Appeals court reverses Charleena Lyles case dismissal, sends it on to trial

It took 25 months from beginning to end, but today the Washington State Court of Appeals finally issued a ruling in its review of the dismissal of the Charleena Lyles wrongful death case brought against the City of Seattle and the two police officers who shot and killed her. The appeals court overturned the lower court’s dismissal of the case and set it up to proceed to trial.

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Lyles shooting takes center stage in Consent Decree case

On November 20th, Judge James Robart, who oversees the implementation of SPD’s consent decree directing police reform, issued an order asking the parties in the case to submit briefs on how two issues should influence his ruling on whether the city is in initial compliance with the consent decree: the shooting last June of Charleena Lyles, and the recent signing of new collective bargaining agreement with SPMA.  The deadline to file those briefs was last Friday.

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SPD responds to Council’s questions on death of Charleena Lyles

The Seattle Times has published a 45-page memo from SPD to the City Council, responding to the 34 questions they submitted following the death of Charleena Lyles at the hands of two SPD officers. The answers are lengthy, and for the most part defy quick summaries as they dive into the nuances and complexities of the situation. SPD also refuses in many cases to speculate on what the outcome of the ongoing investigation will be. But the memo is an interesting and informative read.

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