Inslee calls for statewide restriction on police use of chokeholds

Gov. Jay Inslee said Monday he will convene a task force to “rethink policing and public safety,” saying there should be a statewide restriction on the use of chokeholds.

Inslee discussed three “action items” for the group, which will consist of black leaders, members of other “marginalized communities” and law enforcement officials. The announcement came the same day as congressional Democrats introduced legislation to overhaul policing, including a ban on the chokehold used by a then-Minneapolis police officer in the death of George Floyd.

The governor said Washington needs an independent process to investigate and prosecute for cases involving alleged police misconduct that results in death or serious harm to residents.

In response to a question at a Monday press conference, the governor said he didn’t know if that unit would be part of the State Patrol or a new agency. The state-funded unit would replace the common practice of city police departments contracting with sheriff’s departments for independent reviews, he said.

Second, there needs to be a statewide restriction on the use of chokeholds by law enforcement, the governor said.

“We need to rethink the use of police force and look more broadly at police tactics,” Inslee said.

Third, the state needs to create a “legally enforceable obligation” that law enforcement officers must report misconduct by their fellow officers, he said.

“Now we know that much more is needed. What I mean by that is the tenor of these moments gives us an opportunity, I believe, to take additional steps for the larger efforts in addition to police misconduct issues,” the governor said.

“Police misconduct may be the byproduct of institutional racism, but fixing that alone will not solve the underlying problems that bedevil us in inequity in education, inequity in health care, economic inequities that defy the imagination,” Inslee added.

Inslee said the members of the task force have not been chosen yet. He said he hopes to collaborate with them to develop proposals to the Legislature.

The Washington Association of Sheriffs & Police Chiefs said it is open to the suggestions that Inslee made about additional state-level reforms.

“While we feel we have done a lot to improve the policing profession, we know there is still more work – hard work -- to be done to create meaningful, lasting change,” said the group’s executive director, Stephen Strachan.

New York lawmakers voted on Monday to make it a crime for police officers to use chokeholds that cause death or injury. The move came three days after Minneapolis agreed to ban chokeholds by police.

Captain Neil Weaver of the Washington State Patrol said the agency has had a policy for at least 30 years against the use of neck restraints including chokeholds, unless an officer’s life is in danger.

The policy states: “The use of any type of neck hold that intentionally restricts blood flow or breathing shall be considered use of lethal force.”

Over the past two weeks, Inslee said he has had several discussions with members of the Black Lives Matter movement in King County, members of the legislative black caucus, members of the color caucus, and Tacoma community leaders.

On Friday, Inslee announced the State Patrol will review the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department investigation into the death of Manuel Ellis in Tacoma and the Attorney General will examine any charging decisions by the Pierce County prosecutor’s office.

Asked Monday by a reporter about calls for an entirely new investigation, Inslee stressed that the State Patrol will begin its investigation after the sheriff’s department is finished with its probe.

“That may involve interviewing witnesses. It may involve analyzing physical evidence. It may involve getting new physical evidence. It may involve hiring new forensic experts,” he said.

Inslee noted that people have asked Attorney General Bob Ferguson to do the investigation. The governor said the role of the attorney general’s office will be to review the work of the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney.

“In our state, the Attorney General does not have investigative resources or actual authority to do the witness statements, the forensic evidence,” he said.

Also at Monday’s press conference, Inslee thanked protesters and first responders for their actions after a gunman drove into a demonstration on Capitol Hill in Seattle and shot a 27-year-old man.

“Individual protesters took brave actions to make sure this incident did not lead to even more dangerous escalation, as did emergency responders medically and in law enforcement,” he said.

John Wiesman, state Secretary of Health, appeared via videoconference with Inslee.

Wiesman said the “single best thing” a person can do who has attended the large demonstrations against police brutality in the wake of Floyd’s death -- and was unable to maintain social distancing -- is “to stay home and stay away from others” for 14 days.

If people can’t do that, then they need to closely monitor their symptoms and if any arise, get tested and isolate themselves until they get negative results and feel confident they are not infected, Wiesman said.

Inslee said five counties remain in phase 1 of the state’s four-phase approach to reopening the rest of the economy. They are Benton, Franklin, Yakima, Douglas and Chelan counties. King County is in a modified version of phase 1 — called 1.5 — with some activities that are allowed in phase 2.

Eight counties are in phase 3 — Ferry, Stevens, Pend Oreille, Lincoln, Whitman, Garfield, Columbia, and Wahkiakum counties. Skamania County applied Monday for phase 3.

Asotin County became eligible Monday for phase 3. By the end of the week, 10 more counties will be eligible to apply: Adams, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Cowlitz, Grant, Island, Jefferson, Mason, Pacific and San Juan.

This story was originally published June 8, 2020 at 6:35 PM.