Spokane7
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March 25, 2010 in City
Judge allows access to Zehm’s mental health records
However, he will later rule whether they can be used during trial
A federal judge today ruled in favor of the city of Spokane and granted a motion brought by the attorneys for Officer Karl F. Thompson Jr. to obtain Otto Zehm’s mental health records from a 2000 stay at Eastern State Hospital.
However, U.S. District Judge Fred Van Sickle said he will wait until later to determine whether Thompson gets to use those mental health records in his defense during the trial, which is currently set for June 2.
“Officer Thompson is entitled to offer evidence – including information which he was unaware at the time of the confrontation – as long as the evidence tends to make his version of the confrontation more probable,” Van Sickle wrote in part. “Information in Mr. Zehm’s psychiatric records arguably satisfies that standard.”
Last week, Thompson’s attorney, Carl Oreskovich, argued that Zehm had been off his medication for paranoid schizophrenia for several weeks prior to his March 18, 2006, confrontation with Thompson. Therefore, Oreskovich said Zehm, a 36-year-old janitor, was already exhibiting characteristics of “excited delirium” before Thompson confronted him.
However, Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Durkin argued that excited delirium is not a medically recognized term and only is used by police agencies to describe otherwise unexplainable deaths by persons when they are being taken into custody.
Durkin said today that he could not discuss the case, and Oreskovich could not be reached for comment.
“At this stage in the proceedings, the Court does not rule on the admissibility of the evidence sought by Officer Thompson,” Van Sickle wrote. “If, in fact, Mr. Zehm behaved in a defiant and aggressive manner on March 18, 2006, due to a lack of medication, Officer Thompson may have been justified in using force to subdue him.”
Closing Geiger: Wise or worrisome? 
spokanada on March 25 at 7:33 p.m.
yes because if otto was crazy then he deserved to be murdered. I dont see the relevence to the case considering the eye witness statements and video.
I can see how is physical health records could be relevent but not his mental health records.
angelal on March 25 at 7:45 p.m.
There was not a mean bone in Otto’s soul and yes i said soul. I honestly believe our police department is grasping, they made a mistake plain and simple. The young ladies were scared, people could just look and know that Otto had disabilities again there was not a mean bone in Otto!! A great loss to all who knew him and he will be missed greatly in our community and hearts.
NE2Spokane on March 25 at 7:54 p.m.
Officer Thompson entered that store with only the knowledge that was relayed by the young ladies. They felt he was going to try to rob them at the ATM and he was acting strangely/suspiciously. He entered that store with only that knowledge, he had no idea that he was a paranoid-scizo who was off his meds. When confronted Otto fled and it was Officer Thompson’s job to subdue because he did not know what he might have been capable of. We will never know what was going through Otto’s head as he fled and fought but most people comply with an officer when confronted if they are not doing anything wrong. Perhaps, his mental state created a false reality for him but Officer Thompson had only limited information and seconds to react.
spokanada on March 25 at 7:58 p.m.
NE2,
Otto wasn’t robbing the ATM and the officer had bad intelligence. The incident is on video tape and Thompson will cost the force a helluva lot of money.
If not, the city should ban the sale of 2L popbottles so this doesnt happen again.
NE2Spokane on March 25 at 8:01 p.m.
So lets take the young ladies to court, where is the blame for them? I think when this thing finally comes out and all the facts are presented in court 12 people will see that this was a tragic accident and not a crime against a mentally handicapped person.
Scoutster on March 25 at 8:07 p.m.
This fine officer didn’t even have a chance to assess Otto’s mental health before he started wailing on him.
A schizophrenic who is experiencing a psychotic break isn’t going to walk peacefully into a store and pull out a Snickers bar and an pop without the clerk taking notice.
Roid rage by Thopmpson? Do we get to look at his records? Did they take his blood?
D Statler on March 25 at 8:10 p.m.
Here comes the twisting of the legal system again to suit the best interests of the defense and the corrupt police department. I can not understand why a Judge would side with this injustice.This appears to be a common thread tying all of Spokane’s legal systems inproprieties together.Our judges appear to always give to the pervasive motions filed by the prosecutors office.This seems to hold true with defense lawyers representing Spokane on this and many other issues.Our judges are suppose to be there to insure a fair trial is given.I have witnessed several of Spokanes judges politely looking the other way why our legal system fails to render a fair trial.Where are Spokane’s county commissioners while this garbage is being dished out? I can only hope there is a higher Federal agency watching this debacle unfold.Otto may eventually see justice from heaven. :^)
deltaelk on March 25 at 8:11 p.m.
ok, if they are going to look into Mr. Zehm’s records, let’s look into the police officers records. You want to see how Mr. Zehm might have a history of mental problems? Let’s see how the officer may have reacted in this situation. Mr. Zehm did not have a weapon, plastic pop bottles are not weapons, simple. And, not all people just automatically lay down and become submissive in front of police officers, why do you think they have to get back-ups usually. Sure the cop only had a short time to make a decision, but so what, thats his job, and he failed at making the right decision. A human life has been taken because of his bad decision and he needs to pay for that, its not forgivable, even in his line of work. If a cop cant make the right decisions, its time to move on to another profession. The officers records just may show that as a pattern.
deltaelk on March 25 at 8:19 p.m.
