Seattle officer: I had no 'reasonable alternative' but to shoot woodcarver

Telling his side of the Aug. 30 fatal shooting of John T. Williams for the first time publicly, Seattle police officer Ian Birk described the Native American woodcarver as an angry-looking man, with his jaw clenched, showing signs Birk thought might have indicated an oncoming attack based on his department training.

Birk gave commands for Williams to drop the knife -- one with a 3-inch blade Birk said he "clearly saw … in the open position" when Williams passed his patrol car. Birk said that the second time the carver, who he thought could have been inebriated, turned toward him, he noticed Williams' weight dropped said the man didn't show any signs he'd drop the knife.

"And at that point, if he had had the opportunity to take a step in my direction, I don't think there was much I could have done to stop him at that point," Birk told an inquest jury.

"At that time I was not left with any reasonable alternative but to fire at Mr. Williams, which I did."

During much of Birk's testimony Tuesday, done late on the second day of the shooting inquest, he looked toward the six jurors and two alternates -- a group with six men and two women.

Birk, who started on patrol in early 2009, said he hadn't met Williams before, but had many contacts with people downtown he thought were threatening. Birk testified he thought the incident would end with a conversation, but "it became pretty serious pretty fast."

The young officer -- also an Army National Guardsman who hasn't been deployed -- was armed with a baton and pepper spray, but not a Taser. Even if he had a Taser, Birk said his training taught it would not have been best to use that option because of the threat Williams posed.

He said the short time frame of the incident was subjective. A few seconds seems short to most people, but Birk said his training taught it was more than enough time for a suspect to bring deadly force over 9 feet -- the approximate distance between he and Williams when he fired shots.

Birk said he stopped firing when he saw Williams going to the ground, and the lead homicide detective investigating the case -- also a Seattle police officer -- testified that in some cases one bullet doesn't stop suspects.

Det. Jeffrey Mudd also testified that in his investigation, he did not see documentation of Williams being hard of hearing. Williams' brothers has said he was deaf in one ear and may have had difficulty understanding the officer's commands. An autopsy report showed Williams' blood-alcohol level was 0.18 -- more than double the legal driving limit in Washington -- The Seattle Times reported. Williams was known to several veteran officers for previous offenses, and three days before the shooting was charged in Seattle Municipal Court with drinking in public.

Birk, who was supported in court by his wife and the guild president, became emotional while talking about the aftermath at the scene -- realizing his younger sister's wedding was four days later and there was a chance he might not have been there.

Listen to clips of Birk's testimony below. Segments are separated by sections with no audio.

Footage from Birk's patrol car captured a roughly four-second interaction in which Birk said three times to drop the knife, then opened fire. The shooting has sparked several protests, and several people at the inquest, including family and friends of Williams, say they want Birk charged with first-degree murder.

Birk was questioned about why he told Williams to "put the knife down" rather than to drop the knife.

"It's hard to say," he responded. "It's certainly possible that there could be a better order to give in that situation. But I certainly felt that I was communicating a clear order as the police officer and that the intent of what I want Mr. Williams to do was clear."

That response is expected to be a focal point for the Williams family attorney, Tim Ford, who is scheduled to question Birk on Wednesday morning. Ford questioned Mudd about that wording Tuesday.

Homicide investigator questioned

On the stand Tuesday morning, Mudd acknowledged to Ford that that none of the witnesses to the Seattle shooting saw the man as a threat. Mudd said later in the inquest that none of the witnesses reported seeing Williams' knife.

Asked whether Birk was trained to shoot someone within four seconds of making contact, Mudd said officers are trained to address people who are a threat.

The day before, Mudd told jurors the lock on Williams' knife wasn't working properly. Birk told jurors, "I clearly saw a knife in the open position when I passed in front of my patrol car." But other than Birk's statement, Mudd said he could not verify with physical evidence that the knife was open.

Mudd told jurors Williams' knife was found in a closed position, as was another knife that fell from Williams' right jacket pocket when Mudd was looking for his identification.

However, Mudd said, Seattle Fire Department Lt. Lisa Barron reported seeing one of Williams' knives open, though it was not clear if it was the one Birk initially saw or the knife from his jacket pocket. Barron is expected to testify this week.

Seattle police investigators also e-mailed the London knife-making company for details about the specific knife and its lock, but were told the knife was a knock-off.

In a tense face-off, Ford hammered at Mudd, picked holes in his statements, and emphasized that Birk didn't use a baton or pepper spray that had been at his disposal, and didn't retreat. Birk later said he was trained not to retreat in such situations.

At one point, the Williams family attorney asked Mudd to hold Williams' carving board and knife, and to try and get the knife to close on its own. Mudd was unable to do so, and acknowledged that the lock sometimes did work. The detective also said under questioning that no scratches were found on the tip of the knife from being dropped.

Ford then questioned Mudd about the phrase "put the knife down," repeatedly giving the detective loud commands to do so as he held the knife and laminated board Williams had carried.

Ford later said it was because the command had been unclear and that Mudd identified his fellow officer. If Birk had said "drop the knife," the command would have been clearer, Ford said.

Mudd disagreed. The command had nothing to do with his actions, he said. Rather, Mudd said he didn't want to drop critical evidence and would have dropped the knife in a situation with an officer.

Questions about patrol video, rounds fired

Seattle police sent Birk's patrol car video to Victory Studios, a Seattle media production company, to try and determine if Williams knife was open when he passed the officer's patrol car. But because of the video resolution -- the highest available for patrol-car cameras, but lowered to capture a larger volume -- it was unclear exactly what was in Williams' hand, Mudd said.

There also were questions about the number of rounds fired. Birk's patrol car video has audio of five shots being fired, Mudd said twice on Tuesday. But only four casings were found, and Birk's gun was found with 11 rounds in the seated magazine. A full Seattle police duty handgun has 15 rounds, Mudd said.

Mudd said that sometimes casings -- ejected in this case when Birk's standard police-issue .40 caliber Glock Model 22 was fired -- can be hard to find after hitting the concrete, though detectives made a diligent search.

Last month, King County District Court Judge Arthur Chapman, who is leading the inquest, ordered that the video from Birk's patrol car be released. The footage showed it was roughly 16 seconds from the time Birk turned on his lights to the point when Williams was shot multiple times, after Birk yelled multiple times to get Williams' attention. Police initially said the confrontation lasted about a minute.

The city's firearms review board concluded its hearing Oct. 4 and presented preliminary findings to Police Chief John Diaz that week. The board found the shooting not justified.

Williams' shooting was one of five officer-involved shooting in Seattle last year and one of three that were fatal. In 2009, Seattle had the same number of officer-involved shootings, ending with the fatal confrontation involving Maurice Clemmons.

This week's inquest itself is not a criminal proceeding -- jurors will be asked to find whether the shooting was justified, but their finding will have no immediate impact. King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg will make a charging decision after the inquest is complete.