USE OF FORCE, PLAINTIFF’S ATTORNEYS, AND THE BIG PICTURE

Last week, the City of Kent settled a federal civil suit with Nicomedes Tubar for $400,000. The plaintiff’s attorney and a reporter with the Seattle Times have given regular and unilateral coverage to the case. Now that the case is completed, I would like to move from the required “no comment” to a more comprehensive discussion of the larger issue of police use of deadly force, and public trust in institutions such as the police, the courts, and the media.

Here’s the background: In 2003 our officer found an unoccupied parked car in a parking lot. He discovered that the car had been reported stolen. Sometime later, the driver, Heather Morehouse, got into the car, along with her passenger, Nicomedes Tubar. Morehouse started the car and when confronted by the officer she accelerated toward him. The incident took just a few seconds. Our officer was forced to use his firearm to protect his life. At trial, the main issue centered on the fact that three shots were fired – with the third shot striking and injuring Tubar. It was undisputed that the entire incident took just a few seconds.

Mr. Tubar sued the City of Kent for unlawful use of force. The City and our attorneys recognize that he was a relatively uninvolved person in this incident. If you accept his testimony that he was simply an innocent person who unknowingly got into a stolen car with a woman he just met, then it is reasonable to say that his injury due to the criminal actions of the driver of the stolen car is truly unfortunate. With that in mind, an early offer of a settlement in this case included mitigation of his medical expenses. That offer was rejected and Tubar chose to go to a civil jury trial.

Two years and several hundred thousand dollars later – along with hundreds of hours of testimony including expert witnesses on both sides – the jury rendered its decision. The jury was unanimous, finding 12-0 that the actions of the officer were justified.

A great deal of attention was given to the third shot – the one that injured Tubar. The court and the attorneys had the luxury of time and hindsight to mull over the decision-making process and consider what other options might have been available. An incident that occurred over a few seconds was examined in incredible detail.

Here is where the process gets difficult and where the issue of public trust becomes relevant. The incident itself was not the only issue raised at the trial. The plaintiff’s attorney worked very hard to cast the officer in the worst possible light. He was made into an unpredictable, dangerous, and out-of-control officer. This tactic was carried out not only through court testimony regarding the officer’s personal and professional life, but every employee evaluation or disciplinary memo was put under a microscope. The officer’s name and every negative fact about his career and life were duly recounted in the newspaper. These details, based on limited information, help lead readers to conclude that the officer must be “out of control”. Yet, the jury, presented with all the information, returned a 12-0 verdict in favor of the officer.

I understand and acknowledge that the plaintiff’s attorney must zealously advocate for his client. I will not assume negative intent or question his motives in a contingency case in which the attorney typically receives a large amount of any judgment. I will not spend time countering every unfounded or unsupported allegation made in the trial or after the verdict, which included: jury tampering, intimidation of the jury, a plea by the driver of the stolen car that wasn’t really a guilty plea, and more. However, the cumulative effect of these allegations is to diminish the public’s respect and trust in the court and the system. Making pejorative comments in the paper, questioning the motives and decisions of the jury, attacking the Judge’s comments, automatically assuming the police are always right or always wrong – all of these things serve to cumulatively bring down the public trust in the courts, the police, and the media. It doesn’t help and it doesn’t serve the truth.

Kent P.D., as a professional and internationally accredited agency, has a proven “early warning” system to monitor our officers.  Complaints, incidents, emotional issues, and uses of force are closely tracked and evaluated. Police work brings with it unique pressures and stresses. When we find an officer needs to be pulled from duty and psychologically evaluated, we do it.

I do not pretend that all police officers are perfect. Far from it – we are human beings just like the people we protect and the people we arrest. Like you, we do the best we can every day. There are officers with emotional issues and some do commit bad faith acts for which they should absolutely be held accountable. Every one of us in law enforcement needs to be mindful of that fact, and continue to pay close attention to our unique duty to serve the public.

I like the following summary, written by a federal appellate judge in Jones v. Parmley, 2006:

“The touchstone of the inquiry is reasonableness, and in measuring it, we consider the facts and circumstances of each particular case, including the crime committed, its severity, the threat of danger to the officer and society, and whether the suspect is resisting or attempting to evade arrest.  We are mindful that the reasonableness inquiry does not allow us to substitute our own viewpoint; we must judge the officer’s actions from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight.  Indeed, the Supreme Court has cautioned that in analyzing excessive force claims, courts must make allowance for the fact that police officers are often forced to make slit-second judgments in circumstances that are tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving about the amount of force necessary.”

Who wrote this court opinion? Soon-to-be Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. She summarizes what matters most: we in law enforcement owe it to the public to pay attention to our officers. We need to create and maintain a standard and hold ourselves accountable to the public. And the public owes it to our officers to be mindful of those “split-second judgments”. We at the Kent Police Department take our mandate to protect the Constitution very seriously. We appreciate the opportunity to answer these issues now that the trial has concluded.

