Police Officer in Washington State Heading to Murder Trial

Jesse Sarey (Photo via GoFundMe)KENT, Wash. (AP) — A murder trial in the first case brought against an officer since Washington state voters made it easier to prosecute police for using deadly force has been set for Feb. 28.

Auburn Officer Jeffrey Nelson was charged last year with second-degree murder and first-degree assault in the shooting death of Jesse Sarey, 26, on May 31, 2019.

It was the first time an officer was charged with using excessive force under Initiative 940, which removed the requirement that prosecutors show an officer acted with malice.

At a Thursday hearing, King County Superior Court Judge Nicole Gaines Phelps signed off on the trial date the prosecution and defense had worked out. Nelson was not at the hearing.

The shooting

Nelson had responded to reports that a man was throwing garbage, banging on store windows and kicking vehicles in a shopping area in Auburn, a city of about 70,000, about 28 miles (45 kilometers) south of Seattle.

Nelson confronted Sarey outside a grocery story and told him he was under arrest for disorderly conduct. After Sarey failed to comply with Nelson's orders, the officer put his hands on Sarey's shoulders and began a physical arrest.

At one point, Nelson is seen in surveillance video from nearby businesses punching Sarey seven times in the head and upper body before pulling out his firearm and shooting Sarey in the torso. He fell back on the pavement and Nelson aimed his gun again. When it jammed, the video shows him clearing the round, racking another bullet and firing a second shot into Sarey's forehead.

The case

Nelson has pleaded not guilty. His previous lawyer, Alan Harvey, has said the officer was acting in self-defense when he shot Sarey. Nelson's new attorney, Emma Scanlan, declined to comment Thursday.

King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg has said Nelson escalated the situation with Sarey, failed to wait for backup before confronting him, and that the level of force he used was unreasonable.