Family of Charleena Lyles, woman killed by Seattle police, sues two officers

Attorneys representing the estate of a pregnant black woman fatally shot by two white Seattle police officers filed a claims form against the city in August.

It was the first step in the legal process — as they said they prepared to file a civil rights, wrongful death suit against the city of Seattle and its police department in the death of 30-year-old Charleena Lyles.

At a conference Friday, attorney Karen Koehler said a lawsuit was filed that morning against two Seattle police officers: Steven McNew and Jason Anderson.

The attorneys said they plan to sue the city of Seattle as well, once a mandated waiting period has passed.

Read the filed complaint

Charles Lyles, the father of Charleena Lyles, spoke at the conference about his desire to see justice served.

“From what I understand, her 1-year-old son and her 4-year-old daughter was crawling over her body while she was laying on the floor dead,” Charles Lyles said. “I just feel sad for my grandkids right now. … I’m real empty. As far as my insides now, I’m just empty.”

The mother of four was killed June 18 by officers McNew and Anderson. Three of Lyles’ children were in her apartment at the time.

“There’s an obligation to de-escalate,” an attorney for the Lyles family said Friday. “You have an officer who didn’t plan, who left his Taser home. We, as citizens, rely on the expertise of the officers to avoid unnecessarily dangerous situations.”

Police say she threatened the officers with at least one knife after calling 911 to report that someone had broken into her apartment and stolen video-game consoles.

Lyles called police reporting a burglary that included the theft of an Xbox. When police responded, the two officers spent about three minutes calmly speaking with Lyles, who later armed herself with two kitchen knives. Lyles, who was pregnant, had been ordered by a Seattle Mental Health Court judge to not possess weapons just weeks before the shooting.

Lyles’ family says the shooting could have been avoided and they believe race was a factor. Her death sparked community outrage, with hundreds attending a vigil and march through downtown Seattle.

The shooting remains under investigation.

In late June, Seattle police released a crime scene diagram and photos that correspond with the illustration in the fatal police shooting of Lyles.