PORT TOWNSEND — An independent investigation found that techniques used to subdue a Port Townsend man June 7 were within acceptable guidelines but said also said that the police officer who initially contacted the man should have waited for backup before acting.
The investigation prepared for the city of Port Townsend by PST Investigations of Lynwood found no excessive force by police in an arrest of Myles Carroll, 24, who is alleged to suffer mental illness.
But it did question Officer Patrick Fudally’s decision to approach Carroll without proper backup.
Fudally apparently misunderstood a February memo from Sgt. Jason Greenspane that advised officers not to contact Carroll without appropriate resources and backup.
Fudally interpreted the memo to pertain to a specific incident and not as a general guideline, according to interviews included in the report.
The 22-page report was prepared by PST Investigations of Lynnwood at a cost of $13,904.
According to the report’s narrative, Fudally answered a complaint from the Cellar Door, 940 Water St., that Carroll was trespassing.
When Fudally arrived, Carroll was walking down Water Street and did not heed Fudally’s call for him to stop, police said.
Fudally caught up with Carroll and moved him toward a patrol car using a restraining hold.
A struggle ensued. Fudally struck Carroll in the face, the report said.
Officer Jon Stuart arrived and the struggle continued, with Carroll elbowing Fudally in the face, drawing blood, and Fudally again striking Carroll in the face in what he subsequently described as a “distraction technique,” according to the report.
Carroll was restrained. Emergency medical technicians arrived, sedated him and took him to Jefferson Healthcare hospital in Port Townsend before releasing him to the Jefferson County Jail.
Fudally and Stuart were taken to Jefferson Healthcare hospital for examination.
Fudally’s nose was bloodied and Stuart’s back was wrenched, according to the police report.
Both were treated and discharged from Jefferson Healthcare hospital, and each missed three days of work, according to Interim Police Chief Michael Evans.
Carroll “has a long history of violence and mental health issues,” according to an incident report by Stuart.
The report prepared for the city said that Fudally and Carroll have a history of interactions, and that Carroll was well known to police.
The incident has brought the issue of mental health to the forefront, accelerating the development of a planned interagency task force combining police, mental health and emergency services resources for mental health cases.
In a memo to City Manager David Timmons, Evans said the issues will be addressed in a performance enhancement and development plan for Fudally and implementation of 40 hours of crisis training for each officer.
Evans said he would not comment about Fudally or specific aspects of the case beyond what he included in his memo.
“This report won’t cause any direct changes because we are already addressing these issues with the creation of a task force,” Evans said Friday.
“It shows that we need to improve in these areas in the whole department, from myself on down, and develop a partnership with mental health services.”
While acknowledging the need for improvement, both Evans and Timmons said that many of the interactions between the police and mentally ill more often than not have a satisfactory outcome.
“It often happens that someone calls for help, saying someone in their home needs help and we find it for them without incident,” Evans said.
“Most mentally ill people are not violent.”
Said Timmons in a memo: “We still need to focus our attention on the real issue of mental health and law enforcement.
“We are anxious to move on to the next level of discussions . . . asking ourselves and the community as to why so many of these adverse encounters are repeated over and over by the same individuals who clearly suffer from substance abuse or an untreated mental health condition.”
The report is available by request (and a copying fee if needed) from the Port Townsend City Clerk at 360-379-5083 or jsanders@cityofpt.us.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.