The justice system failed Manny Ellis, but we don’t have to. The fight goes on | Opinion

On March 3, 2020, nearly three months before the murder of George Floyd by police in Minnesota, Manny Ellis was killed by Tacoma police who ignored Ellis’ repeated words: “Can’t breathe, sir.”

Derek Chauvin, the police officer who kneeled on Floyd’s neck for nine and a half minutes, was prosecuted, convicted and is serving a prison sentence for his unlawful use of force.

On Dec. 21, the three officers who murdered Ellis were all acquitted.

My cousin, Iosia Faletogo, was killed by police on his way to celebrate New Year’s Eve in 2018. Families who have lost loved ones to unnecessary police violence believe it’s important for courts and law enforcement to see that we are watching their conduct. We deserve accountability.

That’s part of why I attended as a witness in the courtroom for all but two days of the 10-week trial of those Tacoma police officers. But mostly I was there in support of the family of Manny Ellis, to show respect for his precious life, wrongfully taken by police.

Just being in the courtroom was a milestone in our fight for accountability and justice. In Washington state, this was only the fifth criminal trial of police officers charged with homicide in the past 100 years.

An average of 30 people have been killed by Washington state law enforcement each year.

Initiative 940, passed by an overwhelming majority of voters in 2018, helped make this trial possible.

During the trial we saw how the system is designed to uphold the status quo. The judge and the defense regularly joked. Nothing about the legal proceedings or the police violence that led to the preventable death of Ellis was funny. What I saw was a trial saturated with racism from the jump.

When I was a young boy, I wanted to be a cop. Then, when I was 11 years old, I watched Rodney King get beaten on film by four Los Angeles Police Department cops. They were all acquitted.

That tainted my perception of law enforcement and our justice system. Being a bouncer for more than 20 years, I’ve experienced toxic police culture firsthand.

Today, I’m committed to policing the police — holding them accountable for racism, brutality and murder. While abolishing police is the true answer to fixing these intersectional issues, there are other ways to move the needle.

It will take all of us showing up. Seek out the truth for yourself, flip false and fear-mongering narratives, share information from reliable sources, and participate in displays of solidarity for victims and survivors. It’s also crucial for us to advocate for legislation and policies at every level of government, and take up seats in positions of power and influence.

Those closest to the problem are also closest to the solution. Families impacted by police violence understand the deep systemic changes needed to hold police accountable and provide a pathway to justice.

The acquittal of the officers involved in killing Ellis isn’t a sign that police reform efforts are dying down.

It is a reflection of how hard it is to convict police officers of unlawful use of force, and the societal, cultural, legal barriers and inherent conflicts of interest in these cases.

While it was an historic milestone to get those officers to stand trial for their actions, the verdict provided further proof the system is broken, failing the very people it should be serving.

Lawmakers in Olympia have a full plate, a short session and a lot to do. But they must not miss the opportunity to act on measures that will bring about the changes we need to prevent police violence and to provide a pathway to holding police accountable when they cause harm or death of our loved ones.

Just as police misconduct isn’t about a few bad apples, prosecution of a few police officers isn’t reform. The barriers to justice faced by families who have lost loved ones to police violence remain squarely in place, preserving a system that gives the benefit of doubt to law enforcement and ignores proof of misconduct and patterns of racist policing. When preventable deaths keep happening as a result of police violence it’s easy to feel helpless. Seeing those Tacoma police officers stand trial gave me a sense of hope.

The verdict proves our work is far from done.

Po Leapai is a singer, songwriter, producer, advocate and community organizer for racial justice, affordable housing and police accountability. He lives in Tacoma.