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The first coroner’s inquest under King County’s newly revamped process to review police-caused deaths opened Tuesday morning with the seating of an eight-person jury and testimony from the first witnesses. The inquest, which will be conducted much like a trial, will examine the fatal shooting of Damarius Butts, a 19-year-old Black man, by Seattle police on April 20, 2017.
Butts died in an exchange of gunfire that left three officers injured after a robbery at a downtown convenience store. Four officers fired their weapons that day.
An internal review by police found the shooting to be reasonable and proportional.
The jury, which includes two alternates, consists of six white men, an Asian American man and a Black woman.
At the end of the proceedings they will be asked to answer nearly 100 questions on whether the officers followed policy and procedures or if criminal means were involved in Butts’ death. Read more.
