By Geoff Mirelowitz

KENT, Washington, June 28 — A King County jury yesterday convicted the police officer who killed Jesse Sarey five years ago. Jeffrey Nelson, a police officer in Auburn, Washington, was found guilty of both counts filed against him: second-degree murder and first-degree assault. It was a blow against police violence and a measure of justice for those victimized by it.

Surrounded by members of other families who have lost loved ones to police murder, Sarey’s foster mother Elaine Simons addressed the media outside the courthouse. “This is justice not only for the Sarey family but for Washington state…and other impacted families,” who have suffered such a loss, she said.

Simons called the jury verdict “precedent setting.” It is the first time a Washington police officer has been charged and convicted of murder for on-duty violence.

The charges against Nelson were filed as a result of changes in Washington state law arising from the passage of Initiative 940, in a 2018 state referendum.

Jesse Sarey was 26 years old when he was murdered by Nelson in Auburn, Washington, on May 31, 2019. Sarey was experiencing a mental health crisis that day.

When confronted by Nelson in the incident that led to his death, Sarey was searching for something to drink in a box of discarded soda cans, as Simons has often explained. Nelson quickly escalated the incident, pulled his gun, and shot Sarey in the midsection. Seconds later, he shot him again in the head. The first shot killed Sarey and was the basis for the murder charge. The second shot was the basis for the assault charge.

Simons, other members of the Sarey family, and their supporters campaigned relentlessly for justice for Jesse for the past five years. Simons told the story of Jesse’s life and death throughout the mass protests against police violence that erupted in 2020, following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

Even as those protests ebbed, Simons has worked with other impacted family members in Washington state and across the country to keep the issue of cop violence, and the fight for justice, in the public eye.

Simons and the Sarey family focused on seeing Nelson convicted for Jesse’s death. Speaking to the media after the verdict, Simons referred to Jesse’s mother Kari and his brother Torrell, both of whom died before Nelson was finally brought to trial. She also expressed her gratitude to the media who reported on the case as it developed and to the impacted families and other activists who fought alongside Jesse’s family to win justice.

She then introduced three impacted family members who have been staunch supporters of this fight and urged them to say the names of their own loved ones who have been killed by police. Sonia Joseph spoke the name of her son, Giovonn Joseph-McDade, whose “angelversary” (the anniversary of his death in 2017) was three days earlier on June 24.

Joseph was followed by Kathleen Strickland, whose son Enosa “EJ” Strickland was also murdered by an Auburn cop, just 11 days before Jesse Sarey’s death. She was followed by Po Leapai whose cousin Iosa Faletogo died at the hands of six Seattle cops on New Year’s Eve 2018.

‘When one impacted family wins, we all win’

“When one impacted family wins, we all win,” Leapai told the press; a point he has made often at rallies and protests since his cousin’s death. “But we also feel it when justice is denied,” he continued, referring to the death of Manuel Ellis, killed by Tacoma police on March 3, 2020. On December 21, 2023, a Tacoma jury found the three cops involved “not guilty,” in a result that dismayed and angered Ellis’ family and opponents of police violence.

The murders of Ellis, Faletogo, Strickland, and Joseph-McDade are among many in which police officers have not been held accountable for murder. While some families have won civil suits against the police departments involved, the officers responsible have most often been absolved. The Nelson verdict thus stands out as an important example — and a message to other cops — that cops who kill can be held accountable.

But make no mistake, the fight for justice by impacted families and their supporters is essential to such an outcome. World-Outlook reported on experiences in that struggle as they were recounted in a March 21, 2021, live Facebook video meeting. Simons was a key organizer of that event, which turned a spotlight on the stories and demands of families who have lost loved ones to police violence in Washington State.

Leapai also made this point when he spoke of Elaine Simons’ “resilience over the years” and her role as “a leader in our community.”

Those who have been involved in the fight against police violence know the very same can be said about Leapai, Joseph, Strickland and many others.

Following the verdict, Katrina Johnson, cousin of Charleena Lyles, killed by Seattle cops in 2017, arrived at the courthouse to join Simons and others to mark the conviction of Nelson. So did Andre Taylor, whose brother Che Taylor was shot and killed by Seattle police in 2016. Johnson, Taylor, and other impacted family members were central organizers of the effort to pass I-940. Olympia attorney Leslie Cushman, the author of I-940, joined Simons at the courthouse the entire day and was often in attendance at the trial.

Nelson was remanded into custody after the verdict was read. Sentencing is scheduled for July 16. For the past five years, since he shot Sarey, Nelson has been on paid administrative leave. He remained out on bail, though subject to house arrest. His attorneys asked to continue that arrangement until the sentencing date. Judge Nicole Gains Phelps denied the request, noting Nelson has now been convicted of violent crimes.

Nelson’s attorneys also announced they plan to request a retrial, though they did not say on what grounds. It is noteworthy that — after promising Nelson would testify in his own defense in the trial’s opening statements — his defense team decided against calling him to the stand. Moreover, in closing arguments on June 20 the defense told the jury it had decided against calling virtually any witnesses because, it asserted, the prosecution had not proved its case so little rebuttal was necessary.

In that closing statement the defense claimed that Sarey’s death was “tragic,” but that it was also his own fault. The verdict makes clear the jury did not buy that specious argument, which contradicted the evidence produced during the trial.

Jesse Sarey was not the first person killed by Nelson. The officer shot and killed Brian Scaman in 2011. He killed Isaiah Obet in 2017. For his actions in the killing of Obet he was awarded the Auburn Police Department’s Medal of Valor. Judge Phelps had ruled that these prior killings could not be brought into evidence in this trial, so the jury was unaware of them. But the jury was clearly aware of what the evidence showed about Sarey’s death.

Nelson’s conviction was immediately big news in the Seattle area. It was the subject of a banner, front-page headline in today’s Seattle Times. At least one local television station, KING 5, live streamed the final court session. Many other media outlets gave prominent coverage to the verdict.

The Seattle Times story cited James Bible, the lawyer who represents Manuel Ellis’ family:

“I’ve spent a lot of late nights with people who lost loved ones who were killed by law enforcement, and seen them at their lowest moments,” Bible said. “And to know that 12 jurors can look at all the facts and reach the conclusion that this man did not have to die, in fact that he should have lived, is a really important moment for accountability.”

As more than one supporter of justice for Jesse said after the verdict, “Jesse’s life mattered.”

If you appreciate this post, subscribe to World-Outlook (for free) by using the link below.

Type your email in the box below and click on “SUBSCRIBE”; you will get a link in your in-box that you will need to click on to confirm your subscription.