Tim Burgess' City View

A New Philosophy of Policing for Seattle

My tenure as chair of the Council's public safety committee will end this afternoon when the Council reorganizes, something we do every two years. 

I've learned a lot over the last four years.  We've accomplished a lot, too.  But one important area where I don't believe we've made as much progress as we should have is in reforming the culture of our Police Department.  I've written about this before here and here.  We also have not effectively wrestled with and abated the persistent and extremely corrosive street crime and disorder that plagues some of our neighborhood business districts. 

As a summation of my work on the public safety committee, I've compiled my thoughts on these two major challenges in a policy essay.  My hope is this paper will spark needed discussions among and between policymakers, law enforcement officers and concerned citizens about the best way we can work together to make our city safer. Please take some time to read it and let me know how you react to these ideas.

Justice Department Findings on Seattle Police

The Department of Justice findings confirm what many, including myself, have believed for some time—our police department can do better.

Chief Diaz, the police command staff, every officer and civilian employee of the Seattle Police Department and the elected leaders of our city should embrace this informed, constructive criticism and work quickly to implement fundamental and sustainable reforms. Rebuilding the public’s trust and confidence in the Police Department is an essential and urgent obligation.

I have great respect and admiration for the good work the officers and civilian employees of the Police Department do every day. The vast majority of our officers do their jobs in a fair and professional manner that meets the high expectations we set.  More on this below.

At the same time, today’s findings raise concerns about management and oversight inside the Police Department, from the command staff down to first-line supervisors. Over the past 20 years or so, we have gone through repeated evaluations of police accountability. Multiple changes to procedures and rules have been implemented. Civilian oversight of the department has been strengthened. Yet, every few years, the same issues resurface. That’s why I believe so strongly that fundamental and sustainable change must be introduced that will change the culture of the Police Department. The Department of Justice findings can serve as a catalyst for transformation. I expect Chief Diaz and his leadership team will work diligently for this type of sustainable change.

Earlier this week, my office and the Mayor’s staff began discussions about completing an independent management, organization and operations assessment of the Police Department. In a time of continued and significant fiscal challenges, such an assessment would provide the Mayor and Council with objective and expert recommendations that would allow us to reduce costs without harming critical public safety services. This assessment will also provide insight and recommendations that would help us respond to the Justice Department’s findings and introduce the sustainable reforms we need to see in the Police Department.

A final comment about those who serve our city as police officers from a blog post from early last February . . .

The police department is staffed with many good people who do their jobs extremely well. I hope we soon begin to hear the proud voices of wisdom and professionalism inside the department.  These are the voices Seattle needs to hear.  These voices belong to the hundreds of officers, detectives and civilians who do it right every hour of their workday, week after week, month after month, year after year.  When these voices are loosed, cultural change will happen very quickly indeed.

Wanted: Police Accountability Review Board Members

The Seattle City Council seeks candidates for appointment to three positions on the seven-member Office of Professional Accountability (OPA) Review Board. Working in concert with the civilian OPA Director and the civilian OPA Auditor, the Review Board plays an important role in Seattle’s police accountability system through its assessment of policies and practices and recommendations for their improvement.

SPD Accountability Facts

The Council's Public Safety and Education Committee heard testimony on Wednesday morning from representatives of the Police Department's Office of Professional Accountability (OPA).  Two significant written reports were presented to the Committee and they are worthy of review because they shed a bright light on exactly what happens when complaints of police misconduct are investigated. You can watch the Committee briefing here.

The first report presented to the Committee was the 2010 Statistics Report from the OPA. At the Committee's request, the annual statistics report was modified to make it easier to read and to place the statistics into a more consumable format that allows for identification of trends.  The report highlights include:

• The total number of complaints received increased to 585 in 2010 from 516 in 2009, an increase of 13%. "Use of force" complaints, a subset of the total complaints received, increased by 30%. (Police officers in Seattle arrest over 20,000 inividuals a year; there are hundreds of thousands of total documented officer-citizen interactions a year.)
• The most frequent complaint received by the OPA involves rudeness, lack of courtesy and officer attitudes.
• 65% of all complaints in 2010 were filed against patrol officers, the police department's first responders to most incidents.  The remaining complaints were filed against other ranks or civilian employees. Patrol officers make up 89% of the police department's total employees.
• 82.5% of police officers received no complaints in 2010; 14% received one complaint; 2.7% received two complaints (36 officers); less than 1% received three or more complaints.
• Officers working the West Precinct (downtown, Chinatown/ID, Pioneer Square, Queen Anne and Magnolia) received the highest number of complaints (110), followed by the North Precinct (66). The Southwest Precinct (West Seattle) had the lowest number of complaints.

