10 years after the killing of John T. Williams
A crowd gathered near the Space Needle in the early afternoon of Aug. 30, precisely when John T. Williams, an Indigenous woodcarver, was killed by a Seattle police officer 10 years ago. There stands a totem pole erected in Williams’ honor by his family amid the years that followed the shooting.
On the afternoon of his death, Williams was walking near the intersection of Boren and Howell streets, carrying a pocketknife. Officer Ian Birk drove up and demanded that Williams drop the knife.
Moments later, Birk shot Williams five times. ...