House passes bills sparked by recent officer shootings

OLYMPIA -- The mood in the Legislature on Wednesday was mournful as lawmakers honored the lives of six police officers slain in 2009.

The families and colleagues of those officers looked down from the House of Representatives gallery as heads bowed in a moment of silence, and voices broke as legislators spoke about the sacrifices of those who vowed to serve and protect.

After several impassioned floor speeches, the House voted unanimously in favor of a resolution honoring the officers who died in Seattle, Lakewood and Pierce County.

A companion resolution passed unanimously in the Senate.

Rep. Brad Klippert, R-Kennewick, a Benton County Sheriff's deputy, spoke about starting his career in Pierce County and attending the memorial service for the slain Pierce County deputy as well as four Lakewood police officers shot to death in November.

"There was an incredible camaraderie," he said, his voice weighted with emotion. "Mr. Speaker, over 1,000 Canadian mounted police came down from Canada. There were officers from Boston who traveled across the United States to honor our officers. I was proud to be a part of the honor guard. It was a very respectful time."

He said it's because of his fellow law enforcement officers that citizens sleep safely at night.

"I want to thank my brothers and sisters in law enforcement, with whom I stand shoulder to shoulder, and say that what's happened in the past only strengthens our resolve to fight harder, be stronger, to keep Washington state safe," Klippert said. "To the families and friends of those who have lost their lives, on behalf of all the citizens of our state, we thank you, and our prayers are with you."

Klippert was equally emotional when he voted "no" a little while later on a bill making more families eligible to collect survivors' benefits when an officer dies.

House Bill 2519 removes the requirement that an officer serve for 10 years before his or her family can collect death benefits, increases the amount families can receive, and allows a surviving spouse to continue collecting benefits after remarrying.

Klippert choked up when he said that he'd be voting against the bill because of concerns over some costs to the state under elements of the bill, pegged at about $1.4 million through 2011.

"Are these great ideas? Absolutely. But my question is, are they sustainable?" he said. "If we grant this this time, there will be others who will follow in catastrophic times and ask, 'what about my family, what about my children?' "

The bill passed 93-3. All other Mid-Columbia lawmakers voted in favor.

Kennewick Police Chief Ken Hohenberg said in an interview Wednesday that 2009 had been a difficult year for law enforcement officers and their families, and he was pleased the Legislature was taking steps to provide for the spouses and children of officers who are killed in the line of duty.

"Even moving into the first of the year involving the (fatal) accident of the Grant County deputy -- it brings back the reality of police work," Hohenberg said "There are a lot of jobs that are dangerous. In other jobs a lot of the time when someone is hurt or killed, it is because of a mishap. But with police officers, when they die it is the result of a murder. Certainly things that will take care of the family, spouse or children of law enforcement officers giving their ultimate in service of the public is good legislation."

The House unanimously passed bills intended to strengthen the ability of the criminal justice system to hold violent felons, to track mentally ill offenders who escape from state custody and to toughen penalties for those charged with rendering criminal assistance.

House Bill 2625 requires individual judicial review before those held on suspicion of a felony could be released from custody. The bill was a response to several police officer deaths, including the shooting of four Lakewood police officers by Maurice Clemmons in late November.

Several counties use a formula to set bail amounts if arrests are made on the weekends or a holiday. Clemmons was released under such a system in Pierce County, where he was being held on a suspicion of the felony of second-degree child rape.

Lawmakers said if a judge had reviewed Clemmons' case and considered his history before his release, the Lakewood shootings could have been prevented.

Rep. Terry Nealey, R-Dayton, former Columbia County prosecutor, said Clemmons' case was evidence the system was broken and needed repair.

"The law tied the hands of a judge in the case of Maurice Clemmons, and now we have lost four good officers -- husbands and fathers, a wife and mothers -- heroes to all," Nealey said. "In my view, the best way to honor them and our other fallen heroes across the state, and all of those who put their lives on the line for us every day, is to fix the problem."

House Bill 2422 expands the list of people and agencies who must be notified when someone escapes from a mental health facility operated by the Department of Social and Health Services to include victims, their families and trial witnesses.

The bill was a response to the escape of Phillip Arnold Paul from the custody of Eastern State Hospital while on a field trip to a Spokane fair. Paul was in the hospital after being diagnosed with schizophrenia and found innocent by reason of insanity of the 1987 murder of a Sunnyside woman.

He was on the run for three days before being caught near Goldendale. Lawmakers said the bill would make sure escapees are caught more quickly in the future.

"I worked in the legal offender unit at Eastern State Hospital many years ago. I know how dangerous some of these offenders are," said Rep. John Driscoll, D-Spokane, a co-sponsor of the bill. "We must ensure that our public is kept safe. This law is the right thing to do in order to ensure unstable and potentially dangerous individuals are properly supervised. When and if they do manage to escape, it's imperative that law enforcement -- and others who need to know -- be notified immediately."

The bills all were introduced at the request of Gov. Chris Gregoire in conjunction with a task force of law enforcement officers. They now move to the Senate for consideration.

-- The Associated Press contributed to this report.

-- Michelle Dupler: 360-753-0862; mdupler@tricityherald.com