Police academy warned Tacoma Police about officer charged in Manuel Ellis' death

A new investigation from The Seattle Times uncovers a memo sent from the state's police academy to the Tacoma Police Department.

That memo warned the department about the behavior of a new recruit: Timothy Rankine.

In December 2018, Rankine was given a test at the state police academy. It was a simulated situation controlled by an academy instructor, where Rankine was asked to respond to a wellness check at a park. The simulation was meant to be a way for Rankine to practice non-lethal force.

Instead, Rankine shot the simulated person.

Two months later, Rankine became a fully fledged officer with the Tacoma Police Department.

In March 2020, he helped fatally restrain Manuel Ellis, a 33-year-old Black man and lifelong resident of Tacoma. Rankine is one of three Tacoma officers facing charges for Ellis' death.

In the memo to the Tacoma Police Department, Rankine's instructor described him as descending into "mental condition black" during the simulation.

Seattle Times investigative reporter Patrick Malone says that language grabbed the attention of experts with whom he shared the memo.

"It signaled a response to past trauma," Malone says, "very likely the past trauma of combat."

Rankine, as well as the other two co-defendants charged in the murder of Manuel Ellis, are veterans.

Malone describes "mental condition black" as being similar to a panic attack.

"You lose some of your senses," he explains. "For instance, there was auditory exclusion. Rankin was not hearing what his partner was telling him. He was not hearing what was coming across in radio traffic to sort of guide his actions."

This was noted as a red flag for the Tacoma Police Department, which would need to be dealt with. That could include making the decision about whether Rankine was fit for hiring, or to address the issues through training and psychological help.

The Tacoma Police Department did not respond to Malone's request for comment. But Malone noted that the Times has access to Rankine's full training file, and that no extra help or psychological intervention is noted.

However, that is considered medical information and could be withheld from the file.

Within a year of that training request, Rankine was involved in a use of force incident with the Tacoma Police Department while responding to a domestic violence call.

Less than three months later, Rankine kneeled on Manuel Ellis’ neck, ignoring Ellis’ pleas that he couldn’t breathe. Ellis died at the scene. The cause of death was determined to be oxygen deprivation.

Rankine has said that his combat experience shaded his experience that night.

Experts Malone spoke to also noted that Rankine’s combat experience had colored his reaction to the simulated test back at the police academy.

"So what they wonder out loud is, 'Was Rankin ever really fit psychologically to hold this job as a Tacoma police officer?'" Malone says.

Not every military officer has PTSD. But experts Malone spoke to say any officer considering a move to a civilian police force should be screened for it.

"They should also be getting the care that they deserve," Malone says. "Both as veterans who serve this country, and people who we expect to act rationally when they encounter citizens of these communities that they work for."

The military has become a pipeline for police departments in the United States, Malone says. Veterans are an appealing group of diverse people who are disciplined and accustomed to following orders.

"But you've also got to be mindful that some of them are severely damaged by what they experienced and what they saw," he adds. "And there has to be a provision for that."

You can find all of Malone's reporting on this story at this link.