Violence ended the career of Port Townsend Police Officer Mark DuMond. After sustaining severe head injuries preventing an assault that could have killed a Jefferson Healthcare nurse he was never able to resume his full duties.

DuMond knew the man who injured him. All the police and Sheriff’s deputies know Jamie Beal. An Officer Safety Advisory is added to every dispatch when he is involved. In an altercation with around seven officers he dealt out punishment and lifted men, two at a time, with all their gear–well over 600 pounds in total–completely off their feet. He weighs about 250 pounds, is massively built, and likes to fight. He has mixed martial arts and jui jitsu training. He says he has been a cage fighter and combat veteran. He knows how to use his hands and his fantastic strength to hurt other people.

Before that incident he had attacked a person for no reason right in front of several Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputies just outside the Sheriff’s Offices. It took a bunch of them to subdue him. A bunch of them were left seriously injured.

But this powerful, dangerous man can also be a sweet, caring person…when he’s medicated.

On the night of March 26, 2020 his meds weren’t working. He knew he needed help and walked to Jefferson Healthcare where he was well known. Police were called. The pills medical staff gave him didn’t work. Actually, it was Officer DuMond who handed them over because nurses were too scared to get close. Two hours of de-escalation didn’t work and the violence officers knew was coming erupted. It took Dumond and five other officers giving everything they had–including DuMond’s career and physical well-being–to stop the attack on a nurse and protect themselves from a man huffing and roaring like a charging grizzly bear and swearing he was going to kill them, “weak pieces of shit” that they were.

What happened that night should be a lesson to the Port Townsend City Council and everyone who thinks police officers can be replaced with social workers. With one less officer, the officers may not have been able to restrain this man before he caused more injuries. A single officer, even a pair of officers, would have needed to use their firearms to stop him. If it had been a social worker confronted with this situation, there likely would have been at least one murder in the Jefferson Healthcare ER that night.

Just last week a social worker was stabbed to death by a client in Seattle. Several years ago Marty Smith, a social worker who had worked in Port Townsend, was beaten senseless by a man he was trying to have committed. The client then got a knife and proceeded to stab Smith to death.

In its meetings as the Ad Hoc Committee on Law Enforcement and Public Safety, the City Council has considered only ideological and ivory tower stuff–statistics, tables of data, generalized reports, program reviews. It has not drilled down into what police officers face every day and night. It has not examined a single case study of any of the gross number of “mental health” incidents reported to it each week by the City Manager.

This incident is by no means an outlier. This man is exceptional for his fighting ability, but  not unique.  You don’t need to search the archives of the Port Townsend Leader or The Peninsula Daily News very long to find other incidents of police officers being attacked and injured. Every officer and deputy I have met, from leadership down, has suffered some injury. They don’t volunteer the information. They’re like Officer DuMond on the night of March 26, barely able to stand, slipping in and out of consciousness, blood pouring from his mouth and nose, assuring everyone he was alright.

There is something simplistic in way the City Council has been considering the work of police. An air of naivete hangs over their discussions as they presume to “reimagine” the work of law enforcement to suit a perfectly peaceful and crime-free community that does not exist, here or anywhere.

This case is an antidote to that naivete. The following narrative is compiled from police records and the sights and sounds captured by body recorders.

.

Just Another Mental Health Incident

Jame Beal of Port Townsend, age 31, was anxious about his medications. He’d been in and out of Jefferson Healthcare that week with his concerns. He didn’t trust his meds. Were animals used to make them? Where were they made? Why wasn’t he feeling right? Maybe he was hurting his daughter by taking his meds.

He had been seen pacing downtown in an agitated state of mind, but had not yet reached the point of violence with which local law enforcement had become familiar. Family members and mental health professionals warned he was “cycling up” to violence. It was only a matter of time.

Around midnight on March 26 Beal walked into the ER. Immediately hospital security was alerted, and just as quickly a call went out to police. Beal pushed and shoved staff. The hospital needed law enforcement help. As soon as Beal was identified by name, law enforcement knew it would take a good number of officers to handle the situation. In addition to Port Townsend police, the Jefferson County Sheriff and Washington State Patrol responded. Five officers gathered outside the room where Officer DuMond was talking to Beal.

DuMond was worried. Beal was in a room that had not been cleared. He saw multiple items that could be used as weapons. Nurses would not enter the room. They were scared and spoke to Beal only over the shoulders of the officers who formed a protective cordon in the hallway. It was determined that injecting Beal was too dangerous. DuMond persuaded him to accept a pill or two (the exact dosage and medication was redacted from the records obtained by Port Townsend Free Press). Beal, once assured that the medicine was plant-based and made in North America, seemed to welcome the prospect of feeling better and spoke of hoping that meds started working. But DuMond remained worried about being in the room with Beal and asked JCSO Sergeant Shane Stevenson to stay close in case an attack came, an attack DuMond would have no hope of fending off alone.

