"The knife was folded in a closed position", deaf, drinking, carver shot 4 times, killed

Newest turn in shooting: Carver's knife found shut
By Steve Miletich

The knife that John T. Williams was carrying when he was fatally shot by a Seattle police officer on Aug. 30 was folded in a closed position when it was recovered minutes after the shooting, according to sources familiar with the investigation.

The knife's condition, combined with evidence that Williams was shot in the side, played a role in a preliminary determination by the Police Department's Firearms Review Board and Chief John Diaz that the shooting was not justified, said one law-enforcement source. The three-inch blade was found closed when another officer picked up the knife, which is documented in evidentiary photographs taken at the scene, the sources said.
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Birk shot Williams after he stopped his patrol car at a red light and saw Williams walking and carrying a piece of wood and a small knife that turned out to be used for carving. Williams, who was a member of Nuu-Chah-Nulth First Nations in British Columbia, did not respond to three commands to drop the knife, according to police officials and an audio recording retrieved from Birk's patrol car.

Williams' family has said he probably didn't hear the officer command him to drop the knife because he was deaf in one ear. Williams' blood-alcohol level was measured at 0.18, according to an autopsy report obtained by The Seattle Times under a public-disclosure request. A driver with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08 is considered drunk. The Police Department originally said Williams advanced on Birk but later retreated on that statement.

According to two people familiar with the shooting, who asked not to be identified, less than 15 seconds passed between the time Birk issued his commands and when he fired his gun. Seattle police have said that Birk fired four rounds from a distance of nine to 10 feet. Williams was struck by four bullets on the right side of his body, indicating he was not facing the officer at the time the shots were fired, according to an attorney for Williams' family.