Judge overturns reinstatement of Seattle officer who punched handcuffed woman

[NewsVine_Mariyam]

While all of this was occuring, the state of Washington issued an armed PI license to him

Judge overturns reinstatement of Seattle officer who punched handcuffed woman
by KOMO Staff

Friday, August 16th 2019

Miyekko Durden-Bosley is seen after the attack. (Screengrab courtesy of Youtube)

SEATTLE — Seattle Police Officer Adley Shepherd was seen on video in 2014 punching a woman in handcuffs after she kicked him in the jaw.

The incident has gone back and forth between arbitrators and the courts, leading to a firing, reinstatement and now, another firing.

On June 22, 2014, Miyekko Durden-Bosley was handcuffed in the backseat of Shepherd's patrol car.

According to court documents, Durden-Bosley kicked Shepherd in the jaw. He stepped back out of the car door and said, "she kicked me," before re-entering the back seat area. He then punched Durden-Bosley in the area of her right eye and caused minimally displaced orbital wall and orbital floor fractures.

Durden-Bosley also reportedly sustained broken bones in her face and a concussion after she was punched.

She was taken to Harborview Medical Center for treatment and then jailed for four days and spent much of the time sick due to the head injury.

In June 2016, Durden-Bosley settled federal claims against the city and Shepherd. Durden-Bosley and her attorneys were to be paid $195,000 in exchange for dropping a lawsuit brought by Durden-Bosley in 2015.

Patrol car video captured the incident, which led to Shepherd being put on paid administrative leave for 29 months, then officially fired in November 2016.

In November 2018, an independent arbitrator determined Shepherd was wrongfully terminated and could return to his job and receive back pay.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE | Seattle cop fired for punching woman can have his job back

"Officer Shepherd, in an attempt to stop the woman from further assaulting him, punched the woman once," the Seattle Police Officers Guild said in a previous statement.

The arbitrator, who was selected jointly by the City of Seattle and the guild, ruled after hearing several days of testimony, that firing was too severe a punishment and ordered that the termination be dismissed.

The police guild hailed the arbitrator's decision and said it was "pleased" that the firing had been overturned.

Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best made the determination to not reinstate the officer and Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes sought the case to be reviewed in King County Superior Court.

A judge ruled Friday that the firing was just and vacated the arbitrator's award.

In a joint statement, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and Holmes said in part, "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."

Continued here
https://komonews.com/news/local/judge-overturns-reinstatement-of-seattle-officer-who-punched-handcuffed-woman​

 

[theHawk]

She kicked him in the jaw. He punched her in order to subdue her and stop her from attacking. If she was a he, no one would care. Another case of women and media demanding that women be treated the same as men, except when it suits them to play the “I’m just a girl” victim.

 

[NewsVine_Mariyam]

She kicked him in the jaw. He punched her in order to subdue her and stop her from attacking. If she was a he, no one would care. Another case of women and media demanding that women be treated the same as men, except when it suits them to play the “I’m just a girl” victim.

The police are not allowed to assault a person they've taken into custody and is in cuffs. From all appearances Shepherd hit her in retaliation for kicking at him and making contact, not in self-defense, even the judge said so.

More importantly no matter how angry or impatient he was, our law enforcement officers are paid to behave in a professional manner even when the people they're dealing with are at their worse.

 

[Erinwltr]

I lived with that for three years. He used incredible restraint. Yes, reinstate.

 

[Olde Europe]

He used incredible restraint.

Mindboggling.

Yes, reinstate.

Because beating up handcuffed, defenseless persons is the hallmark of professionalism. How about putting a broomstick to good use?

 

[RoshawnMarkwees]

He used incredible restraint.

Mindboggling.

Yes, reinstate.

Because beating up handcuffed, defenseless persons is the hallmark of professionalism. How about putting a broomstick to good use?

You’re very selective in your description. You must have an agenda.

 

[RoshawnMarkwees]

I lived with that for three years. He used incredible restraint. Yes, reinstate.

You lived with that woman for three years?

 

[pknopp]

Let's argue that a police officer grabs a suspect and forcibly twists their arm behind their back causing pain. Can that person in a reaction to that pain strike the officer? No, they can not.

Part of the reason for the previous protests is trying to get across the idea that the police must be held to the same standard we hold citizens to.

If I violate policy at work, I know I very well could get fired. If I violate policy at work and someone gets hurt, I can guarantee I will get fired.

 

[KissMy]

Fire him, his punch cost tax payers a quarter million dollars & she got rewarded $195,000 for being a criminal. She should have been jailed for 5 years for felony assault, but the officer blew it so now the bitch is running around free laughing with pockets full of money!

 

[Erinwltr]

I lived with that for three years. He used incredible restraint. Yes, reinstate.

You lived with that woman for three years?

No. Don't be a Dick. I didn't say that woman. I was referring to the situation.

 

[Vastator]

She kicked him in the jaw. He punched her in order to subdue her and stop her from attacking. If she was a he, no one would care. Another case of women and media demanding that women be treated the same as men, except when it suits them to play the “I’m just a girl” victim.

The police are not allowed to assault a person they've taken into custody and is in cuffs. From all appearances Shepherd hit her in retaliation for kicking at him and making contact...

So, yeah... she kicked him. She was still resisting, and assaulting the cop. Cut, and dry. Her being handcuffed has no bearing on the situation. As clearly demonstrated by her continued assault. There is no law written, anywhere which states that an officer can not defend themselves from a person who is handcuffed.

 

[Soupnazi630]

She kicked him in the jaw. He punched her in order to subdue her and stop her from attacking. If she was a he, no one would care. Another case of women and media demanding that women be treated the same as men, except when it suits them to play the “I’m just a girl” victim.

