A letter to the citizens of Orting, Washington regarding 2021 Police Reform Laws.

Over the course of the last few years, important conversations about Police Reform have been pushed to the forefront and have become common place in homes and workplaces throughout the United States. As law enforcement professionals, we encourage discussions that focus on re-evaluating policy or practices that don’t appear to be working or that only benefit certain groups of people within the community. When change is made however, it must be carefully considered as every change can adversely impact public safety. Despite attempts to educate those tasked with making statutory changes in Olympia, pleas from law enforcement executives throughout Washington state, to include the police chief here in Orting, were disregarded.

In 2021 the majority in the Washington State Legislature passed several bills relating to law enforcement services, which prompted numerous conversations throughout the Washington state. Most of these police reform bills, which have now become law, went into effect on, July 25, 2021. Over the course of the last few months, the Orting Police Department has been preparing for the laws to take effect as many are going to cause significant changes to law enforcement response practices.

While there are many changes taking place among the various house bills passed, the most impactful changes will occur under the authority of bills 1310 – Police Use of Force, and 1054 - Police Tactics. We would like to provide a brief explanation of each bill and how it ultimately may affect the services we provide.

House Bill 1310 – Use of Force. This new law now requires police to establish “probable cause” instead of “reasonable suspicion” before using a reasonable amount of force, to detain or “stop” persons who are fleeing the scene of a crime, violent or otherwise. Stopping someone for investigatory purposes under the “reasonable suspicion” clause has been the legal standard used throughout the country for the last sixty years. Prior to this new legal standard, police had the authority to stop and investigate a suspected bank robber who was seen driving off in a uniquely described vehicle. Because House Bill 1310 changes the requirement to detain a fleeing criminal from “reasonable suspicion” to “probable cause,” officers are no longer authorized to use a reasonable amount of force necessary to prevent that uniquely described suspect from escaping.

House Bill 1310 also strips law enforcement of the ability to use a reasonable amount of physical force necessary to detain a purpose in crisis, Starting July 25th, 2021, officers are no longer permitted to use reasonable and necessary force to take crisis-involved persons into protective custody, or those who have voiced a desire to harm themselves. In addition, the new laws directs law enforcement to disengage altogether from these scenarios, despite pleas from friends or family members who call the police for help.

House bill 1054, the “Police Tactics” similarly increases the threshold from “reasonable suspicion” to requiring “Probable Cause” in order to pursue persons fleeing the scene of a crime in a vehicle. “Probable Cause” is an extremely difficult standard to meet when law enforcement has only been provided a description of the persons and vehicle involved as is common in almost all reports of crime to 911 dispatchers. Even if the caller describes the suspect and the fleeing vehicle in intricate detail such as “the person with gun got into a pink color tow truck shaped like a human toe” officers will no longer have the legal authority to chase that vehicle if it flees without first establishing probable cause.

There are changes contained in the bills that we welcome and support such as; increased police accountability, de-certification oversight, and being more transparent regarding reporting use of force incidents and officer accountability.

Most of these reform bills, however, are poorly thought out and problematic for community and officer safety We believe the two we have explained here illustrate why so many law enforcement leaders across the state are addressing their local communities with concern. Despite voicing this concern to legislators after working closely with legal experts, elected officials, and other area Police Chiefs, efforts to mitigate some of the negative impacts have been unsuccessful. We hope the legislature will closely monitor the voices of crime victims, community members, and law enforcement professionals throughout the state and are prepared to act appropriately to fix the problems that police have already encountered. Until then, we will continue to press onward, prepare for these changes by training Officers and staff members, and provide the best possible service to the community within the bounds of our legal ability.

Respectfully,

Chief Chris Gard, Orting Police Department