Mother of man killed by Fat Tuesday mob scolds police

Now his family wants to know whether anything could have been done to prevent his death. And they want those responsible for the random attack to be brought to justice.

"I saw the pictures on TV of police standing around on top of buildings," Kimberly Kime-Parks of Des Moines, the victim's mother, said yesterday. "My question is, why? They saw this violence going on; why didn't they try to stop it?"

Kime

Kime and a group of friends were swept up in the Mardi Gras riot that erupted on Yesler Way between First and Second avenues about 1 a.m. Wednesday.

When Kime saw a young woman -- a stranger -- fall to the pavement and start to get trampled, he stepped in to help her. That's when a young man smashed a bottle over the back of Kime's head, causing him to tumble to the ground. A group of men then kicked and stomped him, leaving Kime bloodied and unconscious.

Kime's friends were able to carry him to Second Avenue, where a squad of bicycle officers soon arrived. Authorities managed to take the victim to a triage center at a fire station.

At Harborview Medical Center, Kime was placed on life-support, but doctors were unable to control the swelling of his brain. He was pronounced dead that night.

"My son wasn't a hell raiser; he was a good, all-American kid," his mother said. "He and his friends went down there only to have fun and listen to music. There's no reason in the world for violence like this."

In the fallout of a night of mayhem, some have questioned why police didn't act sooner to quell the rioting. The crowd of about 4,000 turned violent around midnight, and the mood only grew uglier as time went on. Riot police didn't move in to disperse the crowd with volleys of tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets until 1:40 a.m.

PHOTO GALLERY
See images from Tuesday night in Pioneer Square
At least 72 people were injured in the melee, including a 24-year-old Kirkland man who fell from a 30-foot overpass. He was upgraded from critical to serious condition at Harborview yesterday.

Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske and Mayor Paul Schell defended police tactics at a news conference yesterday, saying the alcohol-fueled Mardi Gras crowds were too large and unruly to control at first.

"I think we moved in at the proper time, given the size of the crowd and their mob mentality," Kerlikowske said. "Every police decision in this situation is that we're damned if we do and damned if we don't."

Police had been criticized about moving in too quickly when violence erupted during prior Mardi Gras celebrations Friday and Saturday. Some onlookers complained that riot-gear-clad police incited the weekend crowds.

"We had our police in an untenable situation, and public safety was at risk," Schell said. "On Friday and Saturday night, police were criticized for going in too soon and perhaps triggering the riot. And on (Fat Tuesday), some criticized them for going in too late. This was a no-win situation."

Police Officers Guild President Mike Edwards commended Kerlikowske for taking full responsibility for how the riot was handled.

But Edwards said the guild is conducting its own inquiry about department tactics and strategies.

"There's been a general feeling among our officers that they were held back," Edwards said. "I understand that this is a tough call. You don't want to put officers in harm's way, but what you're there to do is protect the public's safety. And a lot of officers are frustrated that they may have been kept from doing that."

Kime-Parks said she's frustrated, too. And heartbroken.

Her oldest son -- a soccer standout who graduated from Evergreen High School in 1998 -- is now gone.

Kris Kime recently moved out on his own, sharing a place in Auburn with friends. He worked construction jobs and attended Highline Community College. Family members said he planned to return to school to study broadcasting. He dreamed of one day becoming a disc jockey.

Now his mother wants answers.

"I always thought police were there to protect and serve," Kime-Parks said yesterday. "But they weren't there to protect and serve my son."

Schell, who on Wednesday night issued a prepared statement saying, "there will be no more Fat Tuesday" in Seattle, yesterday stood by his decision to cancel the annual Pioneer Square celebration "in this current configuration."

"I'm open to any situation, but we can't have what apparently came to be an invitation to a brawl that was alcohol-induced, drug-induced and set up a circumstance that wasn't fair to the neighborhood or the city," he said.

"If we do anything, it's going to be in a way so that I'm convinced and the Police Department's convinced we're not putting any of our citizens in harm's way."

During the Fat Tuesday riot, 21 people were arrested on various charges ranging from weapons violations and assault to reckless endangerment and rioting.

Two of those arrested on felony charges appeared during bail hearings at the King County Jail yesterday. Bail was set at $10,000 for a Seattle man who is facing a rioting charge for brandishing a handgun.

Other arrests are expected. Yesterday, police collared a 19-year-old Shoreline man on suspicion of rioting after reviewing videotape and photographs taken early Wednesday.

Police have set up a Mardi Gras task force and are seeking help from the public to provide information, videotape or photos of criminal behavior that may help them make other arrests. A tip line has also been set up: 206-233-3896.