Latino leaders say ‘erratic’ and ‘insulting’ Tri-Citian must resign from racial justice task force

A Tri-Cities Latino advocacy group is calling for Jordan Chaney to resign from a state task force after what they call an abusive and disrespectful “tirade” during a recent meeting with police officials.

Chaney was named in June to the Governor’s Task Force on Independent Investigations of Police Use of Force.

The task force is working jointly with the Legislature to see if the reforms put in place with Initiative 940 are working and to craft potential state laws.

Chaney — a motivational speaker, poet and leader in the local Black Lives Matter movement — was one of 24 people appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee, along with small business owner Brian Moreno of Pasco.

But the Consejo Latino board issued a statement late Sunday saying “lessons of civility and response have not been learned” by Chaney.

“He has chosen to punctuate his political arguments with hateful and insulting words aimed at demeaning his conversation partners,” the board wrote. “Ironically, he employs the same tactics that he claims to be fighting against.”

Chaney told the Tri-City Herald on Monday that he did not have any comment on the situation.

The board said Chaney’s behavior was most visible during a meeting last Thursday with Pasco Police Chief Ken Roske, Marco Monteblanco, president of the Washington State Fraternal Order of Police and a Kennewick police detective, and other police officials and community members.

The meeting was organized by Roske to brief everyone on the regional Special Investigations Unit, or SIU, program.

“Mr. Chaney chose to embark on a tirade which threw the conversation off course. His temper tantrum with abusive language made all attendees uncomfortable,” the Consejo Latino board wrote. “Thankfully, Chief Roske was able to redirect the conversation back to a more civil dialogue. But the damage had been done.”

The board said Chaney then “made this episode more egregious” when he took to Facebook to admit his misconduct.

“So, I just lost my s--- at PPD,” Chaney’s Facebook post said.

He explained to his followers that he’d been at a private meeting to discuss the current SIU process and “got triggered.”

“I won’t go too deep in to detail but I got impassioned and heated and I stood up and just kinda breathed a lil smoke for a minute,” he wrote. “I calmed down, I sat back down, I let my s--- return and we actually made some semblance of communal progress.”

Chaney concluded his post with the hashtags, “Task Force 940” and “healing begins with communication.”

Emotions running high

Felix Vargas of Consejo Latino sent an email to the Herald saying the board had no choice but to issue the statement on “civility and respect,” saying they have received a number of calls and messages about Chaney’s conduct.

Vargas said he was not at Thursday’s meeting, but noted that several attendees confirmed Chaney “lost his temper.”

Chief Roske told the Herald in an email Monday that these are challenging times and often emotions run high.

“As task force commissioners, I want to ensure they have the best information and have their questions answered,” Roske said, “as we all look to drive good policy that allows for a thoroughly competent process that is as transparent as possible.”

Consejo Latino’s statement said “civility and respect were essential elements of a dialogue which achieved meaningful reform” with the Pasco Police Department following the 2015 fatal shooting of Antonio Zambrano Montes.

Then-Pasco Chief Bob Metzger, Roske, who was deputy chief at the time, and community organizations like Consejo Latino agreed to “work toward a common goal without angry or insulting words,” and that made all the difference, said the board’s statement.

“Today, we have a (Pasco Police Department) that embodies the policies, principles and practices of true community policing and is a model for other cities,” the board wrote. “All, because people kept their passion in check and respected each other.”

Consejo Latino says Chaney previously “insulted and demeaned Latinos who dared to differ with his views, calling them racists and asserting that they are not supportive of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.”

The group demanded that because of Chaney’s “abusive and counterproductive behavior,” he should issue a public apology to all attendees of that Pasco police meeting and to members of the Latino community whom he has offended.

The board also called for him to resign from the task force, which has a regular meeting scheduled this Thursday.

“His uncivil conduct and lack of respect disqualify him from serving,” said Consejo Latino.

This story was originally published August 17, 2020 at 2:57 PM.