‘Justice and accountability.’ 6,000 sign petition condemning Kennewick police shooting
An online petition is calling for the “immediate and permanent” firing of three Kennewick police officers involved in the February fatal shooting of a 45-year-old father of seven.
The Change.org petition seeking “Justice for Gordon (Whitaker)“ has collected more than 6,300 signatures in five days.
The author, Logan Wolfe, said Whitaker was walking to the store when he was approached and “murdered by Kennewick police Officers Becca Henry, Zach Moore and Dylan Markley.”
“He was shot six times in the back while Becca Henry held him down,” according to the petition. “The family has not been provided with any body cam evidence as (police) say there wasn’t any, nor have they received any answers as to why lethal force was needed to be used on a man who had already been detained.”
The officers were placed on paid administrative leave after the Feb. 9 shooting near downtown Kennewick. That is standard protocol in officer-involved shooting investigations.
All three have since returned to work, though Markley is on office duty and not back patrolling on the road, Lt. Aaron Clem told the Tri-City Herald on Tuesday.
The shooting is being investigated by the regional Special Investigations Unit. The team consists of detectives from other Tri-Cities agencies.
Once the report is done, it will be forwarded to prosecutors for consideration of criminal charges.
Under Initiative 940, passed in 2018, prosecutors no longer have to prove law enforcement officers acted with “malice,” or “evil intent.”
Now the decision hinges on “proof that a reasonable officer would have used deadly force in the same circumstance and sincerely believed the use of deadly force was warranted,” according to The Seattle Times after Washington voters passed the measure.
Needing answers
Whitaker, who lived in West Richland, in recent years had been caring for his wheelchair-bound mother with multiple sclerosis.
An adult daughter described Whitaker as “a bright spirit” and joke teller who knew how to cheer people up with a smile.
He loved cooking and had a desire to make everyone happy, even if that meant working a side job to help someone cover a bill or other expenses, Juliet Whitaker Green told the Herald in February.
The petition, directed to the Kennewick Police Department and the Benton County Prosecutor’s Office, was done on behalf of all of Whitaker’s survivors. It also asks for Prosecutor Andy Miller to press appropriate charges.
“Real justice has never been served for Gordon or his family,” it says.
Many who commented cited “Black Lives Matter” as their reason for signing the petition. Others said his family deserves answers. “We need to know how and why this happened,” said one person.
Mark Lindquist is a Seattle attorney representing Whitaker’s estranged widow, LaBelle, who gave permission for the petition to go public.
“Now more than ever, people want justice and accountability when citizens die at the hands of police officers,” said Lindquist.
“Our client wants the truth. She wants to know why Mr. Whitaker was shot and killed. The community wants to know as well,” he added. “What happens next will depend on what we learn.”
Allegedly pulled a gun
Police have released few details about what led up to the shooting.
In the days after, they said officers were patrolling near North Fruitland Street and Columbia Park Trail, along the Columbia River, when they contacted Gordon Whitaker and another man.
One of the men allegedly started to run after officers asked for their names.
It was while officers were in the process of detaining Whitaker that he allegedly pulled out a gun, and at least one officer fired in response to the threat, Clem said in a news release at the time.
“We have one suspect down. We’re going to detain a second (suspect),” a Kennewick officer told emergency dispatchers, according to a Broadcastify recording of communications. “We’ll need medics to expedite here.”
Police have not identified which officer or officers fired the fatal shots, along with a reason for the late-night contact or the name of the man who was with Whitaker.
Whitaker was given immediate medical aid, but he died at the scene. The coroner did not release the location of Whitaker’s wounds, but confirmed that he was shot multiple times.
Police later released that a handgun was found at the scene, though they did not say where it was in relation to Whitaker’s body.
Officer Henry has been with the department for 10 years, Moore for four years and Markley since July 2019.
Both Henry and Moore are patrol training officers and Markley, a recent graduate from the Washington State Basic Law Enforcement Academy, was in the patrol training officer phase of his training.
Moore also is the department’s use-of-force training instructor.
This story was originally published June 9, 2020 at 10:08 PM.