TACOMA, Wash. — Lawyers for three Washington state police officers charged in the 2020 death of a Black man told the jury Tuesday that his death was the result of drug use, not excessive force that included officers choking, shocking and holding him facedown.
Manuel Ellis was addicted to methamphetamine, and it caused him to be violent, unpredictable, and paranoid, said Wayne Fricke, who represents Tacoma police Officer Christopher Burbank.
“This is a situation where he created his own death,” Fricke said during closing arguments in the officers’ nine-week trial on murder and manslaughter charges. “It was his behavior that forced the officers to use force against him because he created a situation that required them to act.”
Fricke’s remarks followed closing arguments by special prosecutor Patty Eakes, who urged the jury to compare the officers’ statements with videos and witness testimony to determine the officers’ credibility. Eakes is prosecuting the case on behalf of the Washington Attorney General’s Office.
Ellis, who repeatedly told the officers, “Can’t breathe, sir,” died March 3, 2020, nearly three months before George Floyd’s death would spark an international outcry against police brutality. This is the first trial of officers charged in a suspect’s death since voters approved a measure in 2018 removing a requirement that prosecutors must prove police acted with malice.
Two of the Tacoma, Washington, officers — Burbank, 38, and Matthew Collins, 40 — were charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter. Timothy Rankine, 34, is charged with manslaughter.
Collins’ lawyer, Jared Ausserer, also gave his closing arguments on Tuesday. Rankine’s lawyer was expected to do so Wednesday. The prosecution will then have one more chance to address the jury before it begins deliberations.
Eakes played audio clips of the officers’ statements and compared them with video and witness testimony to show that they contradicted each…
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