Police mocked a teen who was slain by displaying a fake tombstone of him in the break room.

Disturbing bodycam footage has revealed the Seattle Police Department's East Precinct's break room decorations, showing a mock tombstone marking the death of Damarius Butts, 19, and a flag in support of Donald Trump's 2020 presidential campaign.

This footage was obtained as part of a lawsuit over Seattle's graffiti laws, which followed the arrest of protesters who used chalk and charcoal to write political statements on a precinct exterior wall. The body cam from one of the officers showed a Trump flag, a U.S. flag, and a silhouette of a tardigrade - a tiny organism known for its extreme resilience.

The shelf in the break room was also decorated with a small gray mock tombstone bearing the name Damarius Butts, his age, and the date he was killed by officers on April 20, 2017. Above Butt's name was a small black fist.

Butts was fatally shot by police after fleeing a robbery at a downtown convenience store where he had displayed a handgun and demanded beer. Three officers were injured in the exchange of gunfire, with one suffering a bullet in his chest. Butts died at the scene.

The police shooting was cleared by the department, and an inquest jury found the shooting justified. However, following the release of the bodycam footage, Butts' mother is now calling for a public apology from the department for mocking her family's grief.

“I can’t express how hurtful it was to learn that SPD endorsed joking about the killing of my son by displaying a fake tombstone with his name on it,” Ann Butts said in a statement through her attorney. “I didn’t think SPD could take more from me, I was wrong.”

The department has since released a statement claiming that the mock tombstone might have been placed by Black Lives Matter protestors, and that the Trump flag was removed and they are unaware who hung it.

These revelations are all the more concerning in light of the strong presence of Black Lives Matter protestors following the murder of Georg Floyd. It is clear that the Seattle Police Department must take greater responsibility for their actions and ensure that nothing like this ever happens again.

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