Some members of the community believe that use of force complaints are underreported because citizens are leery of complaining or don't trust the OPA to properly investigate such complaints.  Kathryn Olson, the civilian director of the OPA, told the Committee yesterday that the police department will retain outside researchers to conduct a review of the use of force by police officers to determine whether officers are properly documenting use of force and whether citizens are failing to complain when they believe improper force was used. (The police department contends that Seattle officers use force far less frequently than the national average.)

The second report was the semi-annual report of the OPA civilian auditor, Anne Levinson. Judge Levinson's report is a narrative of her work from December 2010 through May 2011.  The civilian auditor reviews every complaint received by the OPA to make certain it is classified correctly.  She also reviews every complaint investigation to determine if the case file is complete, the investigation thorough, and whether she agrees with the conclusion. The auditor has the authority to direct further investigation, if necessary.  Judge Levinson gives the OPA high marks for the quality of investigations and how complainants and officers are treated during the investigations process.  She is critical of the police department for not implementing changes to training and other policy changes more quickly.  She also observes that the use of patrol car video technology is inconsistent and she reveals that some officers, including supervisors, have not received video technology training. 

Judge Levinson points out that the police department faces a potential expertise continuity problem because of the large number of retirement-qualified officers and the fact that Mayor McGinn stopped all police hiring in 2010.  She argues that recruit quality suffers when hiring quantities swing wildly from year to year.  The Council will address this issue during our fall budget deliberations. 

Seattle's three-prong system of civilian oversight is unique in the United States.  It involves a civilian director of the OPA, a civilian auditor with extensive authority, and a seven-member civilian review board.

Police Discipline for Westlake Incident

Police Chief John Diaz announced his disciplinary decision related to the Westlake incident and Detective Shandy Cobane earlier this afternoon. Chief Diaz suspended the detective for 30 days which is the maximum discipline he can impose short of termination. 

We set a very high bar for the conduct and professionalism of our officers. The actions of Detective Cobane during the incident in question did not meet that standard of conduct.

There must be consequences when standards are not met and the Chief’s decision to suspend the detective for 30 days is appropriate. I am particularly encouraged that the department and Detective Cobane will take additional steps toward restorative justice.

Detective Cobane has a long and good record of service in our city. He has publicly acknowledged his mistake. He has agreed to work in the community and learn the power of respectful collaboration. He can now move forward from this incident and play an important role in educating his peers. The entire department can and must use this opportunity to repair and rebuild its relationships with the community.

My earlier comments on police accountability can be read here. 

Protecting the Most Vulnerable Among Us

Thursday at 10:30 a.m. in the Council chambers, my committee will consider two very important issues, both directly impacting the most vulnerable people in our city.

Over a year ago, my office began receiving complaints about a practice called "wage theft," a predatory employment practice where unscrupulous employers either withhold paychecks or short pay employees.  The employees taken advantage of are usually poor, often don't speak much English, and sometimes are immigrants or refugees who are trying to reestablish themselves and their families.  Current legal protections for these workers are weak.  Civil remedies can drag on for months.  The employees are left to fend for themselves.

We will continue our discussion of this problem on Thursday, including our first review of changes I will be suggesting to our City's criminal laws that would explicitly make wage theft a gross misdemeanor crime.  You can watch our previous committee discussion of this issue here, including testimony from a victim of wage theft.

Also on Thursday, we will hear a presentation from the City Auditor's office about their review of geographic-concentrated crime and street disorder, including possible solutions based on what other cities have successfully done.  As we continue to struggle with City finances—we may face pretty steep cutbacks this summer—we must consider alternative police deployment strategies and other innovations that will maintain public safety with less resources.  This is a reality we can't avoid and it's going to take some critical and innovative thinking. (Highlights from the Auditor's report follow the jump.)

