Summary

King County Executive Dow Constantine today ordered an inquest into the shooting death of Maurice Clemmons by a Seattle police officer on December 1, 2009. Clemmons was confronted in the 4400 block of South Kenyon Street in South Seattle after a two-day manhunt for the killer of four Lakewood police officers in Pierce County.

Story

King County Executive Dow Constantine today ordered an inquest into the shooting death of Maurice Clemmons by a Seattle police officer on December 1, 2009. Clemmons was confronted in the 4400 block of South Kenyon Street in South Seattle after a two-day manhunt for the killer of four Lakewood police officers in Pierce County.

King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg recommended the ordering of an inquest after his office reviewed investigative materials from the Seattle Police Department.

Inquests are fact-finding hearings conducted before a six-member jury. They are routinely called to determine the causes and circumstances of any death that occurs while the deceased was engaged with a member of any County law enforcement agency who was performing his or her duties. Under a standing Executive Order, inquests are ordinarily called in cases where death results from the use of force by a member of any law enforcement agency, or where the deceased was incarcerated at the time.

Inquests provide transparency into law enforcement actions so the public may have all the facts in a case established by a court of law, and the calling of an inquest should carry no other implication.

The Executive today sent a letter to King County District Court Presiding Judge Barbara Linde asking her to assign a judge and set a date for empanelment of an inquest jury. The ordering of inquests is a function vested in the county executive under the King County Code.

Read the Executive Order on Conducting Inquests in King County at: www.kingcounty.gov/operations/policies/executive/publicaeo/

and click on the link under Public Health for PHL 7-1 (AEO).