Trial of Thompson, Chaplin could take longer than planned; no testimony yet from Officer Donald

Law enforcement officers testified this week at the trial of Andre Thompson and Bryson Chaplin — officers who investigated the initial report of theft from an Olympia grocery store, those who responded to reports of a shooting on Cooper Point Road and members of the task force that investigated the May 21, 2015, events.

Officer Ryan Donald, who shot Thompson and Chaplin, hasn’t been called to testify. He likely won’t be called next week either, said Deputy Prosecutor Scott Jackson.

Chaplin and his brother, Thompson, face assault charges resulting from an alleged attack on Donald, who was attempting to apprehend the brothers after responding to a report of thefts and an assault at the west Olympia Safeway.

Both men were shot during the altercation with Donald, who was cleared of wrongdoing by the Thurston County Prosecutor’s Office and the Olympia Police Department.

The Prosecutor’s Office also filed theft charges against Thompson and Chaplin in October. Chaplin pleaded guilty March 27 to three counts of third-degree theft. Thompson still faces one count of third-degree theft.

Each man is charged with two counts of second-degree assault for the alleged attack on Donald.

Thurston County Superior Court Judge Erik Price and attorneys expressed concerns Thursday that the trial might not finish within six weeks as planned. So far, 13 witnesses have been called.

The state’s witness list includes 27 law enforcement officers from the Olympia Police Department, Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, Lacey Police Department, Tumwater Police Department, The Evergreen State College Police Department and the Washington State Patrol.

Among the officers who testified this week were Officer Luke O’Brien and Sgt. Matt Renschler, two of the officers who responded to the 911 call at Safeway and to the shooting.

On Monday, O’Brien recalled leaving Safeway and heading back toward downtown Olympia.

He and Officer Paul Evers, who was training O’Brien at the time, turned the car around after hearing Donald report that he was on Cooper Point Road with two suspects. Before they could reach Donald, shots were fired.

O’Brien and Evers drove past Donald on Cooper Point Road, turned onto 14th Avenue Northwest and walked into the woods bordering the road. They hoped to intercept the suspects, O’Brien said.

“Our intention was to move past him and onto 14th so we could essentially establish a perimeter on the wood line,” O’Brien said.

While in the woods, O’Brien heard Donald fire the second set of shots. He said he had two choices at that point: go through the woods to where Donald was, or go back to the car and drive to Donald.

“I needed to get back to Cooper Point where Officer Donald was,” he said.

When he reached Donald, he saw the officer standing in the road. He said Thompson was sitting in the middle of the road holding his abdomen, and Chaplin was lying near the fog line.

On Thursday, Renschler said he was also headed back downtown when Donald reported shots had been fired. He also turned around and headed to Donald.

He said that initially he wasn’t sure if there were additional suspects. Several other officers arrived, and Renschler recalled having the suspects placed in handcuffs.

Defense attorneys George Trejo and Sunni Ko asked several questions about that decision.

“The first thing we do is secure the scene,” Renschler said, “before we start any criminal investigations, before aid will come in.”

Jackson asked Renschler questions regarding “nontraditional weapons,” and whether an officer could be killed by an unarmed person. Trejo objected and then moved for a mistrial. He argued that Renschler hadn’t been presented as an expert witness on the topic, and that his testimony had been a surprise.

Price denied the motion, but advised the jury that references to nontraditional weapon should be disregarded.

The trial will continue at 9 a.m. Monday.

This story was originally published April 14, 2017 at 4:53 PM with the headline "Trial of Thompson, Chaplin could take longer than planned; no testimony yet from Officer Donald."