King County Sheriff Deputy Now Under Federal Investigation

The horrifying security video footage--of a fifteen-year-old girl beaten, while in custody, by King County Sheriff Deputy Paul Schene--that was released on Friday, thank god, has raised more than just local hackles: Schene is now under a civil rights federal investigation for his unbelievably irresponsible actions in that holding cell. Aside from the ongoing internal Sheriff's Office investigative findings and whatever disciplinary action will (we hope) weigh heavily on Schene's head as a consequence, the man now faces a $250,000 fine and a possible five years in prison if he's found guilty on this federal civil rights charge.

If you've somehow been able to avoid watching the footage, filmed on November 29, 2008, until now, you can (and should) view it above. You'll be able to see the girl kicking her shoe off and flinging it in Schene's direction; he's claiming that his actions were legally justified because she assaulted him. There may be more to the story, as Schene's lawyer Anne Bremner claims, but if the bullshit we've heard so far from Schene flies in court, our faith in the system will take another plunge towards the non-existent.

It really only takes one instance of abuse to call for reform, but after reading the hefty list of recent "excessive violence" charges against the King County Sheriff's Office that Paul Shukovsky pulled together at the P-I, we're joining the clamor of voices asking for a deep clean of officer ethics and training protocol, as well as some sort of citizen-run police accountability board given real clout.