Court rules cops can sue Seattle councilwoman for libel for calling them murderers

Seattle Councilwoman Kshama Sawant 

SEATTLE, WA – A federal court has cleared the way for Seattle police to move forward with a lawsuit against a city councilwoman who called them murderers for the justified shooting of Che Taylor.

Taylor was shot Feb. 21, 2016, in the Wedgwood neighborhood of Seattle. Officers who were conducting an undercover drug operation said Taylor was reaching for a gun and not complying with commands when they shot him.

Following the shooting, Councilwoman Kshama Sawant spoke to a crowd outside of the Seattle Police Department, calling for “justice”:

“The brutal murder of Che Taylor, just a blatant murder at the hands of police, shows how urgently we need to keep building our movement for basic human rights for black people and brown people.

“We need justice on the individual actions, and we need to turn the tide on the systematic police brutality and racial profiling.”

Officers Michael Spaulding and Scott Miller were cleared in the shooting by an inquest panel who ruled the officers were in fear for their lives at the time of the shooting.

King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said at the time:

“In light of the investigative materials, the video evidence, the testimony of witnesses at the inquest and the jurors’ answers to the court’s interrogatories, there is insufficient evidence to overcome this complete defense as defined by the statute.”

9th Cir. reverses dismissal of defamation claim—based on her characterization of a police shooting as a "brutal murder"—against Seattle City Council Member (Sawant) https://t.co/VFexwEKHsV pic.twitter.com/dIvpfiSaxi

— Venkat B. (@VBalasubramani) November 10, 2021

In 2017, the two officers involved in the shooting filed a lawsuit against Councilwoman Sawant for defamation of character. The lawsuit was dismissed by a federal judge for the fourth time in December 2020.

However, last week the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit permitted the lawsuit to move forward, overturning the 2020 court ruling.

In the ruling, Judge A. Wallace Tashima wrote:

“(Sawant’s) own words suggested that her remarks were directed not only at the police generally, but also at the individual officers involved in the shooting.”

The judge said that although Sawant did not name the officer specifically, the intent to include the specific officers in her comments was clearly indicated.

The ruling comes just under three weeks before voters decide whether Sawant remains on the city council. She is the subject of a recall election for which ballots will be distributed starting December 7.

The Seattle Times editorial board supported the recall effort, writing this week:

“Seattle Councilmember Kshama Sawant has long been an outspoken voice for socialist ideals with an utter disregard for the city’s business community. She has also inserted rudeness, bullying and shoddy ethics into City Hall, which has done profound disservice to her District 3 constituency and the city.


“Voters should hold Sawant accountable for transgressions against civil governance and remove her from office.”

The board singled out an incident where Sawant led a march on the home of Mayor Jenny Durkan:

“Sawant spent public money on her political stumping, helped lead a march on Mayor Jenny Durkan’s house despite the confidentiality of its address and broke City Hall’s COVID-19 lockdown to usher in hundreds of protesters.

“Often at odds with a majority of the council, Sawant has not matured into an effective representative, instead choosing rhetoric over substance, and disregarding any civic norm that comes between her and a microphone.”

Sawant, the council’s only socialist member, began serving in office in 2014.

Editor note: In 2020, we saw a nationwide push to “defund the police”. While we all stood here shaking our heads wondering if these people were serious… they cut billions of dollars in funding for police officers. And as a result, crime has skyrocketed – all while the same politicians who said “you don’t need guns, the government will protect you” continued their attacks on both our police officers and our Second Amendment rights.

And that’s exactly why we’re launching this national crowdfunding campaign as part of our efforts to help “re-fund the police”.

Court rules cops can sue Seattle councilwoman for libel (lawenforcementtoday.com)