I agree with undooly_prosecuted 100%. But as far as getting the county commissioners involved? good luck, because if they are as stupid as the Kootenai County 3-Stooges, led by Elmer The Dope Curry, you have no chance of getting any help from them.
Marie on March 25 at 8:21 p.m.
Undooly,
This case is being prosecuted in Federal Court and it involves a police officer for the City of Spokane. Spokane County has nothing to do with this case so the Commissioners have nothing to say about anything.
PlanB on March 25 at 8:31 p.m.
The good old boys network at work again. The only thing that is relevant are the events that happened that night, which are clearly documented.
If thompson knew Otto was schizophrenic (which he could not have), then the murder is obviously pre-meditated.
brianth on March 25 at 8:43 p.m.
Having had the priviledge of actually knowing Otto and working with him the world has lost one of the good souls. With that said, the person commenting about how Otto, if he was in his right mind should not have tried to run away from the poor policeman trying to do his job. Well having witnessed the video it is clear Thompson already had his club out and was approaching Otto from behind and when Otto saw him all he saw was a guy with a club raised ready to hit him,,hmm… I believe anyone with out a mental disorder probably would have done the same thing as Otto, ya think? It’s clear Thompson used bad judgement and killed an innocent human being he needs to pay for hs crime.
misjustice on March 25 at 10:08 p.m.
The judge’s decision to open the victim’s medical history up for the defense to rifle through should be followed by a motion to examine the employment history and medical records of the rouge cop. I wonder if Thompson had a history of rage? That overzealous, rouge, cop escalated the initial contact with the victim and went on a murderous rampage as depicted in the store video.
AND THEN IN THE INVESTIGATION THE COP LIED, AND LIED, AND LIED AGAIN… If he’d done nothing wrong then why did he repeatedly LIE????? It’s pigs like him that tarnish the entire department and makes it more difficult for our fine officers to do their jobs and retain the respect of the community.
misjustice on March 25 at 10:37 p.m.
I so agree with NE2Spokane! I believe the judge is correct in finding out if there was any tendency in Zehm’s background/history of violence.
It is sad a man died. What is even just as sad is that so many people think an officer should just be passive and “think the best of everyone”. That is living in fantasy land. I hope EVERY officer that is on patrol and working for the protection of the public goes home at the end of every shift!
The officer was called because of a possible robbery. He was identified by 2, yes 2, people. The person the officer approached did not comply with what was asked of him. This would put anyone on alert. And for those of you that say 2L of pop isn’t a weapon? Ha Ha Ha. Come on over & let me throw one at you or hit you up the side of the head with one. You have to be kidding about that or you just don’t have ANY common sense, or you’ve had a run in with the law & have a vendetta against them!
Truthhurts on March 25 at 11:01 p.m.
Overhand strikes with a baton on the head are lethal force under the law.
They were not justifed.
Whatever else was wrong about smothering Otto Zehm, the overhand strikes, on the head, with the baton, are the unjustified use of lethal force.
lewis8457 on March 25 at 11:19 p.m.
federal judge ruled in favor of city speaks volumes.
the people of Spokane will see another senseless murder receive no justice. I believe this is just the beginning to another example there is no justice for victims of police violence even at the federal level.
if Otto has to wait for justice from heaven i hope it strikes all 7 of the murdering bastards at once. BLAMMOO!
SugarShane on March 26 at 12:55 a.m.
It will be interesting to see if this has any bearing. As others have noted, he used overhand baton strikes, and maintained that Otto lunged at him until video clearly showed otherwise.
Gramma always comes on here to post in thompsons defense, but never offers any explanation about him lying.
brianth on March 26 at 5:04 a.m.
You know police do have a dangerous job, that is a fact. But obviously the people defending the police officer didn’t see the video of this incident (Gramma). How was Otto suppose to comply when the police officer didn’t give him a chance? Maybe Otto should have had known he did something wrong (which he didn’t) and predicted a cop would approach him from behind and start clubbing him. Sorry your statement is what is wrong with society today. Your statement might have made sense if it wasn’t for the fact it was caught on tape and shows 100% that the police officer didn’t give Otto a chance to COMPLY, but it is good to know the cops can beat on you gramma and you will let them!
mikeln on March 26 at 5:08 a.m.
