17 Times: Police Shoot and Kill a Migrant Worker in WA

by Goldie Taylor

They said he was throwing rocks at police officers. Some of them hit cars and trucks, and two—one the size of a softball—allegedly hit an officer. He was confronted with “voice commands” and hit with a Taser, to no avail, the police report says. Antonio Zambrano-Montes, a 35-year-old Mexican national, was then chased on foot and shot.

Seventeen.

That’s how many times Pasco, Washington police fired, with five or six rounds hitting and killing the former orchard worker, according to investigators. Onlookers claim that Zambrano-Montes was actually facing away from the officers when the shooting began and, at one point, turned around and had his “hands out.”

In a $25 million lawsuit against the city, the victim’s family accuses three police officers of shooting Zambrano-Montes “execution style.”

The investigation comes at a time when law enforcement agencies across the country are being pressed to review their policing methods and when various types of force are necessary. Specifically, police departments operating in minority communities are being challenged to more fully and accurately account for “police involved” shootings, especially when an unarmed suspect dies.

A multi-jurisdiction special investigations unit looking into the incident says, according to the autopsy report there were “no shots in the back” and that they are reviewing a videotape to see if Zambrano-Montes was holding anything. The full autopsy report, including toxicology, is expected within four weeks.

But, during a press briefing Sgt. Ken Lattin said, “I think it’s safe to say there was a rock found next to his body.”