Controversial hire at Thurston Sheriff’s Office resigns after community backlash, threats
A controversial hire at the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office has ended in a resignation after backlash from community members.
Christopher Burbank, a former Tacoma police officer who was acquitted in the murder trial over the death of Manny Ellis in police custody, was sworn in Monday by Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders. On Wednesday, Sanders announced in a news release that Burbank would resign effective immediately.
Burbank was one of three officers acquitted in December in the 2020 death of Ellis.
Sanders said he and Burbank had discussed the impact of the hiring, and the decision to resign was based on “community response and death threats made to Deputy Burbank’s family.”
“When I made the decision to hire Deputy Burbank, I failed to consider the greater community impact and instead made the decision based on business needs to remedy TCSO’s staffing crisis,” Sanders said in the news release. “Furthermore, I entirely misjudged community perception of the investigation and jury process that Deputy Burbank completed. I recognize the harm this has caused to marginalized communities, and I was wrong.”
The Sheriff added that pressure to fill vacancies at the department has increased internally and externally. He also said that staff at the department has been lost due to the county’s low wages.
“The benefit of remaining transparent in our operations and who we hire is the ability for immediate public feedback, both good and bad,” Sanders said. “As such, we will continue to operate in this manner moving forward.”
Sanders said he intends to schedule a public forum where community members can express direct concerns.
In a Reddit post Tuesday, users heavily criticized Sanders and the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office for hiring Burbank. Sanders, who frequently uses the social media platform, defended the hiring of Burbank at the time.
This story was originally published April 3, 2024 at 2:29 PM with the headline "Controversial hire at Thurston Sheriff’s Office resigns after community backlash, threats."