The actions by police after Otto was attacked should be on trial. This poor man did not have to die. Another guilty untill proven innocent action by our police.
deltaelk on March 26 at 7:20 a.m.
again, a plastic pop bottle is not a weapon, although I guess anything could be a weapon, I could be eating a hotdog and throw it at someone and the mustard might burn their eyes, or a cotton ball, I could stuff it in your nose and you couldnt breath. Any cop who thinks that the most important thing to do is come home at the end of the day would certainly have the mentality of this cop. Sure, I want all of them to come home, to their families, and kids. But I want people like Mr. Zehm to come home too. I believe a cop needs to be able to quickly access the situation. I see these training situations where a cop walks around some buildings and things pop out or people jump out, real life situations. You have to make split second decisions, which are tough. So, a little girl appears, you dont shoot, two old ladies step out, you dont shoot, jehova’s witness knocks on your door, you dont shoot, well, no………guy steps out with a plastic pop bottle, you shoot, of course, he is a holy terror and you would never try and reason with someone that has a plastic pop bottle. Poor Mr. Zehm.
misjustice on March 26 at 10:13 a.m.
Has anyone seen all the video’s in this case? There were more than one angle to be seen. Were these videos aimed directly & only at the officer & Mr. Zehm? Is there any video that shows what lead up to the confrontation between these two men? Sugar Shane says I don’t offer an explanation about the lying of the officer. I don’t know if he really did lie. That’s what the courts are for.
The public is condemning this officer for his actions. All I’m saying is we have a court system in this country that will tell whether or not he acted properly. Armchair quarterbacking doesn’t work in this case.
I also want to clear up a fact. I do not know the officer involved nor did I know Mr. Zehm. From what I have seen & read about this case, I will give the officer the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise.
deltaelk on March 26 at 2:56 p.m.
gramma, your saying the courts are for deciding the outcome, but yet you are making a judgement on the same things we all are, how is that? I have been involved in a few trials as a juror in Kootenai County. In my last one, I was the only one who sided for the defendant. Everyone else wanted to get home and on with their lives, so they wanted to condemn the defendant no matter what. The police report described the defendant as 5‘8” to 5‘10” and approx 165 lbs. The defendant was 6‘5” and 270 lbs, now how are you gonna convict that? but yet the rest of the jurors were convinced and they said they would change my mind or else, well guess what, they didnt. The jurors were down right hostile, said they had soccer practices to attend, family functions…..so there is a good chance this cop might get off if they have the same kind of jurors who dont give a damn about a persons life, kinda like this cop in question and how he felt for the deceased man, Mr. Zehm. If Mr. Zehm was your father or brother, I would like to see who you sided with?
brianth on March 26 at 6:38 p.m.
Yes, I can honestly say that I do know quite a bit about the facts in this case. I will start were in the report when officer Thompson saw Otto entering the Zip Trip store, thats when officer Thompson pulled into the Zip Trip and followed after Otto. Otto was in the store, no confrontation outside, it’s in the police report. Then the video tells the rest. We see Otto strolling, not running, walking at a normal pace he turns around and smiles at the store clerk and turns to get his food, then here comes officer Thompson rushing toward him baton out and raised as he approaches Otto from behind, I will not continue the with the rest it just makes me sick to think about. Thats the story Otto was attacked never given the opputunity to Comply end of story. And what Sugar Shane was talking about officer Thompson lying, in the paper the next day the officer described Otto as being well over six feet tall and weighing well over 200 pounds and lunging at the officer, Otto was 5‘6” if that and about 170 pounds, those are the lies to cover his crime that Sugar Shane is talking about.
deltaelk on March 26 at 7:26 p.m.
well if that’s all true it wouldnt surprise me a bit, nothing like embellishing the facts a little. Everyone lies in this situation to make themselves look better, unfortunately Mr. Zehm is not here to lie for himself, and I am not sure he would have had to. I just cant get over the pop bottle defense thing, for god’s sake, I think police forces are trained only in making up bull__it to cover themselves, and not trained in the actual skills of the job. I think I would feel safer without cops if they are all gonna act like this guy. I dont want to have to protect myself or my loved ones from a panicking or over-reacting cop. Because it appears no matter what, the police has a right to do anything they want.
Lisa4588 on March 31 at 7:42 p.m.
Did you say “if otto was crazy he deserved to be murdered”?
Wow! So if by saying such a thing you appear to be crazy, would you “deserve to be murdered” as well?
But you are right when you characterize what happened on March 18th as murder.
I am ashamed of these police officers. And of the Spokane Police Dept. for not accepting responsibility for their actions.