Seattle Nurse Says Police Officer Refused To Wear Mask Inside ER

Seattle WA

17 January, 2021

10:20 PM

Description

SEATTLE — Seattle's police watchdog office will investigate allegations that a police officer refused to wear a mask inside a hospital's emergency department, despite repeated requests from nearby staffers. On Saturday night, a Twitter user who identified themself as a Seattle ER nurse published a thread alleging that an officer visited the hospital to get a statement from a patient, but refused to put on a mask while standing in a busy hallway. The posts had more than 100,000 likes by Sunday afternoon and were shared tens of thousands of times. According to the account, multiple nurses handed the officer masks, which were thrown away, and he only relented temporarily after the issue was brought to hospital supervisors. "This officer came into a hotbed of an infectious disease pandemic, deliberately violated not only hospital policy but state mandated public health actions and common human decency, and spoke to frontline workers like we were garbage," one tweet reads. "There was no accountability from his peers." The Seattle Police Department replied to one of the tweets late Saturday night. First, thank you to you and your colleagues for your work during the pandemic. All of our officers have previously been directed to use face masks/PPE to protect themselves and others. Please contact OPA about this incident so they can review. https://t.co/u9mj24wOOP— Seattle Police Dept. (@SeattlePD) January 17, 2021 Early Sunday afternoon, Seattle's Office of Police Accountability confirmed it had begun an investigation into the allegations outlined in the Twitter thread. Last night OPA initiated an investigation into an allegation by an ER nurse that an SPD officer refused to wear a mask in a hospital.— Seattle Office of Police Accountability (@SeattleOPA) January 17, 2021 Two hours later, the Seattle Police Department released a brief statement saying the behavior described in the posts would be "unacceptable" for one of its officers. "It has been brought to our attention through social media that an officer was seen not wearing a mask. All our officers and civilian employees have previously been directed to follow CDC and City of Seattle mask guidelines for their safety and the safety of our community.The behavior outlined in last night's post is unacceptable and not what we expect of our Department members. We know the profound impacts that COVID has created for our community. We will hold our personnel accountable for actions that violate policy and the trust of the community we serve.The department has been in contact with OPA since last night and the OPA is now investigating." The police department did not say whether the officer would be placed on leave pending the outcome of the investigation. The OPA has up to 180 days to clear most cases, at which point the watchdog's director issues a ruling on whether misconduct took place. If allegations are sustained, final disciplinary action rests with the police chief. Related: New Seattle Protest Reports Find Improper Police Use Of ForceSeattle Officer Fired After Investigation Into Racist Remarks