WA sheriffs clash with state over new decertification law. Here’s what to know

Gov. Bob Ferguson signed a law April 1 setting higher standards for Washington sheriffs and police chiefs, removing them from office if decertified. Nearly half of the state’s elected sheriffs face open misconduct complaints with the agency that controls certification.

Here are key takeaways:

• Senate Bill 5974, signed by Ferguson on April 1, requires sheriffs and police chiefs to be certified, pass a background check and have a clean criminal history. The bill passed along party lines, with Democrats supporting and Republicans opposing.

• Pierce County Sheriff Keith Swank and Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders both called the law government overreach. Swank said he hopes to be decertified so he can fight the law in court.

• The new law requires sheriffs and police chiefs to be U.S. citizens at least 25 years old, hold a high school diploma, have at least five years of law enforcement experience and no prior felony or gross misdemeanor convictions.

• 18 of Washington’s 38 elected sheriffs have open certification cases with the Criminal Justice Training Commission. Swank leads with 10 cases, followed by Klickitat’s Bob Songer with eight, Lewis County’s Robert Snaza with seven and Sanders with six.

• A common complaint is social media use. Seven of Swank’s 10 cases relate to posts on his X account, including questioning whether transgender people should be banned from owning guns.

• Swank and Songer face complaints over ties to the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, which the Anti-Defamation League describes as an extremist group. Songer is a board member; Swank says he is not a member.

• Sanders warned that complaints can be anonymous, lack context and carry no penalty for lying, calling it “a low risk, high reward system” for those with political motives.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.