Jury selection begins in trial of Auburn officer accused of killing man outside store

Jury selection begins in the trial of an Auburn police officer accused of killing a man with a history of mental illness and addictions.

Officer Jeffrey Nelson is charged with murder and assault in the death of 26-year-old Jesse Sarey in 2019.

The shooting happened outside of the Sunshine Smoke Grocery in Auburn, located near the intersection of 15th Street Northeast and Auburn Way North, on May 31, 2019.

Surveillance video captured the escalation that night.

Charging documents say Nelson tackled and ultimately shot Sarey while trying to arrest him for disorderly conduct.

KUOW reports the judge determined testimony will not include information about Nelson’s tattoos, one of which reads “punish the deserving,” and Sarey’s history of drug use and public intoxication.

The trial marks the first-ever law enforcement officer charged with murder and assault under voter-approved Initiative 940, which calls for de-escalation and makes it easier to prosecute police for using deadly force.

Nelson’s trial was delayed three times.

The trial was originally scheduled in October of 2021.

However, it was later scheduled for February of 2022, and a third time for February of 2023.

Previous coverage:

• In January 2020 , a video was released of a confrontation between Nelson and Sarey.
• In August 2020 , Nelson was charged with murder.
• In May 2021 , we broke down how Nelson made history by becoming the first-ever law enforcement officer charged with murder and assault under voter-approved Initiative 940.
• In May 2023 , we spoke to Sarey’s family as the trial was delayed again.