From Malcontentment Happy Hour, January 18, 2021

Seattle Police Department hit by multiple OPA investigation findings, suspensions, and new investigations at the start of 2021

The Seattle Police Department has been rocked by multiple findings of misconduct, use of force violations, and ongoing investigations in the first two weeks of January:

• Mike Solan, Seattle Police Officer Guild (SPOG) president is facing calls for his resignation due to tweets he shared
• Two police officers suspended with pay and under investigation for any potential role they may have had in the Washington D.C. insurrection
• The Seattle Office of Police Accountability (OPA) found that a police officer improperly used a blast ball on 6/7/20, permanently disabling a woman
• The Seattle Office of Police Accountability (OPA) found that a police officer improperly used a CS gas canister (teargas), throwing it into a group of peaceful protesters inside Cal Anderson Park, the event was shown live on the news and caught on police body camera
• The Seattle Office of Police Accountability (OPA) found that a police officer improperly used a blast ball, throwing it where he could not see where it would land, striking a resting man with it
• The Seattle Office of Police Accountability (OPA) found that a controversial tweet by the Seattle Police Department calling two broken candles explosives was “inaccurate”
• An unnamed officer hired in July 2017 was fired for referring to an African American suspect as Kunta Kinte to his coworkers who complained about their conduct
• Officer Eric Whitehead is under OPA investigation for an incident in a Seattle area emergency room
• Officer Mika Harmon is under OPA investigation for her conduct caught on body camera on 8/21/20, per Seattle Times