SEATTLE ON TRIAL: Fire dept medics ‘abandoned’ 16-year-old CHOP shooting victim Antonio Mays Jr to die: expert witness

Robyn McKinley, a veteran EMS professional who conducted an independent investigation into Seattle Fire's response, told the Court that medics from Medic One fled a designated casualty collection area outside the zone when protesters arrived with the wounded teenager in a vehicle. McKinley described how dispatchers instructed CHAZ/CHOP protesters to transport Mays, shot by armed individuals acting as "security" within the zone, to a rendezvous point at 14th and Union streets. Dispatch provided details about the incoming vehicle, including its make, model, color, flashing lights, and confirmation that the occupants were unarmed.

Despite this information, medics reportedly believed someone in the vehicle was in possession of a firearm and drove away without making contact with the patient. McKinley testified that Mays was still alive and breathing at that moment, with a detectable pulse. Scrambling to save the teen's life, protesters stumbled upon a separate Seattle Fire engine and transferred Mays for treatment. By that time, it was too late to save him.

"The system failed this young man," McKinley said, noting that a system error had mislabeled the casualty area as a "scene of violence," complicating the response. She added, "With this particular incident, the ball was dropped," and emphasized that she had never seen EMTs "abandon in that fashion" during her career.

Seattle Fire Captain Josh Pearson, a supervisor at the time, defended his team's decision to depart the "chaotic" scene. He said that the car transporting Mays was moving "recklessly" toward Medic One, and that medics assumed, incorrectly, that a man riding on top of the vehicle was brandishing a gun.

Due to the documented violence surrounding the autonomous zone, McKinley testified that she did, in fact, believe the medics had a "perceived fear" at the time the vehicle encountered them. However, the expert told the Court that the medics failed to contact dispatch to notify them that they were "abandoning" the patient, a violation of standard operating guidelines (SOG) of scenes of violence response. Additionally, McKinley said that emergency responders did not report their alleged observation of a firearm, nor did they request police assistance. It has since been determined that the subject did not have a firearm on his body.

McKinley's testimony follows last week's revelation from Seattle Police Department (SPD) homicide detective Alan Cruise, who stated he received direct orders from Assistant Chief Thomas—originating from city officials—not to enter the CHAZ/CHOP zone after the shooting. The prohibition lasted nearly five hours, preventing police from securing the crime scene and resulting in protesters and/or potential suspects tampering with the evidence. His testimony bolstered the plaintiffs' argument that the city's abandonment of the Seattle Police East Precinct and prohibition on officers entering the zone created a "state-created danger," delaying critical medical care and police investigation—leading to Antonio's death and rendering the city liable for negligence.

The fatal shooting occurred around 3 am on June 29, 2020, when protesters operating as "CHAZ/CHOP security" unleashed a barrage of gunfire on Mays and his 14-year-old friend, Robert West, while they were driving a vehicle through the zone. The Antifa-BLM autonomous zone was established following the death of George Floyd, who died in Minneapolis police custody. Anti-police activists occupied a six-block radius in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, leading city officials to abandon the SPD east precinct and implement policies restricting police and emergency responder entry without special approval.

Mays, a black teenager from California, endured more than 25 minutes of "agonizing pain" before succumbing to his injuries, said Attorney Evan Oshan, representing the Mays family. No arrests have been made in the killing. Courtroom audio played for the jury captured frantic protesters seeking aid after Medic One departed, which included the sound of Mays' labored breathing in his final moments. The trial continues, with the city defending its handling of the unprecedented protest zone.