‘All lives splatter’ post should cost detective his job, Washington official says

After two Seattle protesters were hit by a car on July 4, a King County sheriff’s detective posted a photo on Facebook with the words “all lives splatter.”

Detective Mike Brown was placed on leave for the post, and now the King County undersheriff is recommending he be fired, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.

“All live splatter” investigation

The image posted by Brown showed a truck plowing into people and also had the words “keep your [expletive] off the road,” according to a screenshot from the sheriff’s department. Brown posted it shortly after two protesters were run over by a driver during a demonstration on a closed freeway, the sheriff’s office said.

One of the victims, Summer Taylor, 24, died from her injuries.

“Despite your stated intentions, that your thoughts were about the risks for pedestrians on freeways, the obvious impact of the post was quite different,” Undersheriff Patti Cole-Tindall wrote in a memo sent to Brown. “It callously endorsed the actions of those who injured protesters on the freeway.”

The sheriff’s office investigated eight posts from Brown that date back to as early as June 1, 2020, according to the undersheriff’s memo.

One post, on June 1, included the repost of a video from Baltimore showing a Black woman striking police officers, followed by one of the offers punching the woman and knocking her to the ground.

“You wrote a post with the video that reads, “When in doubt... Knock em out,” Cole-Tindall wrote in the memo.

The sheriff’s office received the most complaints about the “all lives splatter” post.

Nationwide protests

Cole-Tindall considered the context in which the posts were made, she wrote.

She wrote that after George Floyd, 46, died while in police custody on May 25, his death sparked an avalanche of protests across the nation.

Floyd, who is Black, died after now-fired Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for about eight minutes, as three other officers didn’t intervene.

Cole-Tindall also noted that the “use of force by police in a number of other situations have followed ... adding fuel to the heightened tensions across the nation.”

Some of the demonstrations have included clashes between protesters and police, thefts, fires and other unrest.

“Protests became violent and destructive in some instances in downtown Seattle, resulting in rioters burning police cars, [destroying] property, and looting,” according to Cole-Tindall’s memo.

Authorities have said the violence and thefts involve much smaller groups at mostly peaceful gatherings.. The vast majority of the protesters across the nation have been “peaceful demonstrators calling for change,” law enforcement officials told ABC News.

Brown’s prior violations

The undersheriff also noted that Brown was placed on a 1-day suspension in 2013.

“These violations resulted from your conduct in Chelan County, where you were apparently intoxicated and involved in a hit and run incident involving property damage, and engaged in related communications and interactions that constituted conduct unbecoming,” the memo stated.

Because of all the posts and Brown’s “prior sustained major misconduct violations,” Cole-Tindall recommended he be fired.

“The blow to the department’s integrity was staggering,” Cole-Tindall wrote. “The damage to your integrity and ability to continue to serve as a law enforcement officer cannot be repaired.”

What happens next

Brown was served with the investigation’s findings on Tuesday, according to the news release. Brown has the option to meet with Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht “to present his position prior to the sheriff making a final disciplinary decision.”

The King County Police Officer’s Guild did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story was originally published October 14, 2020 at 2:25 PM with the headline "‘All lives splatter’ post should cost detective his job, Washington official says."