BLUE FLU: Tacoma police call in sick after fellow officers charged in death of Manuel EllisSources within the Tacoma Police Department told The Post Millennial that nearly an entire patrol shift on Thursday either called out sick or absent in response to the charges they believe were wrongfully placed against the officers.
May 28, 2021 11:47 AM EST
The Post MillennialTacoma police officers called out sick or absent on Thursday after three Tacoma police officers were charged after a yearlong investigation over the killing of Manuel Ellis, a 33-year-old black father that died in police custody last year.
Tacoma police officers Christopher Burbank and Matthew Collins were charged with second-degree murder, while Timothy Rankine was charged with first-degree manslaughter, the state attorney general said in a statement. The maximum sentence for both offenses is life in prison. The three Tacoma police officers were arrested Thursday.
This is the first time the Washington State attorneys general’s office has filed criminal charges against police officers for unlawful use of deadly force. ...
An autopsy by the Pierce County Medical Examiner concluded the death a homicide as a result of physical restraint, but included that Ellis had a fatal amount of methamphetamine in his system and had dilated cardiomyopathy which were contributing factors in his death. ...