Sheriff changes use-of-force policies in case of motorcyclist held at gunpoint by plainclothes officer

The King County Sheriff’s Office has agreed to change its use-of-force policies as part of a settlement in a lawsuit over a plainclothes officer who held a motorcyclist at gunpoint.

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As a first step, the policy change clarifies that “aiming a weapon is a use of force and should be reported within the Sheriff’s office subject to further consideration and evaluation by persons higher up in the chain of command.”

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“We appreciate the Sheriff’s recognition of the importance of this issue,” said Chris Carney, attorney for the motorcyclist, Alex Randall. “Pointing a gun at a person without a good reason needlessly escalates the danger of any interaction with police, and increases the risks that citizens and officers will be hurt or killed.

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“This policy change brings the King County Sheriff in line with modern policing, and will hopefully improve officer training to de-escalate dangerous situations.”

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The lawsuit arose from an August 2017 incident in which  plainclothes King County Sheriff’s Detective Richard Rowe was caught on video holding a Mr. Randall at gunpoint. Mr. Randall was legally stopped at a traffic light at the time.

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The lawsuit alleged that Detective Rowe used excessive force in pointing a gun at Mr. Randall without a legal justification, and that the King County Sheriff’s Office had failed to train and supervise him.

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“This was a terrifying incident for me, and I hope that this settlement will prevent this from happening to anyone else,” said Mr. Randall. “I’m glad that something good has come from what happened to me, and I look forward to continuing to volunteer my efforts to improve community relations with our police.”

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The settlement in the case, Randall v. King County et al., 18-cv-01123-JCC, included a payment of $65,000 to Mr. Randall.