Families of slain Lakewood officers plan to file $182 million in claims against county

The families of the four slain Lakewood police officers plan to file $182 million in claims Friday against Pierce County, accusing the Sheriff's Office and jail of failing to prevent their deaths by not monitoring jail telephone calls made by gunman Maurice Clemmons.

On Nov. 29, Clemmons walked into Forza Coffee and killed Lakewood police Sgt. Mark Renninger and officers Ronald Owens, Tina Griswold and Gregory Richards.

While being held on other charges in the previous months, Clemmons, in numerous phone calls, had described how he planned to kill police officers once he was released from jail.

"This catastrophe, the worst law-enforcement tragedy in the history of Washington state, was completely preventable," according to the separate claims by the four families. The officers are survived by nine children.

While in Pierce County Jail, Clemmons made hundreds of phone calls to his wife, family and friends. As with all inmates, the phone calls were recorded.

The Seattle Times listened to all of Clemmons' recorded telephone calls, which were obtained under the state's public-records law. Clemmons described his bitterness at what he called a lifetime of abuse at the hands of law enforcement.

Clemmons, who was facing a third-strike lifetime sentence if convicted, told his half-brother Rickey Hinton in late September:

"I'm going to war. There ain't going to be no trial. I'd rather be carried by six than be judged by 12 [jurors]."

"I hate the police. And I hope they listening."

He described imagining the children and family of the police officers, crying and begging for answers.

"I want to hear them say, 'Why?' " he said, using a weepy voice.

Clemmons also told his wife, Nicole Smith, he would carry a gun and seek revenge.

"I ain't use to pack one, but every day where I go, I'm going to have one right in my front pocket," he said. "It's going to be the last time they [say] 'Hey mister.' Boom. Dead in they forehead."

Attorney Bob Christie represents three of the families. The four administrative claims must by filed before the families can bring lawsuits against the county in Pierce County Superior Court.

He said the jail should have been monitoring Clemmons' phone calls because he wasn't a typical inmate: He was facing life in prison if convicted of another felony; was on parole from Arkansas; had threatened a booking officer's life at the jail; was charged with assaulting two police officers and was classified as high-risk.

"My guess is that there's no one other than him that fits that profile," Christie said.

Clemmons' phone calls were among thousands recorded daily at the Pierce County Jail. It's impossible for personnel to monitor each call for 1,400 inmates, said Pierce County Sheriff's Office spokesman Ed Troyer.

"Everybody is disheartened," he said. "We did everything we could. We didn't let him out of jail. He made bail."

Citing the costs and dozens of employees it would take to monitor inmate calls, Troyer said "that's not possible and never will be."

The calls are never monitored, he added. Recordings have been used to help convict people of intimidating witnesses or violating no-contact orders.

Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Lindquist said "my heart continues to go out to the families of the murdered officers, but the only people responsible for the murders are Maurice Clemmons and the people that assisted him."

Michael Hanbey, a lawyer for the estate of Tina Griswold and her surviving family, said he was shocked to discover the jail had no written policy regarding the jail recordings.

"I was disappointed to learn that the Sheriff's Office and jail had information available to it that it could have avoided this entire tragedy," he said.

Christie said the jail should have a written policy about who should be monitored and when. Otherwise what's the point in having the tool, he said.

"The information was in their system in plain English and it took no level of sophistication to figure out what this sick man's plan was," Christie said. "Anyone listening to that would have done something with that information."

"If someone isn't paying attention to high-profile prisoners who are threatening in specific terms ... then that needs to change," he said.

Despite some criticisms raised Thursday about their motives, Christie said the primary reason the families brought the claims is to hold Pierce County accountable.

"The victims of Clemmons could have been anyone in law enforcement or any sector of society," he said. "We're hearing it's about greed and that we're being ungrateful, [but] the person saying that gets to go home to their family tonight."

Christine Willmsen: cwillmsen@seattletimes.com or 206-464-3261