Gatherers remember Riley, call for changes

SANDPOINT — A group of approximately 30 people gathered Wednesday near the site where Jeanetta Riley was killed by police to keep her memory alive and press for changes to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future.

“Everybody can go back and Monday-morning-quarterback the details of this, but it really comes down to understanding that if we raise awareness as a community that we can make changes,” said Dan Mimmack, a local businessman who helped organize the event.

Riley, 35, was shot to death on July 8, 2014, by Sandpoint Police outside Bonner General Health. She refused officers’ commands to drop a knife and advanced on one of the officers, according to video footage of the encounter.

Riley was driven to the hospital by her husband because she was in the throes of a mental health crisis and threatening suicide.

The officers were cleared of wrongdoing in the incident, but outrage continues to burn over a death that some viewed as needless and preventable.

Law officers in Bonner County have undergone crisis intervention training to de-escalate confrontations, but the officers involved in the shooting hadn’t at the time of the incident.

“Had those methods been used, a tiny, little-over-a-hundred-pound woman wouldn’t have needed to be shot by three large police officers. They could have taken a different approach. They didn’t need to use deadly force,” said Eric Ridgway, a local counselor.

Although outrage over Riley’s killing was evident at the memorial, Ridgway and others urged gatherers not to condemn law enforcement because it would only drive a wedge between the officers and the public they serve.

It is understood that the city and Bonner General have discussed the matter among themselves to produce more favorable outcomes going forward, but those discussions and the product of those discussions remain under wraps.

Sandra Belvail, a retired Veterans Administration nurse practitioner, urged for the city and the hospital to show transparency and explain the steps were taken to prevent future bloodshed.

“You have to have some accountability to the community. You may have done your internal housekeeping, but it’s time you speak out in a good way and let us know what you’ve found out and what you’re willing to do in the future so this doesn’t happen again,” said Belvail. “They’re our public servants and I think we have a right to that kind of feedback.”

The city and the hospital, however, are the subjects of a wrongful death suit brought by Riley’s husband, Shane.

“Lawsuits keep people quiet. The fear of having to pay out for negligence makes people go quiet,” Mimmack said.

Nevertheless, Mimmack argued that honesty and transparency should overrule concerns about liability.

Others at the memorial called for the end of the cultural phobia surrounding mental illness and attitudes that polarize the police and the public.

Another of the event’s organizers, Jodi Rawson, emphasized how easily someone could meet a similar fate as Riley without meaningful change.

“It could have been any of us on a bad day, having a breakdown, being warned that we were dangerous,” said Rawson. “I can’t forget her. I’ve never met her, but I can’t forget her.”