March 27, 2011 in City

Clark: Thompson trial leaving out important truths about Zehm

Doug Clark The Spokesman-Review

Tags:Fred Van SickleKarl F. ThompsonKarl F. Thompson Jr.Karl ThompsonOtto ZehmTim Durkin

No Huckleberries

Huckleberries, by Dave Oliveria, will return.

Let’s make believe that you’re on the jury in the federal criminal trial against Karl F. Thompson Jr.

Presuming it ever happens, of course.

Thompson is the Spokane police officer charged with excessive force and lying to investigators regarding his violent March 18, 2006, encounter in a convenience store with the late Otto Zehm.

As you sit in judgment, don’t you think it would be important to know that Zehm, a mentally ill janitor, had not committed any crime prior to being cop-clubbed and zapped with a Taser?

Being innocent, after all, could explain Zehm’s shocked, befuddled reactions when Thompson suddenly got in his face.

But even more important is that Zehm’s innocence is 100 percent true.

And isn’t that what our great system of justice is supposedly all about?

You know: The Truth, the Whole Truth, and nothing but The Truth!

Yeah, right. Save that fantasy for moldy old Perry Mason reruns.

Trials are a lot about gamesmanship. They’re about behind-the-scenes negotiating and judicial discretion that sometimes leads to the exclusion of certain evidence.

Here’s the sad truth.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld federal Judge Fred Van Sickle’s troubling decision to keep the jury in the dark about Zehm’s noncriminality.

Our intrepid reporter Tom Clouse wrote the story about this a few days ago. But what this development will ultimately mean is anyone’s call.

I hate to be pessimistic. But I wouldn’t be totally surprised if this trial, now scheduled for Oct. 11, never takes place.

OK. That’s a wild and crazy guess on my part.

But don’t discount how huge this innocence issue is to the feds prosecuting Thompson.

So much so that they had the trial halted on the very first day last year in order to appeal Van Sickle’s ruling to the 9th Circuit.

You’d probably have to waterboard a federal prosecutor to get him to tell you what he’s up to during a trial.

But here’s what Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Durkin wrote on the subject in a court document:

“The excluded innocence evidence is critical to the United States’ proof on both charges since it tends to show the defendant lied about his justification for his initial use of force.”

Note that pesky word, “critical.”

Is Durkin saying the Van Sickle ruling is a deal breaker?

Hey, I don’t own a crystal ball.

But I suspect that Team Thompson is probably celebrating like New Year’s Eve.

Without regurgitating all the details in our story, it did contain a sliver of hope. As Clouse wrote, the 9th Circuit “left a legal door open for federal prosecutors once they start presenting evidence.”

Legal doorways aside, however, nothing that happens in any courtroom will alter the facts of this tragedy.

Zehm went into that Zip Trip five years ago to buy a Snickers bar.

Little did he know that two young women had wrongly reported him as a thief who stole money from a nearby ATM.

Thompson arrived first. More officers and paramedics would follow.

When it was all over, Zehm had been bashed repeatedly with a baton, shocked and left hogtied for some 17 minutes. Fearing Zehm would spit, a plastic mask was stuck over his face.

The mask wasn’t hooked to an oxygen supply.

Zehm, a large and now-agitated man, was forced to suck his air through a tiny hole in the plastic.

He died two days later, never regaining consciousness.

This innocent man was treated worse than a wild animal.

And that, boys and girls, is The Truth.

Doug Clark is a columnist for The Spokesman-Review. He can be reached at (509) 459-5432 or by email at dougc@spokesman.com.

69 comments on this story so far. Add yours!

