Andrei Constantin
Service Record
Seattle Washington Police Department
| Rank | Officer |
| Badge Number | 8379[1] |
| Dates of Service | April 26, 2016[2] - September 18, 2022.[1] |
| Salary | $200,401 (2019)[3] |
| Last Known Status | Terminated[1] |
Incident Reports
2017 Vehicle Stop
In 2017, Constantin stopped a vehicle that was similar to a stolen car in the area. Constantin removed the passenger from the vehicle at gunpoint, and handcuffed him.[4]
Response Timeline
A complaint was filed, alleging that Constantin had abused his discretion. The Seattle Office of Police Accountability (OPA) also alleged that the stop was unlawful as the vehicle's license plate and color did not match the stolen car, and that Constantin had no justification to handcuff and demand identification from the passenger.[4]
On September 19, 2017, the OPA released the results of their investigation and found that Constanin did not have reasonable suspicion to stop the vehicle. As such, removing and handcuffing the passenger was not legally justified. It was recommended that Constantin receive additional training on high-risk vehicle stops. The investigation determined that Constantin had not required the passenger to identify themselves, but had only requested it. The investigation concluded that Constanin had violated department policy by not exercising his discretion in a reasonable manner. Constanin received a written reprimand.[4]
2018 Investigation for Excessive Force and Failure to De-Escalate
In September 2018, Constantin and other officers attempted to arrest a man on a felony warrant. The man fled, and eventually surrendered. After being handcuffed, the man was non-compliant and was carried to the patrol car.[5]
Response Timeline
The incident was reviewed for a possible failure to de-escalate before the use of force.[5]
On September 15, 2018, the OPA released the results of their investigation and found that the officers did not use excessive force or violate the de-escalation policy.[6][5]
2018 Threat of Force
In 2018, Constantin threated to tase a subject in order to de-escalate the encounter. If Constantin had tased the subject, it would have been excessive force under the circumstances.[7]
Response Timeline
On January 17, 2019, the OPA released the results of their investigation and found that the department's policies allowed threats of force as a de-escalation tool. As such, Constantin's actions were allowed under policy.[7]
The investigator recommended that the policy be clarified that threats - especially those that would be excessive in the circumstance - should not be used as a de-escalation tactic.[7]
On September 11, 2019, the policy was changed to exclude "warnings given as a threat of force".[8]
2019 Racial Bias Accusation
On March 26, 2019, Constantin and another officer responded to a disturbance between a man and other people at a bar.[9]
The officers arrested the man for harassment.[9]
The incident was captured on an officer's body-worn camera.[9]
Response Timeline
The man filed a complaint, claiming that the arrest was based on his race.[9]
The OPA investigated and found the arrest to be lawful and proper.[9]
2019 Policy Violation Accusation
On September 3, 2019, the owner of an RV was interviewed by local media, during which he commented on the city's treatment of RV owners.[10]
On September 4, 2019, Constantin and another officer were enforcing parking violations. The officers found an RV belonging to the earlier owner to be illegally parked and unregistered, and that the driver was unlicensed and uninsured. Officers arrested the man and impounded his RV.[[10]
Response Timeline
The man filed a complaint that the officers had taken retaliatory law enforcement action against him.[10]
The OPA investigated and found that the officers had identified the violations before they learned that the driver had previously spoken to the media, and ruled the accusation of retaliation to be unfounded.[10]
2020 Policy Violations
In 2020, Constantin and another officer were called on a trespassing incident. They met with the trespasser twice. During the second interaction, the officers claimed that the trespasser threated them and one of their families.[11]
The first interaction was captured on officers' body-worn cameras, after which the officers deactivated their cameras. The initial part of the second interaction was not recorded.[11]
Response Timeline
2020-2021 Social Media Posts
From May 29, 2020 to October 6, 2021, Constantin posted anonymously on social media regarding protests, protesters, and police interactions.[1]
On October 8, 2021, another social media user brought the posts to the attention of the department.[1][12]
Response Timeline
Constantin admitted to making the posts, claiming that it was a release after being affected by riots in 2020.[1]
The department conducted an internal investigation.
On September 18, 2022, the investigation determined that Constantin had violated department polices regarding the use of social media, standards and duties, and bias-free policing. The posts were said to have caused "great harm to the Department's relationship with the community".[1]
On September 23, 2022, Constantin was fired for violating department policies.[13]
2021 Policy Violations
In approximately January 2021, Constantin attempted to speak with two people about their vehicle's registration. The people got into the car and started to drive away when Constantin broke one of the car's windows. Constantin documented the incident, but did not include that he broke the window.[14]
In April 2021, another officer reported that Constantin had broken the window during the stop.[14]
The incident was captured on Constantin's body-worn camera and an in-vehicle camera.[14]
Response Timeline
During an investigation, Constantin admitted that breaking the window was "an error on his part" and that he should have included the action in his report.[14]
Constantin was suspended for eight days without pay for violating departmental policies and was referred for additional training.[14][13]
LEO Ratings
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Final Discipline-Andrei Constantin-OPA 21-0458, Seattle Police Department, 2022-09-22
- ↑ Officer Detail: Andrei Constantin, OpenOversight
- ↑ Constantin Andrei, Pol Ofcr-Bwv, City of Seattle, govSalaries
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Closed Case Summary, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2017-09-19
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Close Case Summary, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2018-09-15
- ↑ Closed Case Summary, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2018-09-15
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Management Action Recommendation, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2019-01-17
- ↑ Management Action Recommendation response, Seattle Police Department, 2019-09-11
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 Closed Case Summary, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2019-11-22
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Closed Case Summary, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2020-02-25
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Closed Case Summary, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2020-12-16
- ↑ Twitter postings, Centre for Antifascist Research, Probably (CARP), 2021-10-08
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Theresa Robinson, [Seattle police officer fired over ‘derogatory and entirely unacceptable’ social media posts], KIRO, 2022-10-04
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 Closed Case Summary, Seattle Office of Police Accountability, 2022-03-28
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