The Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (PCPAO) is preparing to review newly compiled investigative materials related to the 2013 killing of Leonard Thomas, a situation that has resurfaced longstanding questions about accountability in police use-of-force cases in Washington.

Thomas, 30, was shot and killed during a four‑hour standoff involving the Pierce County Metro SWAT Team. According to reporting by MyNorthwest, the Washington Office of Independent Investigations (OII) has forwarded a report suggesting that evidence presented years ago in a federal wrongful-death trial could support a manslaughter charge against former Lakewood Police Chief Mike Zaro, who led the SWAT operation the day Thomas died.

The Seattle Times reported that the OII analysis identifies aspects of the operation that may merit renewed scrutiny, though any charging authority rests solely with county prosecutors. Adam Faber, speaking for PCPAO, stated that prosecutors will evaluate the full investigative file once all materials are delivered.

Thomas’s death drew extensive attention in the years following the incident. A 2017 federal civil trial found Zaro and two other officers liable for the killing, and a jury awarded the Thomas family $13 million in damages, including $6.5 million in punitive damages, according to reporting by the Seattle Times. Those civil findings, while significant, do not determine whether criminal charges can be filed.

The question now before prosecutors is complicated by the legal standard that existed at the time of the shooting. Before the passage of Initiative 940 in 2018, Washington law required proof of malice to criminally charge an officer for a fatal use of force. That standard—criticized for decades as nearly impossible to meet—still governs this case because the incident occurred in 2013.

Mark Lindquist, who was Pierce County’s elected prosecutor at the time, reiterated that reality in comments reported by MyNorthwest. He noted that any criminal charge would require proving malice beyond a reasonable doubt, describing the threshold as “a very high hill to climb.” Lindquist’s office concluded in 2013 that the shooting was justified.

As of early March 2026, PCPAO is waiting for the complete case file from OII. Prosecutors have not provided a timeline for when a charging decision will be made.

Why this matters in Southwest Washington

While the 2013 shooting occurred in Pierce County, the legal issues it raises have statewide implications. Communities across Southwest Washington continue to debate the role of independent investigations, the limits of prosecutorial authority under older statutes, and how legacy cases should be handled when standards of review have shifted. The forthcoming decision in Pierce County may influence future interpretations of pre‑I‑940 uses of force and shape expectations for transparency in police oversight.

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