WTO injury reports from officers show dangers they faced
by J. Martin McOmber Seattle Times staff reporter Many of the 56 Seattle police officers who filed injury reports during the World Trade Organization meeting were hurt by the same crowd-control devices used to disperse demonstrators, according to police records.
Booming concussion grenades, clouds of tear gas and streams of pepper spray were apparently the biggest culprits during the Nov. 29-Dec. 4 WTO demonstrations: 17 officers complained about hearing loss, four listed exposure to chemical irritants, and one was burned by a white-hot tear-gas canister.
One officer claimed a gas mask that fitted too snugly broke his teeth.
There is no doubt Seattle streets were often a mean place for police during the WTO conference, as well as for protesters and anyone else who got caught up in the melee.
It is impossible to say how many private citizens were injured, but so far only a handful of claims have been filed against the city. The worst involved a broken arm.
For police, the weapons and equipment they used were nearly as hazardous as run-ins with unruly demonstrators, according to injury reports obtained under public-record laws. But those run-ins also caused their share of bumps, cuts and bruises for police.
Fifteen officers said they were struck by bottles or other objects thrown at them or injured while scuffling with protesters. Arresting the 600 mostly nonviolent protesters was also painful for some: 12 complained of strained backs, hurt hands and sprained knees from handling protesters, many of whom refused to cooperate with police.
Another common complaint was sore legs and backs from lugging around heavy equipment and standing guard for hours at a stretch.
Even the food was dangerous. One officer was hospitalized after he got food poisoning from eating a hotel-catered meal. More than a dozen fell ill from the tainted meal, but didn't file an injury report.
Tear-gas, concussion grenades and pepper spray are all dangerous devices and bound to cause injuries when used as frequently as they were during the WTO protests.
Considering the chaos of the WTO week, the number of injured officers was surprising small, said Police Guild President Mike Edwards. The union president said he was not aware of any permanent disabilities but that some officers are still being treated for injuries.
Edwards said some officers were repeatedly exposed to tear gas because they weren't issued a gas mask.
"Anyone else had the opportunity to leave and go someplace else (when tear gas was used)," he said. "Our people didn't."
J. Martin McOmber's phone message number is 206-515-5628.
___________________________