Features

Clark County Prosecutor to Review Olympia Police Killing of Timothy Green

17

Jan

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Features, Timothy Green

Clark County Prosecutor to Review Olympia Police Killing of Timothy Green

It’s now up to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to evaluate whether an Olympia police officer has a legal defense under state law in the shooting death of an Olympia man last year. Initiative 940, passed by voters in 2018 and the law, enacted in 2019, changed the legal defense for law enforcement officers using deadly force. Prior to the change, an officer was subject to the “malice and good faith clause,” which for all practical purposes was an immunity. In the long history of that law, the only officer ever charged was acquitted. Now, the law says “in order to be protected from criminal liability, the use of deadly force by a peace officer…

New Plans Spring Forth for Artesian Commons

11

Jan

By Mindy Chambers

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City of Olympia, Features

New Plans Spring Forth for Artesian Commons

Could 2023 be the year when downtown Olympia's infamous eyesore, a tiny park (formerly known as the Artesian Commons) sandwiched between a pet store and a bar, becomes more than a trash-strewn lonely vacant lot? Maybe. In the City of Olympia's 2023 proposed operating budget for the Office of Community Vitality, they set aside $75,000 to develop "a night market at the Artesian Commons." Also, a related request for $45,000 is noted in the 2023 work plan for the city's Parking and Business Improvement Area. The former site of the Artesian Commons Park The city also is asking the PBIA to…

Investigation Into Olympia Police Killing of Timothy Green Concludes; Future Uncertain

08

Jan

By Mindy Chambers

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Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers, Timothy Green

Investigation Into Olympia Police Killing of Timothy Green Concludes; Future Uncertain

Nearly six months after an Olympia Police Department officer shot and killed Timothy Green near a busy intersection on the outskirts of the city, an investigation into the incident is complete. The Capital Metro Independent Investigation Team (CMIIT) will brief the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on its findings on January 12, said Lacey Police Sgt. Shannon Barnes, a spokeswoman for the CMIIT. It will be up to Clark County Prosecuting Attorney Tony Golik to determine what, if any, further action will occur. The briefing, which is not open to the public, will take place at the Prosecutor’s Office. Green’s…

Timothy Green’s Parents Struggle to Make Sense of Why Olympia Police Killed Their Son

07

Oct

By Mindy Chambers

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Features, Mindy Chambers, Timothy Green

Timothy Green’s Parents Struggle to Make Sense of Why Olympia Police Killed Their Son

Millie and Oscar Green last spoke with their son Timothy around 8 p.m. the day before his death. “I asked him, ‘are you safe?’ He said, ‘I am about as safe as I am going to be,’ ”recounts Millie, who spoke with Timothy on Sunday, August 21, assuring him that on the following day, Monday, the family would renew its efforts to find a place for him in a mental health facility. But by mid-morning Monday, August 22, Timothy, a 37-year-old Black man in crisis, was dead, shot three times in the chest by an Olympia Police Department officer during an incident that’s still under investigation. “All the beds were full,” Millie said of their fruitless efforts to find assistance for Timothy, who on Saturday had been asked to…

“He will always be my son. They took something away from us, but they did not take Tim.”

13

Sep

By Mindy Chambers

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Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers, Timothy GreenTimothy Green

“He will always be my son. They took something away from us, but they did not take Tim.”

A memorial to Timothy Green at the place where an Olympia Police Department officer shot and killed him on August 22, 2022. [Photo: Leslie Cushman] “He will not be forgotten.His family will be supported.Police will be held accountable.We can and must do better.” That’s the vow of family and friends of Timothy Green, shot and killed by an Olympia Police Department officer just over three weeks ago. “He will always be my son. They took something away from us, but they did not take Tim. I won’t let them. If I did that, then they win,” said Timothy’s mother, Millie…

Statement from Olympia Chapter of Showing up for Racial Justice on the death of Timothy Green and letter to CMITT

11

Sep

By Guest Contributor

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Features, Timothy Green

Statement from Olympia Chapter of Showing up for Racial Justice on the death of Timothy Green and letter to CMITT

Olympia SURJ is part of a national network of groups and individuals educating, mobilizing and organizing white people within a multi-racial movement for racial justice: “Through community organizing, mobilizing and education, SURJ moves white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability. We work to connect people across the country while supporting and collaborating with local and national racial justice organizing efforts. SURJ provides a space to build relationships, skills and political analysis to act for change. We envision a society where we struggle together with love, for justice, human dignity and a…

Olympia Police Department Release Names of Officers Involved in Timothy Green Killing

03

Sep

By Mindy Chambers

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Features, Mindy Chambers, Timothy Green

Olympia Police Department Release Names of Officers Involved in Timothy Green Killing

[Artwork by: Agnostic Trek] The Olympia Police Department has identified the four officers involved in a shooting nearly two weeks ago that led to the death of 37-year-old Timothy Green. The officers are Acting Sgt. Joseph Bellamy, officer Caleb Shaffer, officer Jordan Anderson, and officer Brenda Anderson. Their names were given to The Olympia Tribune in response to a records request and subsequently released to the public Friday. “Because of ongoing community interest and to ensure transparency with the public following the recent fulfillment of a Public Disclosure Request (by the Olympia Tribune), we are sharing the names of the…

Family of Timothy Green Releases Statement

29

Aug

By Mindy Chambers

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Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers, Timothy Green

Family of Timothy Green Releases Statement

The family of Timothy Green, shot and killed by an Olympia Police Department officer a week ago today, has issued a statement asking the community for prayers and setting out their expectations for the investigation into his death. The family also expresses their long-time fear that the 37-year-old Olympia resident would die at the hands of police. “As a family, we have dreaded the possibility that Tim would meet this very outcome. We have read the accounts of other individuals in mental health crises … We know that people who have mental health issues are at a higher risk of being killed by police and this…

26

Aug

By Mindy Chambers

1 Comment

Features, Timothy Green

His Name Was Timothy Green

Just after 11:30 a.m. on Monday, August 22nd, an hour after one of its officers shot and mortally wounded 37-year-old Timothy Green near one of the city’s busiest intersections, the Olympia Police Department posted on Twitter that “officers had been treated at the scene for injuries.” Just two days later, the official narrative changed. This news release, issued late Wednesday, confirmed that “the officers were not injured.” OPD first reported the incident like this: And later followed up with this: And that was the end of OPD’s public discussion of the incident. The news release contradicts OPD’s initial report regarding injuries…

22

Apr

By Mindy Chambers

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City of Olympia, Contributors, Features, Mindy Chambers

Top Cop Search Stops… AGAIN

The city of Olympia’s “preferred candidate” to be its next police chief dropped out of the running Thursday, dealing another blow to its two-plus year search for a permanent chief. The move came the day before Kenton Buckner resigned as chief of the Syracuse, N.Y., Police Department, where he had served for just over three years. Buckner's resignation was not mentioned in a late-morning news release from the city on Friday announcing it was again pausing its police chief search. The release contained this statement from Buckner: "Thank you for the opportunity to participate in the search for a Chief of Police…