A jury found that Olympia Officer Ryan Donald did not violate the constitutional rights of two brothers when he shot them following reports that two men matching their description had attempted to steal beer from a supermarket. The jury also rejected the assertion that the shooting had been negligent.
The defense attorney representing the city in the case, Andrew Cooley, said: “This is a case where we had a $20 million gun stuck to our head.” The lawsuit centered around the account of events resulting in the shooting of Bryson Chaplin and Andre Thompson.
Chaplin had been caught stealing beer at a supermarket on the west side. An employee told police that the suspect had thrown a case of beer at her when he was confronted. Donald encountered the two brothers, who matched the description of the suspects provided, and asked them to stop. They did not comply. The events that followed, leading up to the shooting, have been the subject of contention in the civil case.