Vol. 74/No. 36      September 27, 2010

Williams was carving a board in downtown Seattle August 30 when the cop, Ian Birk, shot him. Police initially claimed Birk saw Williams with a knife, ordered him to drop it, and then fired when Williams turned and moved toward him. Eyewitnesses say that Williams, who had a hearing loss, likely never heard the cop and never posed a threat.

Native American and Canadian First Nations leaders held a press conference September 3 to demand a full investigation into the killing. Cecile Hansen, chairwoman of the Duwamish Tribe, said her comments were directed to the Seattle mayor, city council, and police chief. “The Indian community needs answers. When is all this shooting going to stop?” she asked.

On August 31, a cop shot and killed David Young in Federal Way, Washington. Cops claimed Young was driving a stolen truck toward them in an “aggressive manner.”

That same day, Pierce County sheriff’s deputies used a Taser gun on King Ramses PJG Hoover, 27, who then stopped breathing and died. Cops said Hoover was causing a disturbance in a Spanaway apartment complex.

On September 3, two cops shot and killed an unidentified man they accused of waving a knife at a bus stop in Tacoma. Cops said they shot him when he raised the knife in a “threatening gesture.” One witness, Lisa Dean, told the Tacoma News Tribune she never saw the man raise his arms or move toward the cops. “Not even a little bit,” Dean said. “He just seemed kind of confused.”

On September 4 Adam Colliers died after being shot with a Taser gun in his home in Gold Bar by Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies. The cops said that Colliers was causing a disturbance in the street and that when they arrived he charged them and fought them to the ground. Sharon Williams, who lived in the house with Colliers, told the press that he weighed 120 pounds and she doubted the cops’ explanation.
 
 
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