Liberty_Bell on March 27 at 5:58 a.m.
Of course when you think your a Washington Law Man, but your actually a Klansmen, that Ku Klux Act of 1871 would confuse you working for the head klansman Christine Greguoir.
Or Did Mr. Justice Douglas also not teach our Klansmen best in
Brady v. Maryland. overturning Klansmen everyday.
“It is a requirement that cannot be deemed to be satisfied by mere notice and hearing if a State has contrived a conviction through the pretense of a trial which in truth is but used as a means of depriving a defendant of liberty through a deliberate deception of court and jury by the presentation of testimony known to be perjured. Such a contrivance by a State to procure the conviction and imprisonment of a defendant is as inconsistent with the rudimentary demands of justice as is the obtaining of a like result by intimidation.”
Liberty_Bell on March 27 at 6:02 a.m.
But of course only Christine Greguoir is known as head klanswoman, also duiscussed by Mr Justice Douglas and associates.
365 U.S. 167
Monroe v. Pape
Under R.S. § 1979, derived from § 1 of the “Ku Klux Act” of April 20, 1871, petitioners (six Negro children and their parents) brought an action in a Federal District Court against the City of Chicago and 13 of its police officers for damages for violation of their rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. They alleged that, acting “under color of the statutes, ordinances, regulations, customs and usages” of Illinois and the City of Chicago, but without any warrant for search or arrest, the police officers broke into petitioners’ home in the early morning, routed them from bed, made them stand naked in the living room, and ransacked every room, emptying drawers and ripping mattress covers; that the father was taken to the police station and detained on “open” charges for ten hours while he was interrogated about a two-day-old murder; that he was not taken before a magistrate, though one was accessible; that he was not permitted to call his family or attorney, and that he was subsequently released without criminal charges being preferred against him.
Vote Klansmen(D) the local party motto for generations.
Orphan on March 27 at 6:50 a.m.
No one is safe from the police anymore. I dont talk to them under any circumstances. If they show up somewhere I am I leave as fast as is pratical. Dont call 911 either there is a good chance you will end up hurt or arrested.
I hope the 2 girls that called 911 on poor Otto live to be very old because I want them to have to think about this for a long long time.
Pat O'Leary on March 27 at 6:56 a.m.
Karl Thompson, the presumption of innocence, Otto Zehm, the presumption of guilt. Police justice, Spokane style.
lewis8457 on March 27 at 7:11 a.m.
It isn’t the girls fault they thought they had been robbed. It is Thompson fault for running into the store and bashing Otto with out one word said.
Yes the police in Spokane are so untrustworthy i too will have nothing to do with them. It is hard to get my brain around the fact that the high wages we pay them we basically are just throwing away.
They lie and kill at will and not even our mighty federal government can stop them. I would have never believe a federal judge could be bought by the SPD but that appears to have happened. What was the price? Money,sex,drugs, or gay Jay doing a dance for the judge in his private chambers?
The only tool we have is our money. Stop giving them money they do NOT deserve it. Vote NO on all public safety levies.
Oct 11 trial wont happen. This whole thing is a frace to get us to believe the police have to follow some laws too. While Thompson pulls his 91 grand but is too poor to pay for his own lawyer so we get to pay for it. He works in Washington but lives in Idaho.
Why are there so many scummy cops living in Idaho is it the water?
Thompson has screwed us over more ways then one it seems. We can only pray Karma catches up with him soon, in the form os a STA bus, BLAM….case closed. Next!
Albert on March 27 at 7:16 a.m.
It’s time to make the SPD go away. We seriously need the Fed’s to come into town and close up this corrupted, violent, and brutal group of Storm Troopers. We need some serious help PLEASE! Not one, single citizen is safe in this town from these lawless enforcers.
schleufer on March 27 at 7:23 a.m.
Speaking of those women who made that call…. Are they going to play that 911 recording where they were saying he was taking tons of cash from that ATM? Then leave out the part that serves this cop? How can they not play those tapes? Besides that Otto was accused of being combative. When they bring that up how can they not bring up the question why would a innocent mentally handicapped person be combative? If a regular citizen had done something like this they would already be behind bars…. The only question would be for how long.
lewis8457 on March 27 at 7:28 a.m.
Ever Watch the TV show Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura? I get a lark out of that show he is always saying things like “what about my rights”?
I always think come to Spokane where the citizens have no rights, other then possibly shot to death, and then proven by the police to be a depressed low life that deserved to be put down.
anyone who gambles knows the odds of 12 deaths by police all justified is going against the normal range of physics.
so not only are they killers they must also be wizards.
ChefGus/ John Olsen on March 27 at 7:33 a.m.
Thank you Doug for keeping this on a front burner. Most folks in Spokane think that it likely had gone to trial a long time ago. Any Jury that can/could sit and view the video tape has likely not a reasonable doubt that the Roid Rage attack on an unarmed citizen deserves to be convicted.
I do disagree with the “fear” that folks seem to have with our Spokane Police force… Every call I have made to 911 over the past couple of years has been responded to courteously and with absolute professional behaviour on the part of the Officers coming to the scene. This action by one officer, or two or three should not color the view we have of ALL of our loyal and hard working and courageous younger officers.
Chief Nicks and Chief Kirkpatrick should have been gone a long time ago….. and the Police Guild’s union power needs to be decreased… and that is a political process, not a court process. John Olsen Spokane
lewis8457 on March 27 at 7:35 a.m.
