Seattle cop acquitted of assault charge

A Seattle police officer accused of kicking a handcuffed
man
following an off-duty fight outside a bar in Ballard has
been
acquitted
of a fourth-degree assault charge.

A Seattle Municipal Court jury returned the verdict
Wednesday.

Officer Garth Haynes says he doesn’t remember doing it,
but
he was caught on tape on Dec. 12, 2010 kicking the
handcuffed man
while he was on the ground.

Haynes told the jury on Wednesday he was
trying to get his coat back from a woman who accidentally
grabbed it from a Balmar Bar and Lounge when three men
started
attacking him.

“Everything happened so fast, everything was so chaotic.
I
didn’t know that this happened until I viewed the video.”

KIRO-TV
reports an expert called by the defense said Haynes
may have suffered a momentary diminished capacity from a
blow to his head. The Seattle Police Officers’ Guild
described the brawl as a hate crime. Haynes is black.

Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes says he’s disappointed
but respects the jury process.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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