Settlement in brother’s police deadly force case an ‘I told you so’ moment for Seattle Street Czar

The deadly 2016 shooting of Che Taylor by Seattle Police sparked outrage in the Black community and a level of demand for more police accountability not seen since the deadly shooting of John T. Williams.

Black Lives Matter, ACLU suggest sanctions against SPD for violating court order

The victory on police accountability came before the private resolution for Taylor’s family when I-940 was passed last year and became the law of the land. That victory was a hard-fought battle led in part by Taylor’s brother, Andre, who turned his rage over the death of his brother into a powerful grassroots effort for change with the creation of his anti-police nonprofit Not This Time.

Che Taylor was shot in 2016 during an undercover drug operation in Seattle’s Wedgewood neighborhood. The two officers involved have always maintained the 47-year-old had a gun and went for it, a fact the family always called false. The officers were cleared of any wrongdoing, and an inquest panel found they had reason to fear for their lives.

Prosecutors declined to file charges.

That led to a wrongful death suit filed by the family. Nearly five years after Che Taylor’s death, the City of Seattle agreed to pay $1.5 million to Taylor’s family in a settlement that came after a judge raised new questions about claims that Taylor had a gun, and without the city admitting any guilt.

“Just a measure of justice, they can say all day long that they’re not admitting guilt, but you’re not just giving away $1.5 million to anybody. Closure, you know, closure, and I told you so,” Andre Taylor said.

“I told you so that he actually never had a gun. The judge saw some problematic issues with that in the moment, and said, ‘yeah, just go to trial.’ I think they [Seattle] were a little fearful, because they knew that they had done some inappropriate things, and it was coming out,” Andre Taylor said of the settlement.

Taylor says going through the process and coming through on the other side with justice for his brother is phenomenal.

“There were so many derogatory things, derogatory things said about my brother,” Andre Taylor said. “People never really wanted to mention his name because they felt like he was a criminal. He was a bad guy, because that was the narrative. They did a great job. The adversaries have done a great job with that. We pushed back and we just kept fighting. We kept doing the work.”

Andre Taylor, his sister DeVitta Briscoe, and their supporters — many of whom have experienced their own losses or negative experiences with police — never gave up the fight for police reform and accountability, including a series of police shootings that followed Che Taylor’s death.

“I believe the city was able to operate without the influence of Black people, without their voices, at least not at the higher echelons, where decisions are made,” Andre Taylor said. “And so I think that, through our movement, our activism, we were able to show that, you know, that you can have a voice and that you can be influential. We were able to get through doors that normally we’re not privy to, and have our voices heard in those doors where the decisions are made.”

Andre Taylor hosted the initial peaceful march over George Floyd’s death in Seattle that was later hijacked by outside groups that rioted and tore Seattle’s downtown core apart, eventually leading to daily marches in the thousands and, of course, the CHAZ/CHOP.

During the CHAZ/CHOP situation over the summer, Andre Taylor also worked as a consultant to the city of Seattle, partnering with the mayor’s office to try to mediate with those protesting on Capitol Hill.

“Perseverance is important, but probably one of the most important things, what I’ve tried to teach, is that you have to build relationships,” Andre Taylor explained. “That things move through relationships, and not be afraid to have a conversation with somebody that you disagree with. Don’t feel like I have to agree with somebody 100% of the time in order to build.”

“That was the philosophy I used from day one, and we built relationships — even with law enforcement and with politicians — and through those relationships, we were able to get people involved,” he added.

Andre Taylor was also a major voice in the efforts to improve and expand on police accountability law I-940 to get to full and complete independent investigations, as well as many other police reforms that are currently expected to be on the table in the upcoming legislative session.

Effort for anti-discrimination initiative targets much more than police chokeholds

What you likely won’t see or hear this session during those police reform debates is Andre Taylor himself. He took a step back several weeks ago after getting COVID-19 and getting so sick that he was near death. It took a toll, and his health is now the top priority as he awaits a kidney transplant.

However, Andre Taylor says just because he may not take an active role in the upcoming reform debates doesn’t mean he won’t be watching. His sister will do the talking this time around.

For him, everything has come full circle with the closure of the settlement over his brother’s death, and potential significant police reform that he and so many others have been fighting for.

Another victory for Andre Taylor, despite how hard the loss of his brother was, is that in the end, his life and his death will make a difference.

Follow @https://twitter.com/HannaKIROFM