Case against Pierce County Sheriff Ed Troyer goes to jury

Jurors are poised to deliberate in the trial of Pierce County Sheriff Ed Troyer, after hearing closing arguments from attorneys on Tuesday.

The prosecutor maintained that Troyer lied to a 911 dispatcher, well knowing the type of response his claim of being threatened would initiate. His defense lawyer Anne Bremner called the case a wrongful prosecution that was politically motivated by racial justice protests after the murder of George Floyd.

Troyer is charged with two misdemeanors for false reporting and making a false statement to a public servant, stemming from his encounter with Black newspaper carrier Sedrick Altheimer on Jan. 27, 2021. Prosecutor Melanie Tratnik said Troyer's description of Altheimer's lethal threats, and the fact that he downplayed them once police arrived, doesn't make sense, "because that’s not what happened. Troyer was never threatened. He was disrespected.”

“Sheriff Troyer weaponized the police force to settle a personal, petty score with a man who didn’t treat him with the deference and the respect he felt he deserved,” Tratnik said. She said Troyer’s comments calling Altheimer “homeless looking” and “anti-cop” give clues to his real motivation.

Troyer testified that he did fear for his life when Altheimer confronted him, but backed off when he learned Altheimer was doing his job.

In closing arguments Tuesday, Bremner called Troyer a “law-and-order sheriff” and said the idea that he would lie and waste law enforcement resources makes no sense.

“He’s a clear-eyed, plain-spoken sheriff. He called it as he saw it at the time, and he was truthful,” she said.

Bremner said Troyer’s actions were easily explained — he saw what he believed was Altheimer’s suspicious behavior, called 911 dispatchers when Altheimer angrily confronted him, and dropped his concerns once officers determined that Altheimer was simply delivering newspapers in the neighborhood.

Bremner said jurors should not accept Altheimer’s testimony as credible, given that he has sued Pierce County for $5 million over the encounter and had similar confrontations with others in the same neighborhood including neighbor Josh Harris, in which he returned to the person’s house later the same night as he did with Troyer.

Tacoma Detective Chad Lawless interviewed Troyer at the scene and wrote in a report the next day that Troyer told him Altheimer did not make any threats or display a weapon but clearly "wanted to fight." Bremner told jurors Lawless is also not credible since he didn’t take notes at the scene, did not have a body-worn camera, and repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to testify in the case.

In her rebuttal Tratnik said Troyer’s attorneys are trying to cast blame on everyone at the scene except him.

“Nobody’s saying you can’t be part of a neighborhood watch group,” Tratnik said. “He’s not on trial for that. He’s on trial for lying about what happened.”

Judge Jeffrey Jahns said he will dismiss the four alternate jurors Wednesday morning and then six remaining jurors will begin deliberations. There are only six jurors since the trial concerns misdemeanor charges in Pierce County District Court.