Eimers rebuke draws angry response from two commissioners
KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER
Tempers flared at Tuesday’s Key West City Commission meeting when homeless advocate Sloan Bashinsky accused the police of “murdering” Charles Eimers, drawing angry protests from two commissioners.
Bashinsky, a frequent contributor during citizen comments at commission meetings, had attended a candlelight ceremony Thanksgiving evening in memory of Eimers, who died one year ago after leading police on a slow chase around Key West following a routine traffic stop. Eimers stopped breathing after being handcuffed by police while his face was in the sand. He died without gaining consciousness a week later when his family removed him from life support .
Bashinsky, a former lawyer who was once homeless , accused the Key West police officers involved in the incident of treating Eimers roughly because they believed he was homeless. Eimers, who had just retired, was moving to Key West on Thanksgiving Day last year and had his belongings in the back of his car.
“He was not killed because he left a traffic stop. He was not killed because he posed a danger to the police officers. He was not killed because they feared for their lives,” Bashinsky said. “He was killed because they thought he was homeless.”
That was too much for Commissioner Mark Rossi to take. He angrily confronted Bashinsky, saying he was going to “stick up for” the police department.
“I’m not going to sit here. I’m not going to listen to that. You’ve got good people working for the Key West Police Department that care and do their job right,” he said. Several people in the audience applauded his remarks.
Bashinsky, clearly angry, returned to the microphone despite efforts by Mayor Craig Cates to cut him off. He walked away, only to shout, “You should all see the latest video of the bystander from Columbia. It shows them murdering that man.”
Bashinsky was referring to a second video taken on a witness’s telephone that shows Eimers bleeding from his ear with sand on his face. During the grand jury hearing on whether to criminally charge the officers involved, several officers testified they did not see blood or sand on Eimers. The grand jury, which did not see the second video, found all the officers innocent of any criminal activity, concluding Eimers died of a heart attack.
City Commissioners have been tight-lipped about the case, including the grand jury decision. But Commissioner Tony Yaniz also wanted to respond. He thanked Rossi “for having the stones” to say what Yaniz said he also believes.
“I support the Key West Police Department. Mr. Eimers died of a heart attack. The grand jury came back and decided they were not guilty of any criminal act,” Yaniz said. “To come out here and say the Key West Police Department killed somebody? I’m sorry. I can’t sit here, either, and accept that without telling you you’re full of it, Sloan.”
Commissioners Teri Johnston and Clayton Lopez also attended the Thanksgiving candlelight ceremony for Eimers. Johnston said she was attending as an individual, not a city commissioner.
“This was certainly a tragedy. I went out of respect for his [Eimers’] family,” Johnston said.
[livemarket market_name="KONK Life LiveMarket" limit=3 category=“” show_signup=0 show_more=0]
Sloan, I’m sorry you were so verbally mistreated at the commission meeting. I, too, saw the Colombian’s video. As a nurse, I’ve seen many dead people, and I can tell you without even checking for a heartbeat, if Mr. Eimers was not dead when they finally rolled him onto his back, he was taking his last breath. I could also see the panic in the movements and looks of the policemen around him. They knew they’d killed him. One does not have blood coming from his ear and mouth from a heart attack. This man was smothered to death by multiple policemen on top of him holding his face in the sand. He was not resisting arrest. His hands were up when he went down on his knees. At that time he could have been cuffed and place into the squad car. He did not have a weapon pointed at the police, so there was no reason to take him to the ground like that. It’s just like that case in NY that’s in the headlines today. That video clearly shows the unarmed man with his hands in the air, yet multiple policemen took him to the ground where the one had his hands on his neck and we could hear him saying, “I can’t breathe” and then there were no more words.” I don’t know what it is going to take in this country, but these police are clearly militant and not acting as protectors of the public. There was no video closeup of the Brown victim, so I can’t speak to that, but I could clearly see in the other two cases that both Charles Eimers and the man in NY were unarmed and had their arms raised, so there was no need to take them down. You are not wrong, Sloan.
I wanted to do an addendum to the above comments. When I lived in Key West all those years, I never saw any wrong-doing by a KWPD officer. From my personal observations, they treated folks fairly. I trusted and believed in the integrity of Chief Donie Lee. I don’t know what’s happened, but clearly there are a few officers under his command who might be a real problem. I hope, for his sake and the sake of the people remaining in Key West, that he does something about the few who are causing the problems.
It seems our city commissioners do not want to face an uncomfortable truth. Not only is the KWPD responsible for Eimers’ death, one of the officers involved allegedly bragged about the mistreatment and his callous remarks recorded. This is evidence of “delight in malice.” It is a true window to the soul and exposes the dark side of many who wear the blue, though most do indeed perform professionally.
It’s the Blue Wall of Silence that protects these bad apples and it unfortunately brings dishonor to all. We crusade against bullying but it’s OK for our police officers to be bully role models to our children? We are also quick to blame when “warning signs” are missed. I for one, am sounding the alarm now. However, I guarantee that there will be no ears to hear it. From Los Angeles, to Ferguson, to New York City, it’s a growing tumor across the nation, an uncomfortable truth that municipalities choose not to hear. When our police offers openly delight in the mistreatment of the citizens they are sworn to protect and serve, it exposes the cancer within.
Notwithstanding, we once again find the wagons circled to protect the bad apples. This time, the Blue Wall dragged everyone into the cauldron since it’s very much about the politics, the liability and the money. This is the reason why the city is comfortable with the whitewash. Perhaps, because the city so enjoys sticking their heads in the sand, they figured Mr. Eimers enjoyed it also?
Un-questioning blind faith in anything is simply a nice way of saying you are comfortable with blindness.