Tacoma Officers Acquitted in Ellis' Death, Raising Questions About Washington's Police Accountability Law

The trial, the first under Initiative 940, highlights the law's enforcement challenges and its role in shaping police accountability.

Three Tacoma police officers were acquitted in the 2020 death of Manuel Ellis, a Black man who was shocked, beaten and restrained face-down on a sidewalk.
The trial was the first to be held under Washington state's Initiative 940, a law designed to improve police accountability and make it easier to prosecute police accused of wrongfully using deadly force.
The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office failed to disclose for three months that one of its deputies had been involved in restraining Ellis, violating the law's requirement for independent investigations.
Lawyers for the officers argued that their clients acted in good faith and that Ellis' death was caused by methamphetamine in his system and a heart irregularity, not oxygen deprivation.
State Sen. Yasmin Trudeau said the law does not guarantee accountability but provides the opportunity to make the case for accountability in court, and has been bolstered by 2021 laws creating an independent state office to review cases involving police use of deadly force and banning chokeholds and neck restraints.