Superior Court Judge John McHale issued a ruling today vacating an arbitrator’s decision to reinstate Officer Adley Shepherd after he punched a handcuffed suspect in the face while she was seated in the back of a patrol car, fracturing her skull. Last year, Chief Carmen Best, with the support of Mayor Jenny A. Durkan, made the determination to not reinstate the officer, and City Attorney Pete Holmes sought review in King County Superior Court. Per today’s ruling, the original termination decision from 2016 is upheld, which means Adley Shepherd has been terminated from employment at the Seattle Police Department following the 2014 incident.
Mayor
Jenny A. Durkan and City Attorney Pete Holmes issued the following Statement:
“We knew the arbitrator’s decision to reinstate Officer Shepherd was wrong from
the outset, and Chief Carmen Best was right to not reinstate the officer
immediately.
“We understood that Judge Robart had deep concerns about this case. We shared
those concerns about how this incident deeply impacted public confidence, which
is why we pursued the appeal.
“Judge McHale rightly recognized the arbitrator’s order for Mr. Shepherd’s
reinstatement violated the public policy against excessive use of force in
policing. SPD should not be forced to employ an officer whose view of
reasonable and necessary force is so immutable and so contrary to SPD’s
policies and values. We strongly agree with the Judge when he noted that SPD’s
policy prohibiting excessive force was ‘explicit, dominant, and well defined.’
This was the right decision.
“We also want to acknowledge the work of Assistant City Attorney Sarah Tilstra who argued this case.”