Reforms handcuffing police could be unlocked by legislature in 2022

(The Center Square) – It’s been nearly six months since Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee signed a dozen police reform bills into law. Lawmakers may revisit the issue in the 2022 to fix problems caused by the new laws.

The reforms – passed in the wake of the high-profile killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor – cover everything from background checks to use-of-force rules to data collection to the establishment of an entirely new state agency to review police use of deadly force.

The laws causing the most concern include House Bill 1310, which seeks to reduce violent interactions with mentally ill people, and House Bill 1054, which limits the use of tear gas, bans the use of chokeholds and neck restraints, and restricts vehicle pursuits to police officers having probable cause.

The real-world effect of these laws has not always been pretty.

Earlier this month, Puyallup police were unable to pursue a driver who rammed into two unoccupied police cars at an apartment complex.

“The crime did not rise to what is allowed to pursue under state law,” the department said in a Twitter post.

On July 29, Pierce County deputies declined to use a police dog to track a possible suspect in the shooting death of man outside a Kohl’s department store in Puyallup because probable cause had not been developed for a specific individual.

A Kent man died on July 25 – the same day the new laws went into effect – from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, eight hours after Kent police did not respond to a 9-1-1 call from a woman claiming her boyfriend wrote a suicide note and was threatening to kill himself.

In body camera footage obtained by KING-5, officers can be seen and heard on-scene lamenting their inability to help the man based on the new police reform laws.

“Shame they put new laws in place…could have helped him,” one officer said.

“Well, thanks legislators,” said another.

A Kent Police Department policy that took effect that same day directed officers not to respond to such a call.

Kent Police Chief Rafael Padilla said House Bill 1310 forced him to craft the policy.

“It says if you mess up, here are all the things that are going to happen to you,” he explained to KING-5. “You could lose your career. You can be prosecuted. You could be decertified.”

Even as the plethora of the police reform bills enacted by the legislature and signed by the governor took effect, at least one lawmaker recognized the possibility that some legislative adjustments may be necessary.

“We have to create new policies, because what we were doing before was not working,” Rep. Jesse Johnson, who sponsored bills on police tactics and use of force, told the Associated Press shortly after the laws went into effect. “What we wanted to do with these bills is set an expectation that officers de-escalate and that there’s less lethal enforcement of the law. A lot of pushback we’re getting is because it’s a paradigm shift.”

More recently, Johnson focused on the prospect of fixing some problems caused by the legislation in an August interview with Washington State Wire.

“I do think that we plan to provide legislative clarification in reference to the Involuntary Treatment Act and Protective Custody Act so that people know that they’re not going to be held liable for transporting or detaining someone that’s in a mental health crisis or protective custody situation,” he said. “A lot of this comes back to concerns over liability, and officers a department saying, ‘We don’t want to be held liable. So we’re just not going to do it at all.’ And of course that’s not an option.”

He went on to tell Washington State Wire, “The main thing for me is to tie any loose ends on this legislation. I’ll be introducing a legislative bill or clarification that makes sure that officers know they can use all less lethal alternatives, including less lethal military weapons that are used for bean bag rounds. We did ban militarized weapons, but obviously, our legislative intent was not to ban anything that’s less lethal. So we’re gonna be doing a clarification around that.”

House Bill 1054 also bans police from using military equipment, defined in part as firearms and ammunition of .50 caliber or greater. The resulted in the ban of shotguns that fire beanbag and foam-tipped rounds, less-lethal tools that are sometimes used in hostage situations, during riots, and occasionally to subdue mentally ill suspects who pose a threat to police and the public.

All of these changes come at a time when crime is on the rise in the state.

A report by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) shows murder, manslaughter, fraud, and property crime rates in Washington state increasing in 2020.

There were 302 murders in 2020 compared to 206 murders in 2019, which is an increase of 46.6%, according to the report. Manslaughter was up 100%, with 34 incidents in 2020 compared to 17 in 2019.

Fraud saw the biggest increase, with 59,134 fraud offenses in 2020 compared to 25,562 offenses reported in 2019, an increase of 113%. The WASPC attributed part of the increase on fraudulent unemployment claims filed during the pandemic.

Property crimes – which represent nearly three-quarters of all crime reported – increased by 13.85% in the state.

Dan Auderer, a Seattle police officer and board member of the Public Safety Alliance of Washington (PSAW), speaking as a board member, criticized the “slipshod way” the reforms were drawn up, which “caused confusion.”

He characterized the police reform laws as “overstepping by our state legislators” that “removed local control.”

Auderer said he does not expect any major changes from the legislature next year to the current police reform laws.

The Washington State Patrol has taken a somewhat more sanguine approach.

“The WSP is committed to continue working with the legislative body on police reform legislation,” spokesman Capt. Neil Weaver said. “We do not have any agency request legislation being proposed this short session regarding police reform. We are, however, extremely interested in the ‘fine-tuning’ of police reform legislation – passed last session – that we are hearing might be considered, and are looking forward to being able to provide input and feedback on legislative proposals.”

He said the agency already has a policy against chokeholds and neck restraints, “so this was not a move away from what was already a practice for us.”

Weaver noted the WSP has no concerns over the “no-knock” warrant legislation.

He spoke favorably of laws emphasizing de-escalation.

“WSP requires de-escalation, and our commissioned staff are trained to in de-escalation techniques,” Weaver said. “We are very supportive of utilizing de-escalation tactics as it makes it safer for both the public and for our officers.”

Police pursuit criteria is another matter.

“The pursuit legislation did put specific restrictions on when law enforcement can/cannot pursue, and we recognize the difficulty the legislators had drafting it,” Weaver said. “It is a big adjustment for us with this particular legislation, and we will remain committed to working with the policymakers on ensuring our agency is able to best complete its mission and keep the motoring public safe.”

The Washington State Legislature’s 60-day 2022 legislative session starts on January 10.

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