A police officer in a Seattle suburb was found guilty on Thursday in the 2019 shooting death of a man outside a convenience store, the first such conviction under a Washington State law making it easier to hold the police accountable for the unjustified use of deadly force.
A jury found the officer, Jeffrey Nelson, guilty of second-degree murder and first-degree assault for the killing of Jesse Sarey, 26, during an arrest on a disorderly-conduct charge outside Sunshine Grocery in Auburn, Wash., on May 31, 2019.
Mr. Sarey’s mother, Kari Sarey Hart, and his younger brother, Torell Sarey, died as the case wound its way through the legal system, said Elaine Simons, 64, who was a foster mother to the brothers.
Mr. Sarey’s mother and family fled Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge regime.
“Neither of them got to be here today, except spiritually, for this kind of justice,” she said of Mr. Sarey’s mother and brother.
Persons:
Jeffrey Nelson, Jesse Sarey, Sarey’s, Kari Sarey Hart, Torell Sarey, Elaine Simons, ”, “
Organizations:
Washington State, Sunshine
Locations:
Seattle, Auburn, Wash, Cambodia, Khmer