Community Police Commission: How Did SPD Officer Cynthia Whitlatch Get Her Firing Reversed?

Found guilty of civil rights violations, collecting $105,000 in back pay. SPD

Earlier this week, Kiro 7 broke the news that the City of Seattle reached a settlement with Cynthia Whitlatch, the officer fired in 2015 for biased and aggressive policing over the arrest of a 69-year-old black man who was using a golf club as a cane as he walked down the street.

Officer Whitlatch’s wrongful arrest of William Wingate, brought to light by former Stranger staffer Ansel Herz, was a big deal at the time. More reporting revealed that Whitlatch had a history of writing racist Facebook posts. The case led to protests, an apology from the Seattle Police Department, and a $1.3 million federal civil rights case.

That’s why we were taken aback to learn that Whitlatch’s settlement, signed by Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O'Toole, changes her termination to retirement and allows her to receive $105,000 in back pay. The Office of Professional Accountability's findings on Whitlatch's misconduct case still stand.

Today, the Community Police Commission (CPC) requested information about how the city and SPOG arrived at that far less punitive outcome. In a letter addressed to city officials, CPC Executive Director Fé Lopez said the commission wants to exercise its authority to review the disciplinary investigation to determine “whether there were any failures in the system that could be repeated in future cases.”

The letter states:

If there are legitimate reasons consistent with police accountability principles for the back pay agreement and resignation in lieu of termination, it is important that those reasons be made clear to the public. There have been longstanding issues with initial discipline being adjusted after appeal in a way that undermined the transparency and legitimacy of the initial discipline process.

Lopez, writing on behalf of all CPC co-chairs, requested files from every step of Whitlatch’s disciplinary process, from investigation to findings to appeal to settlement. She asked for documents from the Seattle Police Department, the City Attorney’s Office, and the Office of Professional Accountability (OPA).

That’s not all. Lopez also asked to review all files related to an investigation of supervisors who failed to report Whitlatch’s apparent misconduct. About two months after Wingate's arrest, community leaders expressed concerns about racial bias from Whitlatch to two higher-ups, including then-Assistant Chief Nick Metz and Captain Pierre Davis. The OPA found that Metz, who now serves as police chief for Aurora, Colorado, did not properly document the complaint.

Three different officers assisted Whitlatch during Wingate’s arrest.

A spokesperson for the City Attorney’s Office declined to comment, citing attorney-client privilege, but said the office will release a statement soon. We will publish it here when they do.

The Seattle Police Department also declined to comment. SPOG could not immediately be reached for comment.

This post has been updated.