South Sound News

Protests expected at trial of stepbrothers shot by Olympia officer

OLYMPIA, Wash. — More than a dozen people said they're protesting the trial of two stepbrothers in Olympia shot by a police officer.

Thurston County prosecutors said the two assaulted an officer after stealing beer.

Key facts:

  • Stepbrothers on trial for assaulting officer
  • An officer shot both men during an 2015 altercation
  • One man is partially paralyzed
  • Officer was found innocent of any wrongdoing
  • Violent protest broke out after that decision
  • Protesters expected as trial begins Wednesday

Bryson Chaplin, 22, and his brother, 25-year-old Andre Thompson, are accused of theft and assault after they allegedly stole beer from an Olympia Safeway and assaulted an employee on May 21, 2015.

Officer Ryan Donald shot the stepbrothers on Cooper Point Road while responding to the call. The shootings,
 which sparked protests that turned violent, were investigated by a team of detectives from several agencies.

Donald told investigators when he encountered the two men, Thompson grabbed him and started trying to overpower him while Chaplin came at him with a skateboard raised over his head.

During opening statements of their assault trial, stepbrothers Andre Thompson and Bryson Chaplin sat side-by-side.

Thurston County Deputy Prosecutor Wayne Graham told the jury one man assaulted Officer Ryan Donald with a deadly weapon, his skateboard.

"Bryson Chaplin comes quickly at Officer Donald with his skateboard raise(d)," said Graham. "He'll

testify that Andre Thompson grabbed his right arm and started pulling him to the ground. He'll then testify he could see Bryson Chaplin, as he's going down, coming at him with a skateboard raised up with the trucks facing down and fearing this skateboard was going to be used as a weapon against his person."

Thompson's defense attorney painted a different picture for the jury during her opening statement.

"The case you are about hear is about a police officer, a very green police officer, who lost control of his emotion, of himself and ultimately the situation," said defense attorney Sunni Ko.

Members of the community who protested the officer-involved shooting sat in the courtroom to show their support for Thompson and Chaplin.

Bryson Chaplin is now in a wheelchair, paralyzed from the shooting.

He already pleaded guilty to theft for stealing alcohol.

He's also charged with assaulting an employee at a Safeway store. Prosecutors said he threw a case of beer as he ran from the store.

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