Man dies after altercation with police on Tulalip reservation

TULALIP — A 50-year-old man died Friday night after a struggle with police on the Tulalip Indian Reservation.

The Tulalip man’s name wasn’t released Saturday pending an examination by the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office.

The confrontation with police happened around 10 p.m. Two Tulalip Tribal Police officers and a Snohomish County Sheriff’s deputy were responding to a report of a man walking in the road in the 6400 block of Marine Drive.

“The subject was detained and taken into protective custody to remove him from the roadway,” Mukilteo police officer Colt Davis wrote in a press release.

It wasn’t clear Saturday if officers had handcuffed the man. That remains under investigation, Davis said.

Officers reported that the man started fighting with them as they tried to put him into a patrol car. The man became unresponsive during the altercation, Davis said.

The officers attempted life-saving measures until emergency medical crews arrived. The man died at the scene.

The incident is under investigation by the Snohomish County Multiple Agency Response Team, a cadre of detectives from around the county who investigate officer-involved deaths.

The two officers and the deputy are on paid administrative leave in keeping with policy.

The deputy, 27, has been with the county since 2012. One tribal officer is 24 and has been with the Tulalip Tribal Police just more than a year. The other officer, 39, has been with the department for nine years.

Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463, hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley

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