Manuel “Manny” Ellis, a 33-year-old Black man, was stopped on his walk home from a convenience store at the intersection of South 96th and South Ainsworth by Tacoma Police on March 3, 2020. Ellis was beaten, tased twice, and hog-tied, and eventually killed by the three former Tacoma Police Officers Christopher Burbank, Matthew Collins, and Timothy Rankine. All three officers were charged with first-degree murder, with Collins and Burbank receiving additional charges of second-degree murder. The three former officers were acquitted of all charges on December 13, 2023.
The defense claims that Ellis exhibited “superhuman strength,” and attacked Burbank, Collins, and Rankine while resisting arrest. The defense also claims that when under restraint by the
police, Ellis was in a state of excited delirium. This is often associated with drugs, mental health crises, and when under restraint by police. Symptoms include an individual acting bizarre,
violent, possessing superhuman strength, heart failure (HF), and sometimes suddenly dying due to HF, according to The American Medical Association (AMA). The AMA has opposed the idea of excited delirium “as a medical diagnosis and warns against the use of certain pharmacological interventions solely for a law enforcement purpose without a legitimate medical reason.” Additionally, the defense claims that Ellis’ death can be attributed to his pre-existing heart condition and large amounts of methamphetamine in his system at the time of his death.
The Pierce County medical examiner found in toxicology reports that Ellis died of “hypoxia due to physical restraint,” at the time of his death and ultimately ruled it a homicide.
The U.S. Department of Justice opened an investigation on Ellis’s death on January 12, 2024 in regards to potential violations of federal law by the three former TPD officers. A civil rights lawsuit was also filed against the city of Tacoma by Ellis’ family as a response to the acquittal of Burbank, Collins, and Rankine.
Following their separation from the TPD in December and the opening of a federal investigation against the officers, Burbank, Collins, and Rankine agreed to leave the TPD through a “voluntary separation” with $500,000 each from the city of Tacoma on January 16. The officers have been on paid leave since 2021, receiving $500,000 each. Police Chief Avery Moore made public that on March 3, 2020, none of the officers had violated the use-of-force policy that was in effect at the time. The policy stated, “failed to serve the best interests of the police department or the community,” and has since been updated.
ABC News reported that Ellis’ family attorney, Mathew Erickson, wrote via email that the officers were “effectively being rewarded” for Ellis’ death. In the four years the officers had been on leave, they had been paid approximately $1.5 million. After the verdict was released on December 13, Ellis’ sister, Monet Carter-Mixon, stated that “Time and time again, these police departments have shown us that they’ll collude together, they’ll cover up evidence they won’t investigate. They will not do their jobs.”
