Sheriff Ed Troyer testifies at trial that he was unfairly labeled a racist and a liar

[ad_1]

Pierce County Sheriff Ed Troyer spoke Thursday afternoon during his criminal trial, vehemently denying lying about a black newspaper carrier threatening him during a confrontation last year.

Mounting his defense in a Tacoma courtroom, Troyer and his attorneys portrayed him as an innocent victim of shoddy police work, a politically motivated prosecution and unfair media coverage.

Asked by defense attorney Anne Bremner if he made a false report to police the night of his Jan. 27, 2021, confrontation with newspaperman Sedrick Altheimer, Troyer replied, “No, I didn’t. not done.”

“And you are absolutely sure of that?” Bremner asked.

“One hundred percent. Because I wouldn’t do that,” Troyer said. ‘State made me look like a liar.

Troyer’s highly anticipated testimony came during the second week of his trial on two felony charges involving false reports filed by Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s office last October.

The prosecution’s case is largely based on a police incident report written by Tacoma Police Officer Chad Lawless, who was among the first officers to respond last January after Troyer called an emergency dispatcher and said Altheimer was threatening to kill him, triggering massive policing. answer.

Lawless spoke with Troyer at the scene and wrote in his report that he specifically asked the sheriff if Altheimer “had ever made threats against him or shown weapons.” Troyer responded that Altheimer “never threatened him” and had no weapons, according to Lawless’ incident report.

Lawless testified Wednesday that he recalled twice asking Troyer for threats and that both times Troyer said none contradicted his taped emergency dispatch call.

Troyer tore up Lawless’s work on Thursday, noting that it did not include typical information that would be jotted down about a witness or suspect at a crime scene.

For example, Troyer said, Lawless’s report did not include his middle initial, date of birth, height or weight, or details about hair and eye color. According to Troyer, they’ve usually been filled out in other police reports mentioning it.

“I’m just saying that’s the least information I’ve ever seen on a police report with my name on it,” Troyer said.

Troyer complained that Lawless did not tell him that night that he was writing a report on the incident and did not follow up. He only learned of the report a few months later when a reporter from the Seattle Times called him.

Troyer disputed Lawless’s account of their exchange that night, testifying that Lawless asked him a relatively vague question like “What about the threats?” He said he replied “I’m not worried about it.” But he said he never denied that Altheimer threatened him.

Bremner asked Troyer why he told the police at the scene to let Altheimer go, despite the alleged death threats. Troyer said police receive many threats and ignore most of them.

“I’ve been threatened a lot over the years,” he said.

Altheimer testified this week that he never threatened Troyer, saying he simply asked him why he was following him, if it was because he was black and if he was a cop. He described being angry and scared after police showed up that night with guns, searching him and detaining him based on Troyer’s call.

As before, Troyer, who is white, said he started following Altheimer that night because he saw a suspicious car outside his house without knowing the race of the driver. He said there had been robberies in the neighborhood and his son had a guitar and saxophone stolen from his car.

Troyer disputed Altheimer’s account of how their confrontation unfolded, saying Altheimer approached his SUV yelling and yelling at him and said he would “pull it out” during the fight. 2 a.m. swap in quiet North Tacoma.

“He was crazy. He came back to me. I could see his bulging muscles and I could hear him screaming,” Troyer said.

Altheimer said Troyer, who drove his personal unmarked SUV, never identified himself as a law enforcement officer, even after asking.

Troyer testified that he was trying to defuse the situation that night. He said he was unarmed and “not a fighter” and remained in his vehicle. He said he mentioned Altheimer’s alleged threats to an emergency dispatcher so arriving officers would be prepared for a potentially dangerous situation.

Troyer said Altheimer could have just explained what he was doing in the neighborhood.

“Why didn’t he tell me he was delivering newspapers?” He had plenty of chances to do it… and if he did, I would have shown up,” he said.

Altheimer said in an interview last year that he didn’t tell Troyer what he was doing because he didn’t think he owed an explanation to someone who didn’t identify with the forces. of the order.

Prior to Troyer’s testimony, his defense team called Altheimer’s aunt, Kimberly Brown, to the stand.

Brown, who also works as a newspaper delivery driver, testified that Altheimer called her about the Troyer incident. “He was upset. He was furious. He was swearing,” she said.

Brown said she has in the past offered advice to Altheimer on how to handle incidents of people being confronted by newspaper carriers for walking around neighborhoods at odd hours. But she said, “He doesn’t take advice very well.”

Troyer’s defense team also sought Thursday to win the sympathy of the six-member jury by reviewing his long career, charitable work and various extended family endeavors that have drawn objections from sometimes exasperated prosecutors. .

Bremner sought to have 13 photos of Troyer with his family introduced as an exhibit at trial, but Judge Jeffrey Jahns dismissed it as irrelevant, supporting an objection by Assistant Attorney General Melanie Tratnik.

Bremner also unsuccessfully requested to be allowed to argue to the jury about the unusual path that Troyer’s prosecution had taken.

Troyer has not been charged by local Pierce County officials. The Tacoma police report on his confrontation with Altheimer was for informational purposes, with no one listed as a victim or suspect.

But the high-profile nature of the incident and its potential racial overtones led Gov. Jay Inslee last April to request an investigation by Ferguson’s office, as permitted by state law. Ferguson’s team filed a complaint in October 2021.

“If this jury thinks this case went through the normal channels, it’s wrong. It came politically from the office of the attorney general and the governor,” Bremner explained.

Bremner said Troyer was being targeted because of political bias amid ongoing massive nationwide protests and a “Defund the Police” movement that followed the 2020 killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

She compared Troyer’s situation to former President Donald Trump’s claims that political enemies were unfairly investigated and Amanda Knox wrongfully prosecuted for murder by Italian authorities.

Jahns rejected Bremner’s arguments, preventing the defense from raising those arguments before the jury.

The trial resumes on Monday, with Troyer expected to testify further and then undergo cross-examination by prosecutors.

[ad_2]