope we have a rally for the SPD who were more than justified in subdueing this criminal. You do not spit on anyone or try to resist arrest from a cop. Again the CD will be misrepresented at this rally. Kudos to the SPD for acting in a professional and appropriate manner under adverse criminal behavior attacking them. I hope the guy is charged, found guilty, jailed and not allowed back in the CD. We are not a containment zone. Now bring on the trolls!
For anyone who questions the assault value of spitting in someone’s face I have this to share: In the course of my job someone spit in my face – eyes and mouth. For 1 year you cannot have unprotected relations with your spouse while the Hep tests are done again and again. When budget cuts axe your job, and cobra runs out, you will be denied insurance as a high risk person due to the hep tests. The damage spans years. For spitters I say, own the consequences of your actions you disgusting, disgusting assaulters.
Didn’t this guy kinda, sorta hit a pedestrian and drive away, (at least allegedly)? Rally for him? Whatever…
He has yet to be charged, and the King County prosecutor chose not to take the case. There is still a chance for municipal charges, police say. We have few details on the evidence for such claims, so it’s impossible for us to know since that evidence is not public.
So the felony court bumped it down to the misdemeanor court (common, and more likely to result in conviction, and less costly) and now the City Attorney will take 2-6 months to investigate and determine whether or not they should shoulder the cost of trial (i.e., can we win or no?). That’s what’s going on. Not, the pros has decided not to take the case.
Right. We basically said the same thing in different terms. The King County Prosecutor handles felonies, and chose not to pursue it. The city (“municipal”) court can still choose to pursue it at the misdemeanor level. Either way, the point is the same. There are currently no charges, and we don’t have access to many details or pieces of evidence.
Also, clearly textbook resisting arrest. Put your hands behind you. No. Wrestle.
as usual the racists come out online… I think people get it at this point, there are some very uptite white people who don’t want black people in their neighborhood anymore…
Police officers are required to uphold a different standard of behavior than civilians. Police officers are not allowed to punch people in the face simply because they are spit on. Police officers are not allowed to grab people by the neck and shove their heads down because the person has a verbal attitude with them.
SPD can do better at holding each other accountable to appropriate policing practices so that we, the people in Seattle, don’t have to foot an $800+K bill every year to be monitored by the feds for having a police force that cannot stop the over use of force in situations where it is not warranted. If you don’t think this has to do with race relations between police and individuals that is your opinion. For some people, it is a rather obvious correlation that is supported by countless examples of real life situations not found on the news, blogs, dashcams, etc.
When the general commenting public in this neighborhood says to the police and each other that it’s ok to punch someone in the face if they piss you off, there is a very strong message being sent.
Do you know how many drunk, dangerous, belligerent, white men interact with the police force daily? A lot. They are, for the most part, not getting punched in the face. And if it happens, it’s WRONG then as well.
What’s most interesting and seemingly overlooked here is that the police are familiar with this guy. On the blotter, they go out of their way to try and embarrass him and cover their own a$$es about the release of the video. I don’t want a police force that appears to have personal vendettas and motives, an obvious racial bias, and regular incidents of over use of force. I do not want that. I do not want to pay for it. I do not want to live with it. Not at all.
I am completely a law abiding citizen and think even if this guy was guilty of a hit and run (which at this point is looking very unlikely) he is not deserving of the treatment he received from these officers.
Officers are not paid to protect or enhance their egos. They are paid to serve and protect. Everybody keeps saying that Mr. Etherly deserved it. Nobody needs to be choked or punched by the police like that with the circumstances how they were. Criminal or not. Arrest him or keep it moving. They are trained to not have to resort to that type of behavior but never really held accountable when they do. Who were these officers serving and protecting by choking and punching this man in the face? Were they serving and protecting the person who was hit by a car? If I was hit by a car, I certainly wouldn’t want the cops going and punching some guy in the face, when they aren’t even sure is the person who hit me. Arrest him if you think it’s him and let the legal system continue with their role in the process. Are the police protecting the general public from this guy, Mr. Etherly? Like are they afraid he’s going to go around spitting on everyone? Puhlease. When personal issues get in the way of professional policing, it is time for those officers to move on and find other lines of work. I don’t like wasting tax payer money on police brutality and federal punishments because of it.
Police officers Cambell spit on and not react??? This long fantasy you have posted is wrong not factual at all. Do some actual research before you spread this disinformation.
I don’t understand your question. I’m not sure what part you see as disinformation so perhaps you would like to point it out. Also, if there is something you thing I should “actually” research, I am more than willing to do so. What do you have in mind, sir?
What is “good policing?” What should you look for in a police leader? How is your city going to evaluate that leader? Perhaps one or more of the four major obstacles arresting police development is going on? For what they are and how to overcome them follow my blog at http://improvingpolice.wordpress.com where other current police improvement issues are discussed. The kind of policing I am talking about is accomplished by men and women who are well-trained and led, restrained in their use of force, honest, and courteous to every person.