SEATAC, Wash. — A King County Sheriff’s deputy has been charged for fourth degree assault, following an incident where he had allegedly punched a handcuffed suspect numerous times while in the backseat of a patrol car.
According to charge documents released Tuesday, Deputy Matthew Good and nine other KCSO deputies responded to a domestic assault charge in SeaTac in March of 2023.
Witness statements from the KCSO deputies detailed how they had arrested, handcuffed, and seat-belted a suspect in the back of a patrol car. The suspect reportedly kicked a deputy in the chest several times.
After that, Good allegedly pushed that deputy aside, climbed on top of the suspect in the car, and punched the suspect six to eight times in the chest. The deputy who had been kicked in the chest then pulled Good off.
Another deputy who had witnessed it said she “didn’t think it was something that should have been done,” but stopped short of saying whether she thought Good’s use of force was reasonable.
A separate deputy who also witnessed the incident said that they did believe the use of force was unreasonable.
An investigator who was tasked with analyzing the case later stated that although the arrest of the suspect was justified, Good “subsequently used excessive, unnecessary force,” going on to describe his response as “gratuitous.”
“It is contrary to standard police practice and officer safety for an officer to get into the back of a patrol vehicle and place themselves on top of a handcuffed prisoner,” the investigator added. “ln sum, MPO Good engaged in a series of poor police tactics and use of force that created an officer and citizen safety hazard and increased the risk of injury to the involved parties. His actions were unreasonable and not a necessary use of force.”
The fourth degree assault charged filed against Good is a gross misdemeanor. Good is reportedly on administrative leave.
The KCSO is also conducting its own internal investigation into the incident, but decline to offer further comments until that process wraps up.