Spokane Community Against Racism and the Smart Justice Spokane Coalitions held a press conference on the police reform measures passed by the Washington State Legislature. These laws recently went into effect and there has been some pushback from law enforcement over these new changes. Joining SCAR and PJALS leaders and staff were representatives of Raiz of Planned Parenthood, Tenants Union, River Warrior Society, The Way to Justice, the Spokane Human Rights Commission, Greater Spokane Progress, Veterans for Peace, and more!

 

Special Thank You

A special thanks to Liz Moore, who co-organized the press conference with Jac Archer, and whose grit and expertise were key to making the press conference happen. Thanks to Justice Forral for filming and streaming the press conference on behalf of SCAR! And thanks to Kate Bitz for her volunteer help with press communication!

These common sense policies were made by consulting police unions, police chiefs, and many police officials. Yesterday, Washington Coalition for Police Accountability (WCPA) had a press conference where Roger Goodman reassured the press that Police Guilds, Police Chiefs, and other Police officials were heavily consulted with these new police reforms. You can additionally read the full AG’s opinion here.

 

Thank you to all the speakers:

 

Thank you to our elected officials: Spokane City Council President Breean Beggs and Representative Marcus Riccelli who shared supportive remarks, to Council Member Betsy Wilkerson and Representative Timm Ormsby who were present in support, and to Senator Andy Billig who was represented by staff.

As Spokane Community Against Racism we are dedicated to building a just community with systems that work for everyone. Will you raise your voice for police accountability today?

11 much-needed and hard-won police reform and police accountability policies went into effect in Washington State. We’re thankful to Rep. Riccelli, Rep. Ormsby, and Senator Billig for supporting these laws!

But the Spokane Police Department and Spokane County Sheriff’s Office have responded unacceptably, stirring up public fear and uncertainty and saying they may no longer be fully responsive to certain emergencies– including 911 calls for domestic violence situations and mental health crises.

United with SCAR’s Platform for Change coalition and the Smart Justice Spokane coalition:

  1. We call on the Spokane Police Department and the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office to implement, fully and accurately, the police reform measures passed in the legislature last session.

  2. We join calls from both law enforcement and communities across Washington asking the Attorney General’s Office to move swiftly to publish the model guidance for these laws and continue providing informal opinions to address questions being raised.

  3. We further request the Attorney General’s Office and the Criminal Justice Training Center to oversee the Spokane Police Department and the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office implementation of these laws, as appropriate to their roles.

 

Will you add your voice to this community demand?

Click the link below to send an email to the Attorney General, Criminal Justice Training Commission, Chief Meidl, Mayor Woodward, Sheriff Knezovich, Rep. Riccelli, Rep. Ormsby, and Senator Billig!

Raise Your Voice

 

This is how we can push law enforcement to better serve our community and adhere to a higher standard of accountability.

To learn more about the laws, read and share this PJALS slide deck and watch the SCAR Platform for Change and Smart Justice Spokane coalitions’ press conference.

Thank you for your commitment to police accountability in Spokane!