Prosecutors: The officer acted in good faith in the shooting of Jenoah Donald

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Rick Bannan/[email protected]

A team of county prosecutors from across Washington ruled that a Clark County sheriff’s deputy acted in “good faith” when he shot and killed a Black man from Vancouver at a traffic stop in February on Hazel Dell.

On July 12, the Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys released its report on the shooting of Jenoah Donald by Clark County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Boyle. The report concluded that Boyle acted in accordance with state law regarding the use of lethal force by law enforcement in the shooting in Feb.

Five members of the county prosecutors panel from Lewis, Pend Oreille, Yakima, Pierce and Snohomish counties reviewed more than 2,500 pages of material in its independent review of the case, which is the first of its kind, according to in the report.

Prosecutors discussed determining whether Boyle’s actions met the state’s standard of good faith. The criterion is based on what an “equally reasonable officer” would believe to be entitled to the use of lethal force to prevent death or serious physical injury to the officer or other person, given “all the facts, events and information that the officer knew at the time, ”the report explained.

Donald was pulled over by Boyle for a broken night out in Feb. 4. After Donald refused orders from fellow responding deputy Holly Troupe to show his hands and get out of the vehicle, a struggle ensued, according to the report. Boyle threatened to release his K9 on Donald and punched Donald in the face, then Donald grabbed Boyle’s vest.

Donald allegedly turned Boyle so he could not reach his Taser and then Donald turned the car on, the report said. Boyle said he warned Donald several times that he would be shot if he did not stop. Boyle felt the car move and fired two shots at Donald.

Prosecutors determined that although Troupe noticed several items in the vehicle such as a screwdriver and pliers, which could be seen as potential weapons, “there was no evidence that the presence of these items was communicated to Deputy Boyle of Deputy Troupe, ”the report read.

Prosecutors concluded that starting the car and driving while holding Boyle, “could constitute a‘ weapon ’” under state law.

Prosecutors determined that Boyle’s “order” for Donald to get out of the vehicle was lawful based on the officer’s safety, but noted that Donald was never “asked” to get out of the vehicle, nor did he receive an explanation. why the order was issued.

“What started as a‘ simple ’traffic stop for a broken night, quickly increased,” the report read.

A day after the report was released, Clark County Sheriff Chuck Atkins released a statement about the findings, noting that the prosecutor’s investigation was independent of his office.

“I fully support the ongoing efforts to improve transparency and accountability in law enforcement,” the statement read.

The statement said the creation of a panel of attorneys from across the state – which does not include Clark County Attorney Tony Golik – “further aims at improved transparency and increased accountability.”

“We will try to figure out everything we can from this incident and work on continuous improvement,” Atkins wrote.

Following the release of the report, Donald’s mother, Sue Zawacky, released a statement saying Donald’s family felt “disappointed and disappointed” in the end.

“We expect officers to resign for the good of the community because they don’t have the patience or skills for the job,” Zawacky said. “I don’t want to lose their children to other families.”

Zawacky suggested that the matter be looked into by the office of Washington State Attorney Bob Ferguson.

Although no criminal charges are recommended by the investigation for either Boyle, Troupe, or sheriff’s deputy Greg Agar, who also responded to the scene, Donald’s family is seeking $ 17 million in a false death lawsuit against province.

Announced last month, the suit alleges Donald was pulled over because Boyle suspected Donald was leaving a “drug house.” In the lawsuit alleging law enforcement used defective night lighting as an excuse to pull Donald over.

“What’s clear is that officers didn’t necessarily magnify a small traffic stop into a fatal shooting,” said Mark Lindquist, an attorney representing Donald’s family on the false death indictment.

In his statement, Lindquist said the wrongful death case has “completely different standards” under the law than any potential criminal case against Boyle.

“Accountability and justice will come from the family lawsuit,” Lindquist said.

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