Did KING news helicopter obstruct officers in Lakewood Police killings?
Did Sky KING go too far, possibly obstructing the ongoing investigation into the killings of four Lakewood Police officers Sunday? The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department told The News Tribune it “intends to forward reports to prosecutors after officials said a Seattle television station’s helicopter interfered with the investigation of the slain police officers.” According to statements attributed to Sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer, the KING-TV helicopter “refused to back off ” when told it was disrupting officers on the ground, and the station “reportedly said they didn’t have to” and returned. In the News Tribune report, KING news director Mark Ginther is paraphrased saying the station’s helicopter was flying within the Federal Aviation Administration’s guidelines. An account of the incident today on broadcast industry Web site RadioBusinssesReport.com says KIRO-TV quoted Ginther as saying that “the station complied with FAA regulations at all times and moved the chopper every time it
