KENT, Wash. (AP) — The murder trial in the first case brought against an officer since Washington voters made it easier to prosecute police for using deadly force has been set for February of next year.
Auburn Officer Jeffrey Nelson was charged with second-degree murder and first-degree assault in the shooting death of 26-yera-old Jesse Sarey in 2019.
This was the first time that the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s office charged an officer for using excessive force since the passage of Initiative 940. The new law changed the legal standard for using force by a police officer. It removed the requirement that prosecutors must show the officer acted with malice.
Nelson shot Sarey twice during an arrest for disorderly conduct. Nelson has pleaded not guilty.