WA investigations office created in response to Manny Ellis killing begins work as trial of Tacoma officers continues

An investigations office created in response to the killing of Manny Ellis by Tacoma Police is reviewing cases of fatal police encounters as the trial of three officers in the Ellis case gets underway in the Pierce County Superior Court.

The Office of Independent Investigations was part of a police reform package that worked its way through the state Legislature in 2020. The bill creating the office was signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee in 2021.

In July, the new office began taking requests to review prior investigations of deadly force cases. As of Wednesday, the office had received requests to take up 10 prior investigations. About half of those are likely to move onto a formal review.

One case, the death of Andrea Thomas Churna who was fatally shot by Redmond police after calling 911 for help in 2020, is under formal review. Depending on what they discover during the review process, investigators will determine whether to launch a full investigation.

Once an investigation is launched, the office has 120 days to present its findings to the relevant prosecutor's office.

"That report would be a robust description of the facts of the case," Roger Rogoff, the director of the office, told KUOW in 2022. "What actually happened, as well as a very clear description of what our investigation looked like — what we did, who we interviewed, what evidence we considered, who we didn't interview and why."

Rogoff clarified that the "use of deadly force" doesn't have to be fatal, but includes any actions taken by officers that could result in death, such as a "shoot and miss" encounter.

Hector Castro, director of communications for the Office of Independent Investigations, said all of the cases under review by the office have been submitted by family and lawyers of people who have been killed by police. They could end up being the first investigations the state agency picks up.

“We didn’t know what we could get, we weren’t sure of it particularly since there’s that bar to clear that there’s an assertion that this is new evidence we didn’t know what to expect,” he said.

Castro says before any major review, investigators give a heads up to everyone involved in an investigation — from family of the deceased to the officers involved.

The organization's review of prior cases is just one of its tasks. The office, which has a staff of 30, is in the process of training a team of investigators. The Office of Independent Investigations has the budget to employ 80 people who will help in old and new investigations. It has an office in Olympia. A second office in Spokane is scheduled to open soon.

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