Public Safety Issues at the State Legislature
Upcoming Issues for the 2023 Legislative Session
Our candidate questionnaire dug into public safety issues that will be raised in the upcoming 2023 legislative session. Find out more about these issues below!
2021-2022 Legislative Session Issues
Understanding the public safety-related work the State Legislature has done over the past two legislative sessions can inform us on what has been done and what still needs to happen.
Traffic Stops
Traffic stops are the primary way that people come into contact with police. These stops can be dangerous for those being stopped, especially if they are people of color. There have been significant racial disparities in traffic stops for low level offenses for decades.
In Washington state, officers stop Black drivers disproportionately. Black, Latino, Native American and Pacific Islander drivers were searched at a rate up to 5x higher than white motorists even though officers are more likely to find weapons and drugs while searching the cars of white drivers. Data from Seattle shows that Black and Latinx drivers were issued 2.6x and 1.7x more traffic infractions per capita than White drivers. Black and Indigenous people experience disproportionate rates of police violence, driver searches, and tickets, as well as more punitive fines and consequences.
Many jurisdictions, including Seattle as well as others across the country have restricted or banned traffic stops for low-level traffic violations. Research suggests that reducing the number of low-level arrests results in fewer officer shootings.
There is limited evidence that low-level traffic stops improve safety. A report conducted by the Policing Project assessing traffic stops and policing strategies in Nashville found no relationship between non-moving traffic stops and crime rates.
Infrastructure and incentives are two great ways to make our streets safer, without the harmful impacts of enforcement. A traffic stop should never put someone’s life at risk. Reducing stops for low-level traffic violations that do not affect public safety will reduce opportunities for racialized police violence. Reducing the emphasis on punitive enforcement while providing resources to fix problems will improve safety for all road users.
Resources:
WA troopers still more likely to pull over Native American drivers | Crosscut
The Disparate Financial Impact of the American Justice System | Bloomberg
Independent Prosecutor
County prosecutors, who have prosecutorial discretion over which cases they choose to prosecute, often fail to prosecute cases of police misconduct, even in cases of alleged assault, sexual assault, and murder. County prosecutors work closely with law enforcement and rely on law enforcement for gathering evidence, interviewing witnesses, and providing defense to law enforcement. This creates an inherent conflict of interest and prevents law enforcement officers from being held accountable to the law.
In 2021 Washington State became the first state in the country to establish an Office of Independent Investigation. Independent Investigation is the first step. Help Washington State continue to lead the way in police reform and take the next logical step by establishing an Independent Prosecutor.
Resources:
It's A Complicated Relationship Between Prosecutors, Police | NPR
Prosecutors and police: The inherent conflict in our courts | msnbc.com
Police Accountability: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | HBO - YouTube
Civil Liability
Washington State currently has no state law that allows citizens to sue in civil court when their constitutional rights are violated by law enforcement.
Though citizens can sue in federal court, most of these cases never make it to trial and even when they do, officers use qualified immunity as a legal defense, which shields them from any consequences even in cases of excessive force, assault, or death at the hands of police.
We support legislation that would allow meaningful redress for victims of law enforcement violence and allow them compensation for their injuries, award costs and attorney fees and prevent the use of the qualified immunity defense.
Resources:
Rooted in racism: the origins of qualified immunity | Reuters
Police Accountability Through Attorney General Oversight
At present the only way to hold police departments accountable for practices of discriminatory policing is for the US Department of Justice to bring a lawsuit or consent decree to affect change. There are 18,000 Police Departments across the United States. It is impossible for the DOJ to do the job of holding all police departments accountable.
We support legislation that would authorize the AG’s Civil Rights Division to investigate systemic practices that deprive individuals of rights protected by the Washington Constitution, to address the most harmful practices, and to ensure a minimum level of quality of policing across Washington.
Officer Discipline
Public trust in policing has eroded due to the deaths of many Washington citizens at the hands of law enforcement and the failure of accountability systems to remove officers who actively put the public in danger. Holding officers accountable through termination or suspension at the department level for serious misconduct is essential to public safety. Egregious conduct such as domestic violence, sexual assault, and excessive use of force leading to serious injury and murder of unarmed civilians is not a part of constitutional policing.
We support establishing a system of accountability, consistent across the state, that is transparent and allows Police Chiefs the ability to enforce discipline within their own departments.
End Long-Term Solitary Confinement
Long-term solitary confinement is torture and causes severe psychological consequences, including depression, anxiety, paranoia, PTSD, psychosis, self-harm and even suicide.
Solitary confinement is used disproportionately against people of color and those with disabilities. The number of people enduring this inhumane treatment is increasing. Solitary confinement goes by many names: restricted housing, maximum custody, special housing, and isolation. Solitary confinement is inflicted most often for minor infractions. The use of solitary confinement does not reduce violence or the assault of staff in prisons and solitary confinement increases rates of recidivism.
Washington ended solitary confinement for juveniles in 2020. We can do the same for adults. The use of solitary confinement in our state prisons is torture and has devastating impacts on those incarcerated. Join us in our fight to end long-term solitary confinement!
High-Speed Vehicular Pursuits
Since 2015, two-thirds of high-speed vehicular chases in Washington have led to fatality and 50% of those fatalities have been an innocent bystander or passenger. In 2021, we passed 1054, which limited high-speed vehicular pursuits to circumstances where there is probable cause that the person poses imminent threat to life. Many police departments including Seattle and King County had restrictive policies for vehicular pursuits before the law went into effect and many more police departments across the country are recognizing that keeping the public safe means restricting vehicular pursuits. Since 1054 passed, deaths from high-speed vehicular pursuits have been dramatically reduced.
Since the passage of 1054, police unions have been pushing back against this legislation and falsely claiming that this dangerous and deadly tactic is necessary in a broad number of circumstances, including to protect personal property. Last year in 2022 we saw attempts to roll back this important reform that has saved the lives of Washington citizens. We may see more attempts to roll back this life-saving reform in 2023.