Why police accountability is critical to our nation's future

The Grand Rapids, Michigan, community is dealing with unimaginable pain and loss as another young man of color lost his life during a traffic stop. Patrick Lyoya's death at the hands of police in Michigan last week was tragic and avoidable, but what should we expect at this point? The Michigan State Police will now investigate the incident. Knowing what I know, and after watching all of the videos of what transpired, here is what we should expect.

They will evaluate the incident and determine that Patrick resisted arrest. They will acknowledge the officer may have made some mistakes but ultimately responded appropriately. He will state he was in fear for his life. No charges will be brought. The city will eventually settle with the family of Patrick Lyoya for wrongful death. Then we will wait for the next person to be killed by a member of law enforcement. Just as we did after Eric Garner, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Erik Salas-Sanchez, and on and on.

How can we expect change when we keep appointing police chiefs who are entrenched in this process? How can real reform happen when we elect sheriffs who come from that same fraternity? How can we expect a different outcome when we put people in charge who are supported by the very unions and politicians that benefit from keeping the status quo? The answer is we cannot.

Here's what I saw from evaluating the footage. Patrick did exit his car against lawful orders. Patrick did resist arrest. However, circumstances such as these should not automatically result in a dead body. This is a classic example where de-escalation policies and tactics could well have prevented this tragedy.

As soon as Patrick exited the car, the officer should have stepped back and called for backup. Aggressively approaching Patrick only escalated stress levels, putting Patrick on the defensive. When it was easily established there was a language barrier, this was, again, another chance to de-escalate and communicate with respect. None of that occurred.

Instead, the officer followed typical warrior cop procedure. They will say his actions were “by the book.” We need only look at the protests during the summer of 2020 to see that communities around the world think this by-the-book mentality just isn't good enough anymore.

We need real change and real reform, and we will not get that with current established leadership. We need to recruit better candidates and critical thinkers, and we need to get rid of warrior cops at all levels, from the captains all the way up to the chiefs. I have met far too many who are only in this for themselves. We need more thorough background checks and psychological evaluations for law enforcement recruits. We need higher quality and more thorough initial and ongoing training. The understanding of the diverse cultures within our country and their histories are necessary for all public servants. It is clear we can no longer rely on the status quo. If we continue to make the same choices that result in this warrior cop mentality, how can we ever expect to achieve a different outcome? As county sheriff, I will champion commonsense reforms that are necessary to keep everyone in our communities safe while also upholding the law. When we take our oath to protect and to serve the public, that means all of the public. We need leaders who value life, truth and honor — things that should be essential to anyone wearing a badge.