The medication had no effect. For nearly two hours officers tried to calm Beal, but his body language and eye movements showed he was becoming increasingly agitated. He occasionally exploded with profanity then switched over to talking nicely with DuMond, who was filling the role of law enforcement officer, medical ombudsman, mental health counselor, family counselor, friend and social worker. They talked through all of Beal’s many problems and delusions, such as people in video games being real and actually being killed. DuMond was the go-between for Beal and his physician. The other officers helped when DuMond had to leave to talk to hospital personnel. He was trying to get a formal commitment order so Beal could be detained. That formal order never came, though hospital staff said Beal should be committed. Reportedly one doctor told police, “He’s going to kill someone.” But the officers never received the legal go-ahead required before they could formally detain Mr. Beal for his protection, and the protection of everyone nearby.

Beal invited officers to fight–“to roll.” He talked of when it would be acceptable to kill someone. He cursed an officer for accepting a bottle of water from a nurse. He would not drink water unless one of the nurses shouted to him that she consented. He said “I’m here for the women,” and didn’t like it that the female nurses were attending to other patients.

Beal slowly worked his way into the hallway where the officers had been standing for nearly two hours. His thoughts turned dark. He spoke of serving Satan and how evil had a purpose and mocked deputies for worshipping “something dead.”

Officer DuMond communicated to Sgt. Stevenson his increasing concern. He hoped to get Beal seated again, perhaps laying back on a bed so he could be more easily restrained when they could make that move. Suddenly Beal pushed into the nurses working area. “Buddy, where are you going?” DuMond asked and all hell broke loose. “No, no, no!” DuMond shouted. And though they knew Beal’s power and his ability to kill any one of them with his bare hands, none of the officers now hesitated.

Beal grabbed a male nurse and swung to strike a blow, but thankfully did not connect as DuMond grabbed him. The next punch was for DuMond and it landed solidly on his face, snapping his head and upper body back violently. DuMond crumpled to his knees and may have lost consciousness (he had to watch video later to remember what happened after the blow to his head). Even then he held onto Beal as other officers brought Beal to the floor. Beal landed hard and the back of his head was cut. But nothing seemed to dampen his fury. Beal tried to break DuMond’s fingers then grabbed his face with his huge hand, while struggling to gouge out DuMond’s eyes. DuMond’s eyeglasses were broken but saved his eyes. Blood poured from his nose, mouth and open wounds all over his face.  He wiped his blood on Sgt. Stevenson’s uniform so he could see as officers wrestled with Beal. Beal got his thumb and fingers inside DuMond’s mouth and was pulling at his cheek. DuMond’s blood must have been running down Beal’s arm.

Two officers, very large men, had Beal’s left arm as he was on his back. He lifted them both off the ground with that one arm. PT police officer Trevor Hansen, another large man, had a leg but Beal was able to buck him. In the audio Beal is screaming, “I’m killing you motherfuckers. I’m killing you.” Except for heavy breathing the officers are silent as it took all their energy to hang on. A nurse managed to inject something–probably ketamine, a powerful horse tranquilizer–into his left thigh. (The exact medication is redacted in the records obtained by Port Townsend Free Press). Whatever it was it had no discernible effect. (In prior incidents, dosages well above normal had been necessary to chemically restrain Beal). Beal continued to fight as DuMond bled on him and other officers, but hung on. The nurse gave him another shot, this time in his shoulder. Finally Beal quieted and the officers rolled away exhausted.

It must be said here that law enforcement has compassion for Beal, despite the injuries he has inflicted on them. Whatever mental health condition he has, that is what is responsible for his behavior. He does not act out of malice when he is in his right mind. During his two hours of talking with DuMond he spoke of his respect for law enforcement and how he did not wish to see them hurt. Even after taking blows and nearly losing his eyes, DuMond continues to speak with compassion for Beal and his hopes that he gets the treatment and care he needs.

Jefferson Healthcare failed Beal and the officers that night. They dumped a huge problem on six men in uniform. They did not promptly give officers the legal authorization they needed to act more decisively, before the situation exploded. The medication given Beal in pill form was insufficient. He paid the price, and so did DuMond.

End of Service for Officer Mark DuMond

As he held onto Beal, a nurse wiped blood from his eyes and nose. After the fight DuMond had to spit repeatedly into a waste basket to clear the blood from his throat so he could breathe. He said he was okay, though officers could see he was badly injured. He had sustained lacerations over his forehead, jaw and cheeks. His entire face began to swell immediately. DuMond had difficulty with his balance when he tried to stand up. He complained of dizziness and blurred vision, but he somehow assisted in lifting Beal onto a gurney. Then his mind starting failing him. He realized later he may have been blacking out at times after the blow to his head. He soon suffered problems with verbal communication. He was in pain. He was admitted to the emergency room for evaluation and treatment of his injuries.

The ER doctor opined he may have a broken nose. No MRI was done. He was sent home with no further treatment. WSP Trooper J.T. Hodgson drove him. DuMond was incapable of driving himself.

DuMond continued to have problems with communication and cognition. He was dizzy and had headaches. His personal physician told him he had likely suffered a concussion and neck and back injuries, along with the facial lacerations that would leave him with permanent scars. He was not able to return to work in any capacity until April 5. His closed head injuries continued to plague him and adversely impacted his memory and cognitive abilities.