schleufer If A citizen had attacked a cop with this type of Malice. He would not have made it to jail, The SPD would have taken him out point blank.
Because heaven forbid any one hurt a cop but they can kill as many of us as they want.
albert I too was hoping the fed would get involved. And they did only to show us they are in cahoots with the SPD. Van Sickies ruling set the trial back by 2 years and will eventually have Thompson praised as a hero.
The only chance we have is sell and get the hell out of Spokane.
tomnsahl on March 27 at 7:48 a.m.
Truth speaks for itself, and I so hope it comes out when this preventable tragedy finally goes to trial. The damage to public trust from this case hurts us all. This is evidenced by those frequent posters who paint all of law enforcement with the broad brush of their collective ignorance. Thankfully they do not speak for the majority of us who appreciate the sacrifice and professionalism of those who protect and serve.
As for your views of the truth, Doug. They tend to fuel those who resemble flies to a pile.
“With liberty and justice for all” - including Zehm & Thompson.
misjustice on March 27 at 7:52 a.m.
Too bad we all don’t have the benefit of seeing into the future. Or being able to know what actually happened in the past.
Officer Thompson did not know Zehm did nothing wrong. He was called out to a theft & was pointed out by 2 witnesses that he was the person in question. How was he to know? How was he to react? How was he to sit back & let this “innocent” man go? He wasn’t innocent according to the 2 girls standing there pointing him out. Why did Zehm immediately become combative?
The 2 girls that pointed him out have been dropped from any lawsuits or prosecution. Why????? What happened with being charged for filing a false police report? None of this would have happened if not for them. Plus, Thompson was not the only person involved in this man’s death, yet he is the scapegoat.
The judge did the right thing. You can’t use in court what he didn’t know at the time of the incident, or what was later discovered. Thompson left his crystal ball at home that night.
schleufer on March 27 at 8:12 a.m.
well gramma thompson accused him being combative but the video showed he wasnt.
lewis8457 on March 27 at 8:16 a.m.
Gramma so if Otto was quilty do you agree that Thompsons actions were in the normal actions of a police officer in a public place?
I could care less if they say Otto was innocent. It is all about the actions Thompson took when he first approached Zehm and the further actions of his jack booted buddies, and our city administration. Our own Foster parent Mayor said his death was justified.
Tomnsahl if you were suspected of stealing money and beat to death for it would you expect your family to trust the police that beat you to death and then lied about it? Even when all those “good” cops for 4 years worked right next to him and was trained by him? I am sorry i do not term them as good cops……….more like cowards for not standing up.
There silence only cements my opinion our police fall closer to organized crime then public safety.
Liberty_Bell on March 27 at 8:18 a.m.
Well Granny,
That’s the biggest lie of all. Past Present and Future?
http://www.salemwitchmuseum.com/education/index.shtml
Or did you miss the mob violence, and due process violations in an early version of a witch trial too?
Life, Liberty and Property, in ALL States of the UNION?
Did that Klan Act still confuse you like every other jewish lawyer too?
19-21
“Then said the Chief Priests to Pilate, Write not, the King of the Jews, but that he said, I am King of the Jews.”
Putting words in peoples mouths, that never happened always ends in a witchunt, when there is no such thing except for witch granny?
Orphan on March 27 at 8:21 a.m.
Thompson did not see a crime commited, the word of the 2 girls was only hearsay at that point. No matter what the 2 girls said Thompson did not know if Zehm had done anything wrong because he did not see the crime take place. Thompson did not even have enought info to make an arrest. Thompson is the worst kind of Cop and the fact that SPD has closed ranks to defend him makes all of the SPD untrustworty. I have not seen one officer speak out against Thompson.
eagleproducer on March 27 at 8:24 a.m.
Gramma: I’ve actually been in contact with one of the girls in an attempt to wrangle an interview for a film project concerning this story. Neither wants to be involved. They didn’t file a police report. They also could not foresee their call would lead to the death of Otto thus eliminating any civil liability.
The two girls will have to live with what they reported. People in Spokane like to isolate themselves from the enormous problems and poverty around them and simply having someone walk up behind your car while you are at the ATM is a reason to mash the panic button. It’s obvious from the evidence I’ve compiled they knew they hadn’t been “robbed.” Robbery involves force or threat of force and not once did the 911 operator ask his a weapon was displayed or threatened to be brandished. Neither did any of the SPD members who responded to the radio call. The dispatcher also asked the girls if Otto appeared drunk or high, magically transforming them into medical experts to pass along their diagnosis to the police force. This was a series of avoidable mistakes that then turned into a criminal beat down.
If the tapes of the beat down are still allowed at trial I still don’t see how Thompson walks. I want his pension for this. The real crime would be for us all to have to pay for him to sit on his smug arse the rest of his life.
Liberty_Bell on March 27 at 8:35 a.m.
eagleproducer?
Hiring the handicapped policeman reject, is a State Law Requirement.
Vote KITSAP! and you too get to pay for the mentally retarded man with a gun badge and crown victoria forever!
http://caselaw.findlaw.com/wa-supreme-court/1500519.html
de3 on March 27 at 8:36 a.m.
Otto Zehm is dead. He did nothing to deserve that.
Like Orphan, above, I no longer smile and wave at the police in this town. I now avoid eye contact.
The corruption in Spokane runs deep, very deep. And its not limited to the police.
tomnsahl on March 27 at 8:42 a.m.
Lewis - you are one of those “flies” to whom I referenced. No one appointed you the moderator for this forum. Please let others speak without having to endure your judgment and agendized commentary.
Albert on March 27 at 9:05 a.m.
tomnsahl, your crude remarks to Doug and Lewis reflect your position with the SPD.