Supporting Our Police Officers by Strengthening Public Trust and Confidence

We've had quite a season of controversy in our good city related to police incidents, including events captured on videotape that have shocked many of us.  The most serious was the unfortunate death of John T. Williams, shot and killed on a downtown street by one of our Seattle police officers. 

The accumulation of these incidents has damaged the public's trust and confidence in our officers and in the police department and maintaining public trust in the police is very important.  Keeping our neighborhoods safe for everyone is city's government number one priority.  This task is made more difficult when there is a lack of trust between citizens and the police officers employed to do the job.  I've written previously about my perspective on all this here and here.

I believe the Council needs to be more proactive on this issue. Our police officers deserve it and the people of Seattle demand it.  The longer we wait to seek specific and effective solutions, the greater the damage to police-community relationships.  So, today, the members of the Council's Public Safety and Education Committee sent a letter to Mayor McGinn, Chief Diaz, and the leaders of the two unions representing our police officers laying out 11 specific policy initiatives we believe will strengthen public trust and confidence in our police officers.  These policy initiatives will help the Police Department in accomplishing its mission of preventing crime, reducing the fear of crime and building peace in our city. 

You can read the letter here.

Police Use of Deadly Force Finding

I want to acknowledge that the King County Prosecutor’s decision today leaves many people angry and disappointed. I’ve read the prosecutor’s decision and I understand his reasoning, but I fully appreciate that it won’t sit well with many in our city.

In determining criminal liability, Washington law gives great deference to the judgment of police officers in the use of deadly force. However, in contrast to state law, Seattle Police Department policies regarding the use of deadly force are more restrictive. Now that the prosecuting attorney has made a decision about criminal charges based on state law, the Chief of Police must determine if Officer Birk’s actions met the higher standard of Seattle’s policies. Chief Diaz should complete his review and let all of us know his decision as quickly as possible.

Based on the findings of the police department’s Firearms Review Board that the use of deadly force in this specific incident was not justified, I don’t believe Officer Birk should remain as a Seattle police officer.

Here is the King County Prosecuting Attorney's decision to decline prosecution: Download 2011 02 16 KCPAO Decision

Here is the SPD Firearms Review Board report: Download 2011 02 16 FRB 10-03

I've written on the culture of the police department here.

Personal Reflections on Seattle Police and Our City

Tonight at City Hall, I’m part of a discussion about police accountability with the Mayor, the Chief of Police, police union leadership and community representatives. C. R. Douglas of the Seattle Channel will moderate the discussion.  It’s free and open to the public.  Please join us if you can at 7 p.m. in the Bertha Knight Landes room on the main floor of City Hall, Fifth Avenue and James Street.

I served as a Seattle police officer and detective in the 1970s, admittedly a very long time ago. Policing has changed dramatically since my time on the street.  We didn't have portable radios in my first year as a patrol officer, DNA-based investigations were a figment of our imagination, and crime scene specialists were only seen on Hill Street Blues.

But, one thing I witnessed every day way back then was the dedication and commitment of police officers and detectives to serve our city with honor and distinction.  I still witness that today.  The women and men of the Seattle Police Department have half-a-million contacts with people every year; almost all of these encounters are handled professionally and we never hear a peep about them.

In fact, a recent report from the police department showed that in 2009 Seattle officers used force at a rate far below the national rate—0.12% compared to 0.88% of all police-public encounters.  Even when these encounters resulted in an arrest, Seattle officers used force to effect the arrest in only 2.4% of the incidents.

But despite the reality that most of our officers do exemplary work on our behalf, something is clearly wrong.  Recent incidents have tested public confidence in our police department, to say the least. Many wonder if there is a larger, more systemic or cultural problem in the police department. It is this concern that I want to address here.

Civilian Oversight of Police

I shared these remarks at the opening session of the annual conference of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement yesterday morning at the Fairmont Hotel in Seattle.  Approximately 230 delegates from around the United States and overseas are participating in the conference.

My colleagues on the City Council and I welcome you to Seattle.  We are delighted you chose our great city . . . the home of the WNBA champion Seattle Storm.

Over the next several days you will discuss, debate, and learn about the best ways and means to provide civilian oversight of police practices and behavior.

All of us know from our own experience, that this is an important topic because . . .