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Local resident urges independent probe of Ephrata police after prolonged personal legal battle
Summary
Megan Diamond told the Ephrata City Council she endured repeated arrests, alleged department policy violations and long court delays tied to her divorce and asked the council to order an independent investigation into the Ephrata Police Department.
Megan Diamond, an Ephrata resident, addressed the Ephrata City Council during the public-comment period and asked the council to order an independent investigation into alleged misconduct by the Ephrata Police Department.
Diamond described a multi-year series of interactions with law enforcement and the courts that she said began after a violent crime in 2018. She told council members she was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, lost her home and her job, and that officers “assisted in SWAT teaming my house multiple times, once kicking in my door and taking our son at gunpoint in full view of my elderly mother and our neighbors.” She said she was arrested twice in her front yard by the same sergeant and officer and that, under oath, her ex-husband testified he had the arrests arranged to gain an advantage in a custody case.
Diamond said she experienced long court delays and that one incident in 2021 — when she says she left the house during a panic attack — led to 10 days in jail under COVID restrictions and the use of solitary confinement. She said it took 14 months for one of her cases to be dismissed and that, before related appeals and dismissals, the city and county had already expended “over half a million dollars” related to her situation.
Diamond also told the council one of the chief deputies involved sits on the county council and that she repeatedly sought court accommodations for her mental-health needs, saying, “The Americans with Disabilities Act requires an interactive response when a disabled person seeks accommodation,” and that she applied for accommodations in court 13 times over 18 months. She asked the council for “a real response, not silence, not excuses, a real commitment to investigating and correcting these wrongs because if this council refuses to act, you’re complicit in the abuse.”
Council members acknowledged Diamond’s statement at the meeting; the transcript records no formal motion, council direction, or city-initiated investigation in response during the public portion of the meeting. Diamond’s remarks and requests were entered into the public record during the meeting.
The council moved on to regular agenda items following public comment; an executive session was announced at the meeting’s close to discuss legal matters.
