SEATTLE – A former Edmonds man who was left paralyzed after being shoved into a wall by a King County sheriff's deputy six years ago died Thursday at home.
Chris Harris's passing was announced Friday morning in a statement from his attorney:
"Chris and Sarah were newly married when a King County Sheriff's deputy shattered their lives when he mistook Chris for a suspect and threw him headlong into a wall, leaving him with a severe brain injury," wrote attorney Sim Osborn. "While we mourn Chris' passing, we also recognize Sarah for her commitment to her husband, deciding to become his full-time caregiver for the past six years. Her love and commitment to Chris was abundantly obvious to anyone who spent any amount of time with her."
Harris turned 36 on November 21. His mother, Sharla Lamken, told KING 5 that Harris had been in a lot of pain and having seizures in recent weeks.
"He was a social butterfly. He loved helping people and going on adventures and experiencing life, now he's experiencing eternal life," Lamken said.
The Thurston County Coroner's Office ruled that Harris' death was a homicide after performing an autopsy on Friday. That means someone intentionally performed an act that led to the death, but doesn't mean the death was intentional or that a crime was committed.
Harris was in Seattle on May 10, 2009, when he was wrongly identified by a witness as being involved in a bar fight. He led deputies on a two-block chase. Surveillance video showed Deputy Matthew Paul shoving Harris after Harris stopped..
The shove caused Harris's head to slam into the concrete wall of the Cinerama Theater. Harris was knocked into a coma and left paralyzed, the blow severely damaging his brain and spinal cord, leaving him permanently disabled.
A lawsuit was filed by Harris's family against the county. During the trial, attorneys disputed when the deputies identified themselves and whether Harris knew they were deputies when he ran. The county agreed to settle the case for $10 million. The Seattle Times reports jurors interviewed after the trial said they would have ruled for the Harris family.
A KING 5 investigation found Deputy Paul was involved in a number of incidents in which his use of force was a concern, but the sheriff's office said there was no misconduct and prosecutors called the Harris case "a freak accident." But then-Sheriff Sue Rahr said Paul would be put on a personal performance plan and sent back to the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission for additional training.
Paul remains on duty as a King County Sheriff's deputy.
Sheriff John Urquhart, who was the department's spokesperson when the incident happened, released this statement Friday:
"I am very sorry to hear of the passing of Christopher Harris. My sincere condolences to his family on behalf of the Sheriff's Office."