The police are not allowed to assault a person they've taken into custody and is in cuffs. From all appearances Shepherd hit her in retaliation for kicking at him and making contact...

So, yeah... she kicked him. She was still resisting, and assaulting the cop. Cut, and dry. Her being handcuffed has no bearing on the situation. As clearly demonstrated by her continued assault. There is no law written, anywhere which states that an officer can not defend themselves from a person who is handcuffed.

It happens in prison a lot more than outsiders realize

In high security prisons with a large population of violent inmates there are many fights and attacks. Officers often restrain inmates with handcuffs and those inmates continue to fight. They will bite and kick and try to shove with their shoulders. Often the fact that they are handcuffed merely impedes their efforts little bit. It does not stop them from being dangerous.

Corrections officers often to have continue to use force of some kind even after restraints are applied. Obviously it is a question of how much force is appropriate or reasonable and it can be tricky. One can split hairs all day on those issues but if a suspect in cuffs is still combative some sort of force has to be used

 

[theHawk]

She kicked him in the jaw. He punched her in order to subdue her and stop her from attacking. If she was a he, no one would care. Another case of women and media demanding that women be treated the same as men, except when it suits them to play the “I’m just a girl” victim.

The police are not allowed to assault a person they've taken into custody and is in cuffs. From all appearances Shepherd hit her in retaliation for kicking at him and making contact, not in self-defense, even the judge said so.

More importantly no matter how angry or impatient he was, our law enforcement officers are paid to behave in a professional manner even when the people they're dealing with are at their worse.

Just because someone is in handcuffs doesn’t mean they can’t assault someone. As has already been established, she KICKED him in the JAW while she was handcuffed.

Let see if someone kicks you in the jaw if you wouldn’t automatically hit them back, even if it isn’t “self defense”.

 

[Billy_Kinetta]

Fire him, his punch cost tax payers a quarter million dollars & she got rewarded $195,000 for being a criminal

Yeah, judges/juries can be pretty stupid sometimes.

 

[shockedcanadian]

Well, this is a tougher one. Depending on the force, after being kicked in the jaw, and I'm not making excuses, just explaining how I view it; he probably was hit with a strong temporary surge of rage and he struck out at her. This temporary clouding of judgement does exist, it's a psychological response, and it often happens as a response to something, like being struck hard, attacked, hit in a sensitive/painful location etc.

Should he have punched her? Of course not. Am I surprised he did if indeed he was kicked in the jaw? If he got hit lightly, yes, he is in the wrong. If he got kicked mule hard, he's bound to react. He's human.

As for the reinstatement. This is very difficult, as next time he could escalate it. Depends on his work history with the force. He did punch her while she was handcuffed, already in custody. The punch designed to stop her from doing it again I suppose, but he clearly clocked her hard in the face.

I wouldn't want him in uniform. Maybe be a paper pusher or something else. That's just me, as much as I understand his reaction. Humans are not meant to be punching bags for ANYONE. If he does go back in uniform, I expect he will have psychological evaluations and go through therapy to help him control his responses.

 

[Olde Europe]

Yeah, that cop was frightened to death by a deadly woman, sitting in his car, handcuffed, and there was no way to restrain her other than by beating her up.

White rightarded males are the biggest sissies the world has ever seen, wet pants day-in, day-out. Small wonder then, they need their steely penis enhancers and ammunition to acquire what they confuse with manliness.

You are defining "pathetic" down. How, really, do you catch a sight of yourself in any mirror, no matter how short and flimsy, without vomiting?

 

[Soupnazi630]

Yeah, that cop was frightened to death by a deadly woman, sitting in his car, handcuffed, and there was no way to restrain her other than by beating her up.

White rightarded males are the biggest sissies the world has ever seen, wet pants day-in, day-out. Small wonder then, they need their steely penis enhancers and ammunition to acquire what they confuse with manliness.

You are defining "pathetic" down. How, really, do you catch a sight of yourself in any mirror, no matter how short and flimsy, without vomiting?

So your argument is that he was wrong because YOU are a racist.

Not very intelligent

 

[Uncensored2008]

She kicked him in the face. He has the right to respond. Hitting her is a reasonable response.

IF the fucking Bolsheviks like this pile of shit "judge" have their way then the ONLY option left to cops is to shoot. Then we wonder why there are so many police shootings.

 

[pknopp]

Yeah, that cop was frightened to death by a deadly woman, sitting in his car, handcuffed, and there was no way to restrain her other than by beating her up.

White rightarded males are the biggest sissies the world has ever seen, wet pants day-in, day-out. Small wonder then, they need their steely penis enhancers and ammunition to acquire what they confuse with manliness.

You are defining "pathetic" down. How, really, do you catch a sight of yourself in any mirror, no matter how short and flimsy, without vomiting?

So your argument is that he was wrong because YOU are a racist.

Not very intelligent

He was wrong because there is a solution to what she did. Legal charges brought against her. Most likely she would have been taken in and little else would have happened if she hadn't kicked him. What should have happened after kicking him would be charges for assaulting an officer and locked up for that. I fully support that.

Is it a natural reaction to strike back when struck? It is BUT the police have to be trained to not do that. What happened was, she wasn't put in jail. She got a big pay out and he got fired.

As I noted before, it's natural for a person to strike back if a police officer grabs your arm and forcibly puts it behind your back. If you strike him, you will be charged. The police has to be held at the very least to the same standard we hold the people to.

 

[EvilCat Breath]

The courts are turning the police into politically correct punching bags.