Tag Archives: Tear Gas

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Police Use Tear Gas on Capitol Hill Protestors, Allegedly Misuse Explosive Crowd Control Devices in Medic Tent

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by Carolyn Bick

A young woman was reported to have almost lost her life in last night’s protests on Capitol Hill after Seattle Police Department (SPD) officers allegedly threw several flash bangs into the volunteer medic tent in which she was being treated for a chest injury from “a police projectile” — delaying treatment by attendant volunteer medics, according to one of the street medics who said they had been attending her. 

Around midnight that same evening, according to SPD’s own Twitter feed, as well as multiple tweets showing empty tear gas canisters, officers also used tear gas against protestors on Capitol Hill.

Continue reading Police Use Tear Gas on Capitol Hill Protestors, Allegedly Misuse Explosive Crowd Control Devices in Medic Tent →
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Update: SPD Said It Did Not Use Tear Gas Against Protestors Saturday Night

by Carolyn Bick

UPDATE: According to an Instagram post by The Stranger, the Seattle Police Department told The Seattle Times’ Lewis Kamb that it did not use tear gas against protestors Saturday night. SPD said that its officers used pepper spray, or OC gas. The Emerald has created a new story with an accordingly updated headline.

However, according to a Times story published June 5, health experts still worry that use-of-force tools like pepper spray that act as respiratory irritants can contribute to the spread of the novel coronavirus, because they could cause people to spit or cough, releasing virus-containing droplets.

Continue reading Update: SPD Said It Did Not Use Tear Gas Against Protestors Saturday Night →
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SPD Chief Best Addresses Reports of Officers Removing Badges, Suspends Use of Tear Gas for All But SPD SWAT Team

by Carolyn Bick

In a press conference addressing an update to crowd control tactics, particularly the use of tear gas, both Mayor Jenny Durkan and Seattle Police Department Chief Carmen Best said in a response to a question from the Emerald about on-the-ground reports of officers removing badges on the evening of June 4 that they had not heard of this happening.

Continue reading SPD Chief Best Addresses Reports of Officers Removing Badges, Suspends Use of Tear Gas for All But SPD SWAT Team →
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Seattle CPC, OPA, OIG Release Recommendation that SPD Cease Use of Tear Gas, Due to Novel Coronavirus Concerns

by Carolyn Bick

The Seattle Community Police Commission, Office of Police Accountability, and Office of Inspector General have released a joint recommendation that the Seattle Police Department (SPD) stop using tear gas, due to the extra dangers it poses in light of the current novel coronavirus pandemic.

Continue reading Seattle CPC, OPA, OIG Release Recommendation that SPD Cease Use of Tear Gas, Due to Novel Coronavirus Concerns →