Federal Mediator Headed to Pasco Over Zambrano-Montes Shooting

This process will be confidential, and carry no law enforcement or criminal charging authority.

The U.S. Department of Justice's Community Relations Service will send officials to Pasco next week to mediate talks between the City and various community groups over the February shooting of Antonio Zambrano-Montes. This group coming is based out of Seattle.

According to U.S. Justice officials, the Community Relations Service conducted similar talks in Ferguson, Missouri and in Florida during the Trayvon Martin incident.

The mediator will oversee the discussions between the two sides.  Certain community groups claim the Pasco Police Department is "out of touch" with the Hispanic community, according to KING-5 TV.

According to the TV station:

"Pasco Police Chief Bob Metzger welcomes the federal mediation, which he said was offered to his department three weeks ago.

"Anything we can get will help us," said Metzger, "Obviously, I'm not going to sit here and tell you that everything we've done has been right. We don't know yet. We want to listen to what's going on."

One group claims Pasco does not have enough Hispanic officers for that large element of the population.

Zambrano-Montes was hit five or six times by bullets after Pasco officers used a tazer on him because he was throwing rocks into traffic near 10th an Lewis in Pasco. The tazer had no effect.  The case continues to be investigated by the Kennewick-led Special Investigations Unit.