Not getting the media's Critical Mass frenzy were these two other stories from the same week:

A Jan. 29 Seattle Times article reports an incident in which one Jim McDonald, a man sitting in his car in the parking lot of a suburban Federal Way liquor store on Dec. 12, was suddenly confronted by two men: one shining a flashlight on him from the passenger side of the car, one on the driver's side wearing a ski mask, shining a flashlight and holding a gun in his right hand. The ski-masked man demanded identification, refused to identify himself, and forced McDonald out of the car.

Only much later did the ski-masked man identify himself as a Federal Way police officer; meanwhile, the store owner, who routinely videotapes his parking lot, thought he was witnessing a robbery and called police.

As it turns out, there was at least one previous incident of the same officer wearing a ski mask and detaining people leaving the same liquor store. Why did this run-in become a news story? Jim McDonald was also a cop--doing undercover surveillance for the State Liquor Board. And he was detained despite presenting his credentials, having his radio audibly set on a public safety frequency and being in a car with government plates. Federal Way police have not asked for the videotape or released the name of the officer involved, but they have issued an order barring officers from wearing ski masks on duty.

Story #2: local news that Saturday (Feb. 1) reported an afternoon shooting at Rainier and S. Henderson. The victim, Vendel Henderson, was approached by two persons; one of them invited him to fight, and one of the two then pulled a gun and shot him twice.

What was not reported: police claim they were on the scene in two minutes. But witnesses say the cops would not allow Medic One to help Vendel until 30 minutes to an hour (versions vary on the length of time) after they arrived. They said the reason for the delay was to cordon off the area and preserve evidence at the crime scene.

In the meantime, Vendel Henderson allegedly bled to death while medical attention was only a few feet away, prevented by SPD officers from helping. A bicyclist poking a cop in the chest is front page news. A black man bleeding to death under police supervision is just another day.