misjustice on March 27 at 9:19 a.m.
Lewis has every right to state his opinion, officer tomnsahl; just as you do. Otto was his friend.
Had it not been for the video camera in the Zips we would never have known the truth regarding KKKarl Thompson’s actions; Nicks lied, Thompson lied, and other SPD officers remained silent which in my book is the same as a lie.
I will be following the trial, if it ever gets underway, to see if that door which was “left open” by the 9th Circuit actually results in the jury hearing evidence that Otto was not guilty of the crime that he was accused of.
And as an aside, even if he was guilty of “robbery” it does not mean that he should have endured the treatment that was meted out by KKKarl and the other responding SPD officers.
Justice delayed is justice denied.
DickAdams on March 27 at 9:35 a.m.
de3, well said. Its time the citizens of Spokane recognize all of the corruption in the Lilac City. Too many taxpayers have blinders on and, for a reason unknown, believe the digested food through the bull blasted out by city hall. More especially from Mayor Verner, who lacks the integrity and honesty the people deserve. And as de3 states, “its not limited to the police”!! Its high time the citizens do something. Spokane is a dangerous place to live. Everybody should view the FBI list of the most dangerous cities in the good old U.S. of A. Spokane ranks 114. I was amazed at cities that show are much safer than our fair city. LA & NYC, for starters. Sad.
yellowcat on March 27 at 10:11 a.m.
Even if there had been a theft of money, which was what Thompson heard, that does NOT deserve death or even a beating. Stolen money vs. a life. There is no way to explain Thompson’s actions. Yes, most of us are fearful of the police.
cjkids02 on March 27 at 10:28 a.m.
Seriouly, Someone…..ANYONE, Please show me your Justification for reffering to the KKK. BELINDA (MSJUSTICE), You can not throw out statments about racism in this event when it had nothing to with anyones actions! You take away the ability to claim rasicm and detract from those people who do and have suffered from racism in the past and currently. SHAME ON YOU.
cjkids02 on March 27 at 10:33 a.m.
Hey one more questions MSJUSTICE…..since your so vocal about SPD and the wrong doings of them all constantly. What have you ever done for this community for the betterment of the people..
You seem to love to detract any positive attention for any law enforcement whatsoever, there are plenty of police out there serving everyday getting injured and risking more than you behind your keyboard.
Again I submit please tell us all what it is you have given to this community to make it a better place??
Waiting……
Still….
Orphan on March 27 at 10:40 a.m.
The comments on this artical are a pretty good indicator of just how wrong Karl Thompson was. Any time you get Misjustice, eagleproducer, DickAdams, De3, Gramma, Liberty bell, Lewis and my self argeeing this strongly on a topic we have to be correct.
Orphan on March 27 at 10:44 a.m.
The comments on this artical are a pretty good indicator of just how wrong Karl Thompson was. Any time you get Misjustice, eagleproducer, DickAdams, De3, Liberty bell, Lewis and my self argeeing this strongly on a topic we have to be correct.
misjustice on March 27 at 11:04 a.m.
*****Orphan on March 27 at 8:21 a.m. Thompson did not see a crime commited, the word of the 2 girls was only hearsay at that point. No matter what the 2 girls said Thompson did not know if Zehm had done anything wrong because he did not see the crime take place. Thompson did not even have enought info to make an arrest.*******
Most police officers don’t see the actual crime committed. The word of those that reported the incident are what the officers rely on. So, yes, even tho he didn’t see what happened (run red light, assault someone, shoot someone, rob someone, etc.) he had to rely on what was reported to him.
Some morons on here believe we shouldn’t have any type of police to control anyone or anything. If that’s what you like, go to Libya. I’m sure their non-police state will welcome you with open arms & you will be right at home.
In the meantime? I will back the officers that are doing their jobs. Not all of them are thugs, murders & heathens……
misjustice on March 27 at 11:04 a.m.
Well, cj, I’ve never beaten anyone to death; or even caused inadvertent harm to another living creature, great or small.
Additionally, you’ve obviously missed my comments on the good officers I encountered when I worked as an advocate for crime victims. But when the good officers either offer cover for the bad actors like KKKarl or by their silence allow officers like him to remain in their ranks I find that troubling, to say the least.
Have a good day, officer cj.
And Orphan, you are correct. We may be a diverse group, but on this issue are united.
Ed Byrnes on March 27 at 11:10 a.m.
The reason that so many of us citizens are deeply mistrustful of all LLE in our community is that not one single officer or deputy has ever publicly distanced themselves from the deplorable behavior of the very few of their colleagues. There have been intermittent postings in these forums by LLE members which indicate a genuine interest in joining with the public in such discussions, though most postings by LLE exhibit a contempt for the general citizenry.
So until the more professional members of our LLE community take a public stand against the wrongdoings of a few of their coworkers they are choosing to live with this growing public perception.
Silence is the voice of complicity.
Ed
To cjkids02: What have you done for this community? I will give you an example of what an answer may read like: I am a Sunday school teacher in my congregation, I am active in scouting in a leadership position in our neighborhood cub scout pack, I have applied my statistical and social science research skills, for which I am well compensated for in the private sector, to lead a community needs assessment that I did on a pro bono basis for a local philanthropic organization. Questioning the goings on in LLE is not equivalent to hating LLE or detracting from ones community.
Albert on March 27 at 11:32 a.m.
Ebyrnes - WELL SAID. MsJ - WELL DONE. Thank you both for your service.
I am active within the community and I know of zero LEO’s who serve in any capacity. I do however run into massive wall of contempt and arrogance whenever I have the misfortune to meet one of these “people?”
