CLARK COUNTY, Wash. — The mother of a man who was fatally shot by a Clark County deputy during a traffic stop on Feb. 4, 2021, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the county.
Jenoah Donald, 30, was pulled over by a deputy in Hazel Dell, west of Vancouver, for a burned-out taillight.
“Mr. Donald was unlawfully stopped for suspicion of drug use under the pretext of a defective rear light,” according to the family’s attorney.
The deputy who shot Donald said he pulled out his gun and fired after Donald started to fight with him and ignored his commands to stop.
Donald was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died after he was taken off life support a week later.
The lawsuit accuses three deputies of assault and battery, negligence and violation of Donald’s civil rights.
The lawsuit claims Clark County failed “to supervise and adequately train officers on de-escalation techniques, non-lethal tactics, the decision making-process preceding use of deadly force, and how to interact with citizens suffering from behavioral health issues such as autism.”
“My son’s not coming back. He was shot in the head by a Clark County sheriff, after he complied. Um, something’s gotta change,” Donald’s mother, Susan Zawacky, said.
“Had these deputies’ practiced just elementary de-escalation techniques, we wouldn’t be here and Jenoah would still be alive,” said Mark Lindquist, the plaintiff’s attorney, and former Pierce County prosecutor.
The shooting was investigated by a team of five veteran prosecutors from around the state for six months.
The team concluded the deputy’s use of force was “in good faith” and that he acted lawfully when he shot Donald.
However, there is no video of the shooting as Clark County deputies are not equipped with body cameras.