Seattle’s International Day Against Police Brutality
March 15th 2013, concerned citizens took to the streets to speak out against police brutality, and Seattle Cop Block was there.
There were about 30 protesters, and 60-80 cop escorts.
Here is some video of me speaking out to the city of Seattle during the march.
Submitted By Tim Sage
seattlecopblock@gmail.com
Great to see Americans utilizing their 1st Amendment rights –
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
These individuals peacefully assembled, and recorded their public interactions.
The citizens of Seattle have had their issues the Seattle Police Department: On March 31, 2011, [the DOJ] opened an investigation of the Seattle Police Department (SPD) pursuant to the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Jenny A. Durkan, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington – “This investigation and its findings provide a clear path forward. Ongoing efforts by the city and department to address these findings will not only ensure that obligations under the Constitution are met, but will improve public confidence in the department and enhance its ability to serve the people of Seattle.”
Based on a randomized, stratified and statistically valid sample of SPD’s use of force reports from Jan. 1, 2009, to April 4, 2011, factual findings include:
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When SPD officers use force, they do so in an unconstitutional manner nearly 20 percent of the time;
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SPD officers too quickly resort to the use of impact weapons, such as batons and flashlights. When SPD officers use batons, 57 percent of the time it is either unnecessary or excessive;
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SPD officers escalate situations, and use unnecessary or excessive force, when arresting individuals for minor offenses. This trend is pronounced in encounters with persons with mental illnesses or those under the influence of alcohol or drugs. This is problematic because SPD estimates that 70 percent of use of force encounters involve these populations.
The Justice Department also found that a number of long-standing and entrenched deficiencies have caused or contributed to these patterns or practices of unlawful or troubling conduct, including the following:
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Deficiencies in oversight, policies and training with regard to when and how to (1) use force, (2) report uses of force and (3) use many impact weapons (such as batons and flashlights);
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Failure of supervisors to provide oversight of the use of force by individual officers, including appropriate investigation and review of uses of force (notably, among the approximately 1,230 use of force reports from January 2009 to April 2011, only five were referred for “further review” at any level within SPD);
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Ineffective systems of complaint investigation and adjudication;
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An ineffective early intervention system and disciplinary system;
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Inadequate policies and training with regard to pedestrian stops and biased policing; and
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A failure to collect adequate data to assess biased policing allegations.
DOJ Investigation into the Seattle Police Department
Seattle Times Editorial: Refocus on Seattle Police Department reforms
Phone: (206) 684-4000
Contact Seattle Mayor Michael McGinn and Chief of Police John Diaz to ensure reform is being implemented within the Seattle Police Department.
Phone: (206) 684-2489