misjustice on March 27 at 12:27 p.m.
Albert, I find it more than ironic that cj is more incensed with my words than with the actions, and in many cases the inaction, of our local law enforcement.
Additionally, although I don’t really have to respond to the personal attack questioning my service to the community I feel compelled to add that I have worked as a volunteer reading tutor for 2nd and 3rd graders, while still a student at EWU I helped organize a community action day to raise awareness of energy conservation and the difference that recycling can make in our region, I am a consistent donor to Heifer International, KIVA, and The Carter Center, and gave many years of honorable service in the United States Army.
Even if I’d done nothing more than be a law abiding, tax paying, working member of our society I am still entitled to my opinion; whether anyone agrees with my opinion or not.
Just sayin’.
Ed Byrnes on March 27 at 12:35 p.m.
MisJ: I probably should not have opened the door in responding to cjkids02 personal attack questioning. I do react too quickly to ad hominen attacks since they are so regularly put forth in these forums as a substitute for reasoned discussion based on evidence about the topic at hand.
If my response, even in part, compelled you to respond to cjkids02 personal attack against you please accept my apology.
Ed
misjustice on March 27 at 1:01 p.m.
No apology required, Ed. I probably should not use three Ks when spelling Karl’s name, I know it is in poor taste. In my defense I do it mostly from frustration with how this case has been allowed to languish, untried except for in the court of public opinion. And from the frustration knowing that nothing will change; the bad actors will not be removed from the ranks, they will be defended by the legal system, by the Guild, and by the Chief and Sheriff.
I have repeatedly stated on these threads the positive experiences that I have had with many members of the SPD, with the Cheney Police Department, and with the officers from the County, all in my capacity as a crime victim advocate; which people like cj conveniently forget. But I also criticize and question police actions when they are wrong. Just as citizens are not always correct in their actions, neither are members of law enforcement.
What Thompson and the other officers that responded did, that fateful night, so long ago, was WRONG on every possible level. A man died a brutal death, AN INNOCENT MAN DIED AT THE HANDS OF THE POLICE; and small people with their petty annoyances with me are up in arms over my selection of words but apparently are just fine with the death of Otto.
mikeln on March 27 at 2:21 p.m.
With all this said, why has it become impossible for our court system to conduct a fair trial? If any of the facts are excluded, why go through the motions? The simple fact remains, as a police officer it is just not your job to determine guilt or innocence, that is the courts resposnsibilty. As far as the SPD goes, I have never had a problem, but will think twice before coming to spokane in the future. And as far as the paramedics that responded to this call are concerned, I hope they have recieved the training neccesary to prevent this kind of tragedy from happening again.
bszottlinger on March 27 at 2:30 p.m.
Tomnsahl:
“With Liberty and justice for all” goes without saying and ones truth may not be another’s, but I’m sure you understand that whether or not Thompson’s actions were the result of pure malice, the fear of an older officer confronting someone bigger and stronger, some deep rooted psychological issue, or any of a number of other scenarios that my be brought forth and will be dealt with by a jury, the fact remains that your old departments handling of the matter should be a total embarrassment to you. Not only was it not fair to Otto Zehm, or to the community, it would not have been the least bit fair to an innocent officer.
So for those of us who hold the vast majority of LEOs in the highest regard, yet feel there are problems within the Spokane law enforcement community we find ourselves wondering why with such blatant ineptness, with few exceptions none of your peers have come forward to call attention to those issues. I can’t believe it is a matter of not knowing or not caring, so what is it? It is hard for me to believe that you don’t care, or that you don’t know, but if it is your position that the SPD and Officer Thompson did nothing wrong then, although I may not agree I do understand.. The same way I understand the position that lewis and other s often take, though I may not agree, I understand.
Perhaps everyone would be better off if without giving up any of their own beliefs regarding these issues they just made a real effort to, not agree with necessarily, but just understand where the other person is coming from.
Mr. Byrnes has said it best, if members of the law enforcement community, past and present remain silent, many will believe they are as complicit as those that that cause the injustice.
Diana on March 27 at 4:58 p.m.
Interesting references to “law enforcement” here, when nothing that happened to Otto had anything to do with “law enforcement”.
ChefGus/ John Olsen on March 27 at 5:13 p.m.
Otto “Combative” watch the F–ing video… give me a break… the Mentally deficient man was without any frame of reference for the action of the officer./ good f……g grief…j
Elkay on March 27 at 8:08 p.m.
“The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld federal Judge Fred Van Sickle’s troubling decision to keep the jury in the dark about Zehm’s noncriminality.”
I’m probably not very bright, and you may all agree, but whatever happened to ‘“the WHOLE truth and nothing but the truth” under oath?
Are judges (appointed or voted upon) THAT deficient in common sense? God help us.
Beyond frustrated,
LK : - )
Elkay on March 27 at 8:10 p.m.
Ooooops. I meant a SAD face about “Judges”. Damn fingers.
: - (
greenlibertarian on March 27 at 9:33 p.m.
The Rules of Evidence are superior to the oath taken when one is testifying or swearing to a statement.
The Rules of Evidence will preclude certain information to be revealed.
I don’t like it, in this case, but it’s pretty settled law.
Now if the report had been made that Otto was engaging in a violent crime, that MIGHT have somewhat mitigated Thompson’s initial approach.
D Statler on March 27 at 11:36 p.m.
