The shooting death of Charleena Lyles by Seattle police has once again brought the use of deadly force into the spotlight. Friends and family of Lyles have asked why other less-lethal force wasn’t used when two officers responded to an attempted burglary report at Lyles’ apartment Sunday morning.
Police confirmed the officers didn’t have tasers when responding. The city’s police department will conduct an extensive review of what happened as part of the federally-mandated reforms included in the consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice. That investigation is expected to take months. 88.5’s Kirsten Kendrick spoke with our law and justice reporter, Paula Wissel, for some background on the use of less-lethal force by Seattle police.