Independent Oversight! Now!
Posted by Arroyoribera on July 17, 2007
The people have spoken on this one.
On the evening of March 18, 2006, a 36-year-old janitor named Otto Zehm was killed by the Spokane Police at the Zip Trip at 1712 N. Division Street. Seven police officers were involved in beating, tasering, hog-tying and finally asphyxiating Otto.
The Spokane County Coroner ruled Otto’s death a “homicide”.
As of today, 16 months later, there has been no dismissal of any officer involved in the killing. One SPD officer involved in the Zehm homicide even killed a black man in an alley a year later, yet remains on the force.
As of today, there is no oversight mechanism in place to deal with the rapidly multiplying instances of police misconduct, corruption, and brutality.
If a community has no control over its police, then they are living in a police state. Call it a police county or a police city, if you prefer.
In Spokane, Washington, we are living in a police state.
Independent oversight and federal intervention are required.
This blog will focus on bringing to light the current and past abuses of the Spokane Police Department and other local law enforcement. While much reporting exists on this, it is hoped that this will be one more source of information and one which will come up under web searches of Spokane and the Spokane Police.
I welcome you contributions to this site, your research, your commentaries, your criticism of the blog, etc.
I am interested in collaboration with this project and am looking for additional authors and investigators to help develop this blog.
