Three Tacoma police officers who were acquitted in the death of Manuel Ellis, a Black man who died in police custody in 2020 after pleading that he could not breathe, will each receive $500,000 for resigning from the Tacoma Police Department, according to documents released by the city on Tuesday.
Two of the officers, Christopher Burbank, 38 and Matthew Collins, 40, both white, were acquitted last month on charges of second-degree murder.
On Tuesday, Chief Avery L. Moore of the Tacoma Police Department said in a statement that the three officers had “voluntarily agreed” to resign from their positions.
Though Mr. Collins violated the department’s 2020 policy on courtesy, all three men had otherwise been cleared of departmental violations based on policies at the time, Chief Moore said.
“I acknowledge the detrimental impact of policing on Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, extending both a personal and collective apology,” he said.
Persons:
Manuel Ellis, Christopher Burbank, Matthew Collins, Timothy Rankine, Prosecutors, Ellis, Manny, Avery L, Moore, “, ”, Collins
Organizations:
Tacoma, Tacoma Police Department
Locations:
Black