DuMond was never able to return to full active patrol duties and was eventually sent home after struggling for a few weeks. He remained on disabled status until his last day as a Port Townsend police officer on September 11, 2020.

DuMond had always dreamed of being a police officer. He served with the Marines and later in life he and his wife, Kris, bought Autoworks and turned it into one of Port Townsend’s most successful businesses. At age 47 he told Kris that it was now or never if he was going to realize his dream. He turned 48 in the Police Academy, decades older than the men and women in his class. The physical demands were especially challenging for a middle-aged man. But once a Marine….

In August 2015 he became a Port Townsend Police Officer.

He was the department’s liaison with our town’s transients and knew many of them on a first name basis. He was at the scene when a vehicle hit a bicyclist on 19th Street. Life-saving efforts failed that time. But he saved other lives and was awarded two life-saving recognitions by PTPD.

Mark DuMond was also an author. He had self-published one novel and had hopes about doing more writing in his retirement. The head injuries he suffered may make that a difficult dream to achieve. I’m not counting him out. He has a regular column here if he ever wants it.

Lessons for Port Townsend City Council

Reducing our police force any more will get people hurt and killed. Already officers patrol the city alone. That is extremely dangerous for them and the community. It makes it more likely they will have to use the weapons at their waist to defend themselves and others. A single officer could never have handled Mr. Beal. If four officers from other agencies had not been available to join the two from PTPD, Officer Dumond would likely not have been the only officer whose career came to an early end. (JCSO Deputy Brian Peterson was also injured but recovered. This article initially incorrectly identified WSP Trooper Hodgson as the other injured officer.).

A social worker cannot deal with these situations. A social worker would have been quickly killed. PTPD recognizes the limitations of its social worker–the navigator–who frequently requests police presence when he contacts individuals in homeless camps or those who may pose a danger to him or others.

The circumstances of every “mental health incident” need to be examined. They are not just nervous breakdowns or anxiety attacks. It is frequently individuals with a mental health issue who are responsible for some of the most horrific and senseless acts of violence. The focus must first be on the primary obligation of government: protection of the public’s safety and well-being, and that of first responders. If first responders are not safe, no one is.

The solution is not to reduce public safety resources by replacing trained officers with social workers with a badge.  The solution is to supplement our law enforcement agencies with resources to keep these events from happening. Sheriff Joe Nole has it right on this point. He has resisted the quiet, behind-the-scenes talk of filling an open deputy position with a social worker. Instead, he is seeking a grant to hire JCSO’s own navigator. Most of law enforcement’s interactions with the public are with the same troubled individuals, over and over. Whether it is mental health or addiction, they consume law enforcement time and resources. Nole hopes that a navigator can work with these individuals to avoid repeat encounters. That is realistic. The notion that a social worker can handle these people when they’ve crossed their personal double-yellow line is beyond foolish.

De-escalation models have their place, but first responders must have wide discretion to decide when to use them, or when use of force is necessary.  Decisionmakers must address the fact that de-escalation models may likely result in more frequent and greater physical injury to first responders. That is because they must often use their bodies in place of other tools to control a situation.

Decisionmakers should also not do anything to make first responders hesitate when they must act quickly and decisively to prevent injury and loss of life. Worry about being run through a gauntlet of investigation, second-guessing. litigation, and public excoriation when they use force to save life can make an officer pause, or decide it is not worth the risk to him or her to act. The threat of prosecution and jail time for making a wrong split-second decision–or just the risk that their actions will be unfairly judged–would freeze anyone in their tracks.  Yet officers continue to step up whenever they are called upon to act.

Every member of City Council should do two things before their next meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee on Law Enforcement and Public Safety. They need to get out of their ivory tower and into a patrol car to learn the job of the police, and what is out there on our streets and in our dark woods. One or two have done this, but that is all. The remainder continue to cling to their ignorance as though that is a more comfortable place from which to make difficult decisions. And they need to do these rides more than once. My first ride with a PT officer was an almost comical night, the sort of caricature you get in the selectively reported police and sheriff’s logs The Leader chooses to publish. You know, the angry man shouting at racoons in the woods scenarios. On my second ride, I saw an officer assaulted and threatened with harm to his family, and a man in Kah Tai Park who was almost dead until Officer DuMond brought him around.

Every member of City Council should review the file on this incident and study the body cam recordings. The images are artificially blurred because events transpired inside a health care facility. But one can sense the size of Mr. Beal and feel the ferocity of his violence when it erupted. And one can hear the extreme professionalism of every officer, especially lead officer Mark DuMond. And with that will come an appreciation of what Port Townsend lost when it lost the services of a remarkable public servant.

Epilogue

Mr. Beal served about four months in jail on a sentencing deal recommended by the Jefferson County Prosecutor. He is back in the community.

The Port Townsend Police Department held a ceremony to recognize Officer DuMond’s contributions and sacrifice. He received the first purple heart medal awarded by the Department in decades. The City Council did nothing to recognize his service. The next meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee on Law Enforcement and Public Safety is set for December 28, 2020.

[This article has been edited for accuracy.]