It is truly our honor to serve the public and our community.

March 23, 2009
KPD Update
If you’ve been to the new ShoWare Center to see a Thunderbirds game, you know between periods of the game short videos are shown on the big screen about the “green” components of the building. 
 
The videos highlight the City of Kent’s commitment to environmental awareness and not only show the construction elements, but also some of the day-to-day differences from any other building. 
 
The toilets are low-flow, the cups used in the concession stands are biodegradable, and much of the trash is recycled. ShoWare Center is the first arena in the country to be built under strict environmental standards, which are voluntary. It makes you pretty proud to be associated with Kent when you see these videos.
 
So, you may ask yourself, what is the police department doing in terms of our city’s commitment to the environment? Our Mayor and City Council have made Kent’s involvement as a “green” leader a priority. We don’t opt out of the conversation at all, or consider ourselves exempt from some of the expectations. 
 
In some places, a police department would simply assert that we are different, we are special and we cannot be expected to pay attention to the environment. While it is true that we will always need to have squad cars to respond to calls and emergencies, we still do what we can to reduce fuel use and emissions. And, it’s not as simple as getting hybrid cars or reducing the time the cars are idling.
 
For the past two years, all of the department’s new unmarked, non-patrol vehicles have been hybrids – Ford Escape and Chevrolet Malibu. These cars will be in our fleet for years and the benefits are not just the increased miles per gallon, particularly in the city where they are used the most, but also their reduced emissions. 
 
Whenever they are stopped in traffic or idling at a scene, they are on electric power and the engine is off. Even our Chevrolet Tahoe SUV squad cars, used for our K9 officers and for specialized uses, actually get a little better mileage than the standard Ford Crown Victoria cars, and they are equipped with flex fuel capability. Our City’s information technology department is working to deploy advanced computer batteries, so we don’t need to keep our cars idling to power the older-style batteries currently in use.
 
There is not a hybrid product available for patrol use yet, but we are waiting for the right product. I expect that sometime soon a manufacturer will come out with a vehicle that can attain higher speeds, power all those extra radios and computers while idling on electric power, and keep our officers safe in case of a crash. When that product comes out, a lot of officers will be driving those vehicles.
 
Another way we pay attention to the environment is by utilizing a high number of bicycle officers. While I cannot say the primary reason for our bike officers is environmental, the reduced use of fuel and lower emissions is a significant added benefit. The original addition of bike officers is tactical; it is the most effective way to deploy our officers in areas like downtown Kent and along the East and West Hill corridors. However, it’s easy to underestimate just how much of a “green” difference using bikes can make. 
 
Our fourth full-time bicycle team has just been added, and we now have a total of eight full-time bike officers. That means there are eight officers working all week who do not drive a car, who do not put over a hundred miles a day on a car, and whose daily work encourages and facilitates others to walk and bike on our streets and trails. We have doubled our bike teams in the past year.
 
Attention to the environment even extends to areas you may not expect. For example, Kent’s police department participates in a regional narcotics task force. One of the most important priorities for the task force is targeting and taking down large marijuana grow houses. 
 
Groups of criminals are buying houses in residential areas all over the Puget Sound to grow and distribute marijuana. As I have mentioned in this column before, our enforcement efforts are not focused primarily on personal use or the debate over small amounts of marijuana. Our efforts are more about fighting organized crime, as well as a side effect that will surprise some people. Grow houses are an environmental disaster. 
 
The criminals who set up grow houses start by trashing the inside of the home, then hijacking the electrical system so they don’t have to pay for the tremendous amounts of power used in the lighting. Then, they use chemicals to fertilize and grow the marijuana. When the grow houses are abandoned, as they often are, the chemicals are dumped both inside and outside the houses. 
 
Speeding wastes gas, as does illegal street racing. Illegal dumping often includes paint and chemicals dumped in the river by people who don’t care about either the environment or their community. When we help our city fight crime, often times we are also helping to keep our environment clean. Many of us have just never thought of it that way before.
 
Have a great week!
-Steve

Kent Police Chief Steve Strachan reports that 15 “johns” were arrested on Kent’s West Hill on Thursday, March 12, 2009 in a prostitution sting operation. This was one in a series of arrests in connection with reducing crime and prostitution in that area of Kent.

“Our neighborhood along Pacific Highway South deserves better, and that’s part of the initiative and that’s part of the message to change the paradigm,” says Kent Police Chief Steve Strachan.

For more information, please contact the Kent Police Department at (253) 856-5200. For the full story, see this clip from KING 5 TV.

Coming soon: regular updates from the Kent Police and Fire Departments right here!