Washington state lawmakers are expected to consider a proposal Monday to ban police from tying pigs to suspects, nearly four years after Manuel Ellis, a 33-year-old Black man, died face down, with his hands and feet handcuffed behind him in a case that became a touchstone for racial justice protesters in the Pacific Northwest.
The restraint technique has long raised concerns due to the risk of suffocation, and although many cities and counties have banned the restraint technique, it continues to be used in others.
Democratic Sen. Yasmin Trudeau, who sponsored the bill, said she doesn't want anyone else to experience the “dehumanization” Ellis faced before his death.
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“How do we overcome the need for people to enforce laws, but do so in a way that treats people as we expect, which is as human beings?” she said.
Over the past four years, states across the United States have rushed to pass sweeping police reforms, spurred by protests over racial injustice and the deaths of George Floyd and others at the hands of law enforcement. Few have banned prone restraints, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
California banned law enforcement in 2021 from using techniques that “involve a substantial risk of positional asphyxiation,” in which the position of the body hinders the ability to breathe. That same year, Minnesota banned correctional officers from using face-down restraints unless “deadly force is justified.”
A memorial reads “Gone but not forgotten” beneath a photograph of Manuel “Manny” Ellis on May 27, 2021, in Tacoma, Washington, south of Seattle. Democratic Sen. Yasmin Trudeau of Washington wants to pass legislation to stop police from tying people up, nearly four years after the death of Manuel Ellis in a case that sparked racial justice protests across the Pacific Northwest. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
The U.S. Department of Justice has recommended against this practice since at least 1995 to prevent deaths in custody, and many local jurisdictions prohibit it.
The Washington attorney general's office recommended against using hog tying in its model use-of-force policy released in 2022. At least four local agencies still allow it, according to policies they submitted to the attorney general's office that year.
The Pierce County Sheriff's Department said it still allows hog tying, but declined to comment on the bill. One of the department's deputies participated in restraining Ellis, whose face was covered by a hood when he died.
Ellis was walking home in March 2020 when he passed a patrol car with Tacoma Police Officers Matthew Collins and Christopher Burbank, who are white. Burbank and Collins said Ellis tried to get into a stranger's car and then attacked officers when they confronted him in the city about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of Seattle.
Witnesses said officers jumped out of their car as Ellis drove by and threw him to the ground.
He was shocked and beaten. Officers placed a restraint device around his legs and tied it to his handcuffs behind his back while he remained in a prone position, according to a probable cause statement filed by the Washington attorney general's office. .
After the limp was applied, Ellis stopped moving, according to the statement.
A medical examiner ruled his death a homicide caused by lack of oxygen. Collins, Burbank and a third officer, Timothy Rankine, were charged with murder or manslaughter. Defense attorneys argued that Ellis' death was caused by methamphetamine poisoning and a heart condition, and a jury acquitted them in December.
Trudeau, who represents Tacoma, said he made sure Ellis' sister, Monet Carter-Mixon, approved of his efforts before introducing the bill.
Democratic Senator John Lovick, who worked as a state trooper for more than 30 years, joined Trudeau in sponsoring the bill.
Republican Rep. Gina Mosbrucker, a member of the House public safety committee, said she looked forward to hearing more about the legislation.
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“If it turns out that this form of restraint for combative detainees is dangerous in any way, then I think the State should come up with a grant and some money to purchase and train on alternative methods to ensure that the officer and the arrested person are safe.” , said.
The bill comes a few years after a wave of ambitious police reform laws passed in the state in 2021.
The legislation included requirements that officers could use force only when they had probable cause to make an arrest or prevent imminent injury, and required them to use appropriate de-escalation tactics if possible.
The following year, Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee signed bills that fixed some elements of that legislation, including making clear that officers can use force to help detain or transport people in behavioral health crises.
