Should Tacoma police keep national bragging rights? You have a say in that
Protesting on the streets or venting on social media aren’t the only ways to share one’s views about the Tacoma Police Department at a time when TPD finds itself on the hot seat.
This week, a panel of outside observers wants to hear from local residents about whether Tacoma’s police force measures up to modern-day law enforcement standards.
It’s part of TPD’s attempt to retain a prestigious national seal of approval from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, or CALEA for short.
Tacoma has worn accreditation as a badge of honor for nearly 10 years. Local officials are quick to point out that only 2 percent of police agencies across the country can claim CALEA bragging rights, and only eight of 269 public safety agencies in Washington have earned accreditation. TPD is the only recipient in Pierce County.
(What they won’t tell you is that many agencies don’t pursue accreditation because they don’t think it’s worth paying thousands of dollars to CALEA and dedicating long staff hours to the task.)
Accreditation can be helpful for cities trying to hold down insurance rates and lawsuits, and for police officers negotiating pay raises.
But this year’s review comes at an awkward time, to say the least.
A Black man who went into fatal respiratory arrest while in TPD custody is now part of the national narrative on aggressive police tactics. The Pierce County medical examiner disclosed a homicide finding in the death of Manuel Ellis in early June, right when the brutal killing of George Floyd under the knee of a Minneapolis cop was boiling over.
Gov. Jay Inslee has promised a state investigation of the Ellis incident; meanwhile, calls for the four responding TPD officers to be fired and prosecuted have been issued from people including Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards. And demands for body cameras and other tools to make Tacoma cops more accountable have reached a fever pitch.
Now the public is invited to comment this week to the CALEA accreditation review team — one more avenue of accountability that we urge people to take advantage of.
That the review is happening amid a national outcry for police reform is purely coincidental; it was scheduled weeks before Floyd’s May 25 death. An accreditation team conducts an on-site inspection every three years; in the off years, TPD has to submit reports to prove it’s still making the grade.
The 200 standards cover a lot of ground — everything from maintaining public records to field training for new recruits to properly transporting detainees to jail.
Like so much of public life in the age of COVID-19, public feedback will come by way of a “virtual” town hall meeting, scheduled for Thursday. People can express their views by video conference or phone call, or separately in writing.
Comments are limited to five minutes and must pertain to TPD’s ability to meet CALEA standards. The assessment team isn’t here to listen to unfocused diatribes against police brutality in American society.
But make no mistake, appropriate use of force is listed among the standards that law enforcement agencies are expected to meet. So are other issues relevant to the racial-justice debate, such as recruiting and maintaining a diverse police force.
Like no other time in the last 10 years, the CALEA team will have much to consider when reviewing Tacoma’s performance.
Yes, the timing is coincidental. But it gives people a chance to be heard, whether supportive or critical of TPD — including those who may be uncomfortable protesting during a pandemic — and we see that as a happy coincidence.
WHEN AND HOW TO PARTICIPATE
When: Thursday (June 18)
By Zoom video chat: 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Log in by clicking here and entering 240300 as the password.
By telephone: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Call (757) 617-9014.
Written comments: Send by June 19 to Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA), 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, Virginia, 20155.