The Judges in this instance alone appear more corrupt than the few Police Officers that desperately need to be cleaned out of Spokane. The Judges are there to assure a fair trial is received by both parties. Spokane has some judges (appalate included) that don’t appear to want to do the MORALLY right things. Allowing these motions to conceal evidence and allowing uncoraberated testimony of informants is just a few of their short comings.”VICTIMS OF THE PERFECT STORM OF PROCEDURAL MISCONDUCT” They appear to be no more than rubber stampers for the sometimes corrupt prosecutors office.Who is paying their paychecks anyways?
A few bad apples spoil the whole bunch! Won’t even make good applesauce :^(
Sorry for your loss Mr and Mrs Zehm.Atleast I can still visit my innocent son in prison.
TheRoyLarsen on March 28 at 5:54 a.m.
Tom Clouse is intrepid?
lewis8457 on March 28 at 7:43 a.m.
cjkids02 we all pay property and or business taxes so you can live high on the hog.
tomnsahl thanks so much for calling me a fly. Good to see our police are up on their technical terms. Where did you learn that? At the most recent guild meeting about what to call citizens? Flies?
tomnsahl So you never answered my question if you were beat to death by the cops would your family run to them with open arms?
Just so you know even though you hate me i will be fighting for your families right to know the truth. Even though you don’t seem to care about that right for anyone else.
I never try to steer anything, I simply state my opinion if you don’t like it, you can be happy to know i don’t like your opinions so we are even.
I have come to a point where I do longer believe in justice, and quite frankly that deeply saddens me.
BitofBacon on March 28 at 7:56 a.m.
Oh Poor Lewis is sad:(
Ed Byrnes on March 28 at 9:30 a.m.
BitofBacon: Perhaps you could, because your position makes you uniquely able to, address the reason for the code of silence by which so many good LEOs will not speak up about the aberrant behavior of a small number of their colleagues. Many LEOs assert that civilians don’t understand so I am inviting you to help us understand.
Ed
brianrbreen on March 28 at 10:14 a.m.
greenliberterian:
I’m not sure I understand your statement regarding the rules of evidence being superior to the oath prior to testimony or the oath affirming a statement. Decisions regarding whether or not evidence will be admitted at trial are made by judges who listen to the arguments from both sides and try and correctly determine whether or not the evidence is admissible under the rules of evidence. Sometimes they are right, sometimes they are wrong. In this case the panel said that Judge Van sickle’s decision to exclude evidence of Zehm’s innocence based on Rule 403 “gave them pause”, meaning they didn’t agree with his exclusion based on Rule 403, but based established law would not overrule his discretionary decision in that regard. They also pointed out that they felt it was a good idea that the judge had left the door open based on the testimony. I must admit that trying to understand what the 9th Circus is saying is difficult at best, but the way I read this is that they said {We can’t understand why you excluded under Rule 403, but that’s your call and it’s a good thing you left the door open based on the facts so the prosecution has an opportunity at trial to get it introduced.}
Although I understand the rules of evidence are extremely important and are interpreted by human beings correctly and incorrectly at times, I’m having trouble understanding your correlation between an oath to tell the truth and the rules of evidence. From my own perspective the importance of telling the truth is superior to the complex often misunderstood rules of evidence. In this case, the government alleges Thompson did not tell the truth. Chief Nicks did not tell the truth, perhaps the young ladies that called did not tell the truth, and there may have been others who did not tell the truth. I just feel that had the truth been told from the get go we wouldn’t be worrying about Rule 403 or the admissibility of evidence. In essence the truth trumps the rules.
brianrbreen on March 28 at 10:28 a.m.
Ebyrnes:
I’m a retired cop. I don’t condone it, but I do understand it. It’s not all what people think.
brianrbreen on March 28 at 11:19 a.m.
Damn rights there is a code of silence with cops. But it doesn’t hold a candle to the code of silence among doctors, lawyers, teachers, and politicians. Try and break some of those codes of silence sometime cops are a piece of cake.
The two wannabe cops that wrote on here are dopes and aren’t any better then the janitor that doesn’t like cops, or any of the other cop haters. So why bother to even ask them to play nice.
misjustice on March 28 at 11:35 a.m.
brian; thanks for your comments. You stated, “Damn rights there is a code of silence with cops. But it doesn’t hold a candle to the code of silence among doctors, lawyers, teachers, and politicians.”
Fair enough. Every profession has a code of silence.
But do doctors, lawyers, teachers, and politicians beat, tase, shoot, and (at times) kill citizens; acting as the judge, jury, and executioner in regards to a citizen’s guilt?
I can’t remember the last time that I read about a lawyer or doctor, or school teacher, or even a lowly politician beating, tasing, shooting, or killing someone they were tasked with “protecting and serving”.
I could be wrong, maybe the code of silence amongst doctors, lawyers, teachers, and politicians keeps that news from reaching us? I could be wrong, but I don’t think that I am…
brianrbreen on March 28 at 12:00 p.m.
Doubt you heard about the doctor that showed up loaded all the time to cut someone open before finally a lowly nurse spoke up and they sent him to rehab. He is still out there. How about the lawyer that had such a coke problem he didn’t even remember who his clients were. How about all those teachers that know the one in the next room is a POS and is ruining a bunch of kids. Politicians…come on.
I’m not saying this thing is good but how about those young cops that testified against the jerk that kneed the handcuffed guy, where are they now, did they get any metals? Its cops federal ones that worked their ass off to deal with Thompson I don’t hear anyone giving them strokes do you. Just because some cops are too dumb to see the forest through the trees don’t think they are all that way but don’t expect them to stand on their heads for you when all they get is crap and have to listen to people lump them in with some of POS they have to work with.
