‘Who you gonna call?’ Thanks to WA state’s police reform bills, there is no easy answer

If it isn’t a medical problem or a fire, law enforcement officers have been the ones to respond when people call for help.

That includes everything from handling major crimes to checking on suspicious activity to helping someone going through a mental health crisis.

But thanks to a slew of police reform bills that went into effect July 25, most “community care” calls now may have to go to other professionals. Law enforcement leaders across the state say they won’t risk breaking the new rules and will no longer respond to situations where a crime is not being committed.

Unfortunately, many of those in social services aren’t yet prepared to handle the volume of emergencies that will start coming their way. So from now on, who knows what kind of help Tri-Citians will get when they call police?

The majority of lawmakers were irresponsible when they approved limiting what police officers can do without also ensuring that someone else can step in to fill that service gap, and now there is confusion statewide.

It’s an unintended consequence of the move to make police more accountable for their actions.

The traumatic death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers last year triggered protests for weeks calling for drastic change in traditional police tactics, and the majority of Washington state Democrats heeded that call by approving bills that dictate how police do their jobs.

But that has led to a potentially dangerous backlash in some communities.

The police chief and sheriff in Walla Walla, along with the police chief in College Place, already penned a public letter saying they must reduce their response to certain calls for service in order to comply with the new law. That includes helping with checking the welfare of someone, mental health-related concerns, civil disputes and reports of a suspicious person.

Similar statements by the police chief in Olympia and Lacey, and the sheriff in Clark County were made to their communities, and several law enforcement chiefs in Eastern Washington also have publicly expressed concern over how the new rules will reduce the kinds of calls they respond to.

So far, we have yet to see Tri-City law enforcement agencies take a public stand like Walla Walla, Olympia, Lacy and Clark County.

Kennewick Police Chief Ken Hohenberg doesn’t see the situation as “black and white” and isn’t planning on determining ahead of time which calls the department will take. “It depends,” he said.

But he also said it is likely more calls for help may end up being handled by the Benton Franklin Crisis Response Unit.

That’s because the new Use of Force law — HB 1310 — says police may only use force when there is probable cause to make an arrest, prevent escape or protect against imminent bodily injury.

When possible, the new law says that unless there is threat of a crime being committed or imminent harm, law enforcement is encouraged to leave the area.

If police are being encouraged to leave an area when no crime is being committed, then many chiefs are obviously wondering if they should send officers out to a scene in the first place.

With the public backlash, a request was made to the Washington state Attorney General’s Office for more guidance on the police reform bills. Two lawmakers — Rep. Jesse Johnson, D-Federal Way and Rep. Roger Goodman, D-Kirkland — recently made the AG response public.

While not a formal opinion, the advice from the AG indicates that HB 1310 does “not prohibit peace officers from responding to community caretaking calls, including mental health calls.”

Whether the recent advice by the AG’s office will make police chiefs and county sheriff’s secure enough to continue handling non-criminal situations remains to be seen.

A formal interpretation of the Use of Force law is supposed to come from the AG in July 2022. Between now and then there is bound to be uncertainty, and that’s a shame.

Reform of this magnitude should have had clarity from the get-go. That it doesn’t puts communities and police in a no-win situation.

This story was originally published August 6, 2021 at 11:37 AM.