Report: Police failed to de-escalate before killing man

SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle’s police watchdog group announced Tuesday that two officers who fatally shot a man carrying a knife as he walked along Seattle’s waterfront last year failed to first try to defuse the situation or use other defensive strategies. The Seattle Times reports the Office of Police Accountability recommended suspensions for each officer — identified by the Police Department as Cassidy Butler and Willard Jared — for violating the department’s “de-escalation” policy. Butler and Jared shot 44-year-old Derek Hayden during the February 2021 encounter along Alaskan Way. Mike Solan, president of the Seattle Police Officers’ Guild which represents the officers, declined to comment Tuesday about the investigation.