DemoDriver on March 28 at 1:40 p.m.
If Zehm’s innonence is not allowable in court, then what can be said of our most basic “presumtion of innocence” allegedly afforded even the worst among us during trial?
The truly disconcerting part in all of this is that in one fell stroke of his pen, a sitting Justice can turn the entire Constitution on its head.
greenlibertarian on March 28 at 3:59 p.m.
Brianrbreen, I was mostly addressing the concept of telling the WHOLE truth, which can in fact, and does, get limited by various applications of the Rules of Evidence.
http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/fre/ACRule403.htm
brianrbreen on March 28 at 4:22 p.m.
Okay I understand now what you are saying and you are right as rain. I never had a case where the whole truth came out.
The good cops out there get frustrated when the whole truth doesn’t come out but they learn to live with it because it is the system.
People expect these young kids to stand up in the Zehm case and others, and cry foul while the mayor, chief , city attorney, and all the brass say nothing wrong happened, What do people want from them for crying out loud.
Granny, I noticed something you said got cut off on here. If it was something to me have at it.
Elkay on March 28 at 7:08 p.m.
Since I’m ignorant about the law, would the tape from the convenience store be shown at trial, or would that be excluded by Rules of Evidence?
“Thompson is the Spokane police officer charged with excessive force and lying to investigators regarding his violent March 18, 2006, encounter in a convenience store with the late Otto Zehm.”
~ Doug Clark
If I were on the jury panel, I would certainly want to see it from the standpoint of being fair to both Thompson and Zehm. It surely might raise questions to the jurors.
Ed Byrnes on March 28 at 8:00 p.m.
brianrbreen: I agree that other professions have deplorable codes of silence, and frankly I don’t understand those either since by definition professionals are supposed to be transparent with and accountable to the society that they serve.
So let’s assume that: (a) The overwhelming majority of LEOs are really solid, ethical people who are disgusted when their colleagues behave in aberrant ways which reflect poorly on their profession; (b) The legal system in this town is completely ineffective when dealing with LLE accountability and transparency; (c) The overwhelming majority of civilians are supportive of LLE yet a large number of these civilians are deeply concerned about how LLE accountability and transparency are handled in Spokane, particularly at the leadership level; and (d) there are members of both LLE and the citizenry who want to build a bridge to each other and improve things.
Given those assumptions, what can us civilians do to support all of those LEOs who believe in professional accountability toward taking a stand?
Thank you for adding what you already have to this forum. I genuinely look forward to your ideas.
Ed
D Statler on March 28 at 10:46 p.m.
Dear Brianrbreen, even us janitors have morals.That is much more than what was displayed to us by Spokane’s legal justice system.We have to work with POS too. The only difference is.We clean up the POS as we come accross them.LOL I don’t hate all Police officers friend. I don’t trust them that is for sure.This is new to me since my family witnessed first hand what happens in this city when you can’t afford the best attourneys.Reading through the Dodd medical examiners report was very sobering also.That is on top of seeing a Pastor gunned down while on his knees and a drunken LEO get off after chasing his estranged boyfriend through the city firing at him.Maybe it was the officer that hit and ran someone while drunk and walked
Five years ago,I would have taken a bullet helping a law officer.Now I would be hard pressed to dial 911 from 2 blocks away.Brian O Brian, where for are tho good cops Brian? What happened to morality and legality? God Bless
brianrbreen on March 29 at 12:14 a.m.
Mr. Byrnes,
I’m a citizen now, and just an ex-SPD cop, but I quite frankly get damn embarrassed at times to admit it and think about how even more embarrassed some of the kids on the job today are, that have to live with the escapades of Olsen and what he did, or Thompson and the Zehm case, and all the others that have tainted the profession. I don’t understand what people expect them to do other then go out work their shift and do the best they can. If you expect them to all get together and gang up on the Chief, and the Mayor that’s an unrealistic expectation it’s not their job to clean house, but it is their job to step up when one of them is out of line and I know many of them have done just that you just don’t hear about it. You might think about this too some of those good cops think what Thompson did wasn’t out of line, that doesn’t mean they are bad cops it just means for one reason or another they can’t bring themselves to believe a nice guy like Thompson could do something so wrong. If that is what they believe so what, that doesn’t mean they are bad cops. Just like it doesn’t mean I’m a bad citizen because I believe the guy was out of line.The only cure I can come up with for this mess is for some type of non-BS dialog to take place with the real cops, not the brass, or the hand picked public faces they send out to be all sweet and nice for the citizens. If Mr. Lewis met a real cop some day he might even end up buying the cop a beer.I’ve said enough, it just makes me mad that all these good cops are getting put in the same category as some of the jerks that bring discredit to the job.
By the way Mr. Undooly I bet I can still handle a floor buffer twice as good as you can.
D Statler on March 29 at 7:28 a.m.
LOL, anymore cutbacks and you and I can both go police the course for the march on Sunday with labor ready :^) Your points are well expressed and well taken Brian.Thankyou for your service to our community.Sounds like you would have been an excellent trainer for the police and on a buffer.
lewis8457 on March 29 at 8:13 a.m.
Brian you need to stay up on your facts when you insult people i am not a janitor i am unemployed like many in this city.
Your trying to argue the point all professionals are the same as cops but they are not. The doctor has insurance in case he makes a mistake so the victims family can be taken care of.

