Confusion besets new police reform laws in Washington state
SEATTLE (AP) — Washington state is embarking on a massive experiment in police reform and accountability following the racial justice protests that erupted after George Floyd's murder last year, as nearly a dozen laws took effect Sunday.
But two months after Gov. Jay Inslee signed the bills, law enforcement officials remain uncertain about what they require, leading to discrepancies around the state in how officers might respond — or not respond — to certain situations, including active crime scenes, welfare checks and mental health crises.
"When you take the legislation and apply it, that's when you really learn how effective it's going to be," said Rafael Padilla, the police chief in Kent, a south Seattle suburb. "The challenge is — I'm going to be very frank — the laws were written very poorly, and the combination of them all at the same time has led to there being conflicts in clarity and in what was intended versus what was written."
The laws, passed by a Legislature controlled by Democrats and signed by a Democratic governor, constitute what is likely the nation's most ambitious police reform legislation. They cover virtually all aspects of policing, including the background checks officers undergo before they're hired; when they are authorized to use force and how they collect data about it; and the establishment of an entirely new state agency to review police use of deadly force.
Supporters said they would create the nation's strongest police accountability and help undo racial inequity in the justice system — "a mandate from the people to stop cops from violating our rights and killing people," said Sakara Remmu, of the Washington Black Lives Matter Alliance. According to the advocacy group Moms Demand Action, police have killed 260 people in Washington state since 2013. Disproportionately, they were Black — including Manuel Ellis, whose death in Tacoma last year led to murder or manslaughter charges against three officers and spurred some of the legislation.
Rep. Jesse Johnson, the firstterm Federal Way Democrat who sponsored bills on police tactics and use of force, acknowledged some clarifications are necessary — but said that's not uncommon in complex legislation.
"We have to create new policies, because what we were doing before was not working," Johnson said. "What we wanted to do with these bills is set an expectation that officers deescalate and that there's less lethal enforcement of the law. A lot of the pushback we're getting is because it's a paradigm shift."
The measures ban chokeholds, neck restraints and no-knock warrants, and limit the use of tear gas and military equipment. Inspired by the officers who stood by in Minneapolis as their colleague Derek Chauvin pressed a knee to Floyd's neck, they require officers to intervene when a colleague engages in excessive force and to report misconduct by other officers.
They restrict when officers can engage in car chases; make it easier to decertify police for bad acts; make it easier to sue individual officers; and require police to use "reasonable care" in carrying out their duties, including exhausting appropriate de-escalation tactics before using force.