EVERETT — The civil battle over who is responsible for a police shooting that left a drunken Stanwood man dead is inching closer toward a Snohomish County courtroom.
Lawyers should learn in the coming days which Snohomish County Superior Court judge will preside over a lawsuit that was filed after Everett police officer Troy Meade shot and killed Niles Meservey.
Meservey’s family believes the city of Everett is responsible for the fatal shooting. The city alleges Meservey’s own actions are to blame for this death.
Seattle attorney Paul Luvera filed a motion earlier this month asking Superior Court Presiding Judge Ellen Fair to assign the case to one judge now. Luvera cited extensive discovery and complex factual and legal issues as reasons to keep the case in front of the same judge. He anticipated numerous contested pre-trial issues.
“Further, the response of the city thus far to the lawsuit indicates that it intends to contest every inch of ground,” Luvera wrote in the motion.
Luvera in February filed a lawsuit on behalf Meservey’s daughter. Meade shot Meservey seven times from behind while the Stanwood man was seated in his car. Meade testified last month that he was afraid of being run down after Meservey drove into a metal fence.
A jury last month acquitted Meade of murder and manslaughter. The jury later declined to award Meade attorneys fees after finding that the shooting was not self-defense.
The lawsuit against Everett alleges that Meade was unjustified in shooting Meservey on June 10, 2009, outside the Chuckwagon Inn. The city bears responsibility for Meade’s negligence and actions, according to the lawsuit. Luvera also alleges that the city failed to provide Meade with proper training to respond to situations like the one he faced last summer.
The city denies that it’s responsible for Meservey’s death. Court documents indicate that the city plans to offer an affirmative defense, alleging that Meservey is responsible for his own death.
Meservey, 51, was drunk and behind the wheel of his car. He refused to obey Meade’s orders to get out of the car. Meservey was engaged in the commission of a felony at the time, and that was the proximate cause of his death, Seattle attorney Lou Peterson wrote in the city’s response to the lawsuit. He didn’t detail what that alleged felony was, only that Meservey or “third parties for whom the City of Everett is not responsible,” are at fault, according to court papers.
It’s unclear if the city plans to claim that there were others, beside Meservey, at fault.
In its answer to the allegations, the city “is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth” that Meade was acting within the scope of his employment or that he was acting as an employee of the city at the time of the shooting.
The city answered to the allegations in March, a month before Meade was acquitted. It wasn’t clear Wednesday if attorneys plan to change tactics in light of the verdict.
“The city is defending this case in the courtroom and we’re not commenting at this time,” Peterson said.
Meanwhile city officials said Wednesday that Meade remains on paid administrative leave. Public records obtained by The Herald this week indicate that the city opened an internal investigation file into Meade on Oct. 27, a day after he was charged with first-degree manslaughter.
Despite the paperwork showing that the investigation exists, no investigation has begun, city spokeswoman Kate Reardon said Wednesday.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
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