Where is that concern when a cop kills someone? There isn’t any, so don’t mix apples and oranges they are not even close in this debate.
this is about public employees killing tax paying citizens with no accountability. All those other professions you indicated are held to a level of accountability.
Bits yes i am sad about no justice for the common man in Spokane. But don’t take that as a weakness because now i have to protect my self, and my property. And i wont go down without taking one or two with me. I am so happy i get to save up 4 of my unemployment checks so i can pay my property taxes for living in a town where i have to protect myself like back in the old west.
brianrbreen on March 29 at 9:10 a.m.
Mr. Lewis,
If you think being a janitor is some kind of insult you are mistaken. When I was 10 I got up at 4 am learned to lay floor wax handle a floor buffer clean mop heads scrub toilets and pick up cigarette butts in the grass. Learned all that from one of the greatest men to set foot on this planet my dad. So every time one of these wannabe cops make fun of someone because they are a janitor I just figure its some jerk who hasn’t learned that just because they are a cop doesn’t mean they are any better then a guy mopping floors. Just like when you name call every cop that wears a badge I just figure you can’t understand that a lot of them are just like you.
Elkay on March 29 at 9:32 a.m.
Mr. Breen,
Amen to that!
Ed Byrnes on March 29 at 8:12 p.m.
Brian, I think the kind of direct no bs conversations you suggest are just the remedy. My bet is that when cops and civilians begin to reinforce what we already know, that we are all people, then we can generate some needed changes in both of our environments. I think us civilians need to be involved since, quite frankly, I don’t trust most administrators and do not expect the rank and file LEOs to challenge the brass unless they purposefully want to be punished with crappy assignments.
So I am thinking patrol officers and deputies sitting down with people like the retired couple who sees what happens in their neighborhood, the guys who work on our cars, the manager of the grocery store down the street, the owner of the music store and the one who owns the safe bar downtown, a school teacher, you get the idea just regular folks who care about our community - so not some allegedly “blue ribbon” hand picked bunch of civilians.
I wish I knew where to start better, though less formal is probably the way to do this right. I can gather up some level headed regular civilians if you can gather up some LEOs who are level headed, which are most of them, not the small group of wannabes who usually blog here.
brianrbreen on March 30 at 9:51 a.m.
Okay I’m in.
Any LEOs that want to get a confidential dialog going with no agendas no brass no bozos call the office I work at occasionally tell them you’re an LEO and they will either take your number or give you mine even if you don’t think there is a communication problem you could explain why you don’t. I’ll work something out with Mr. Byrnes.
kennyhuston on March 30 at 1:57 p.m.
I have been watching these posts with everyone’s ideas and I believe something is evolving right here before my very eyes!!!
@ Mr. Byrnes and Mr. Breen - THANK YOU!!!! For all of your time, your ability to rationally debate heated issues, and for giving Spokanites some common sense dialogue regarding the general public’s opinion of local LEO’s.
It’s actually looking like I see a dimly lit light at the end of this long, dark tunnel!!!
TheRoyLarsen on March 30 at 8:39 p.m.
How does one become a janitor?
bszottlinger on March 31 at 9:33 a.m.
Looks like the Reserve Police Officers didn’t get the memo about not posting any more, or maybe they aren’t covered unless they are riding along dreaming so much about being a real officer.
Ed Byrnes on March 31 at 5:54 p.m.
Brian, I received your message and will be in touch on Friday. Thank you for initiating this process of LEOs and civilians working together toward a better community.
Ed