Relatives of family members killed by police won a victory in a ruling by the Washington State Supreme Court in July 2021. New rules for conducting inquest hearings were set in a hearing that came after the ruling. The rules are what the families had pushed for.
It was Father’s Day in 2017 when Charleena Lyles called police to report a burglary at her home. Officers who arrived at the scene said the 30-year-old Black mother of four lunged at them with a knife. White officers Jason Anderson and Steven McNe fatally shot Charleena.
Protests and outrage followed. This was viewed by many to be a racialized killing. This happened before the George Floyd death. An inquest lawsuit was pursued. An inquest has subpoena powers which allow officers to be brought in front of a jury and questioned in a noncriminal court setting. Getting information is the main objective of inquests. Otherwise, police officers can use their union lawyers to prevent questioning in various circumstances.
New inquest rules now say that a police officer who kills someone can be required to testify at the inquest. Inquest juries, however, can determine whether officers used criminal means. The inquest is set for June 21 to July 1.
The Lyles’ family through a civil suit said that the officers failed to de-escalate as their training provides in those situations. The case was dismissed and appealed.
