What will civilian oversight of law enforcement look like in Olympia? Now there’s a plan
.jpg "The City of Olympia conducted a virtual Town Hall on March 15 where the three finalists for Chief of the Olympia Police Department answered questions posed by the public.")
The Olympia City Council and the Social Justice and Equity Commission met this week to discuss recommendations for a Community Oversight of Law Enforcement group.
The formal process has been in the works for more than a year, and council member Dani Madrone said it’s been in conversation for four. Now there’s a clear plan for getting the group on its feet.
Stacey Ray, director of Strategic Planning and Performance for the city, went over the recommendations alongside members of the commission. They recommend recruiting a civilian police auditor and a seven-person board.
The Community Board
Genevieve Chan, co-chair of the commission, presented the detailed plan for how the board and auditor would work. She said the city of Olympia will have to develop a broad communications and outreach plan to recruit a diverse array of people to the Community Board.
Chan said the commission wants the board to be representative of the city’s diverse population. That includes different socio-economic backgrounds and racial and ethnic groups, including immigrant and refugee communities, and LGBTQ+, youth, and faith communities.
The city also will consider selecting board members for which English is a second language, have experience with living unhoused or have personal or professional experience with mental health challenges and substance use disorders.
Board members would have to reside or work in Olympia at the time of their appointment or reappointment. And they can’t have worked for the Olympia Police Department as a commission or civilian employee within 20 years of their appointment.
Candidates will be required to disclose prior employment, contracts and affiliations with the department to avoid any actual or perceived bias for or against the OPD. They would also be subject to a background check.
Members of the board may have to participate in Capital Metro Independent Investigations Team cases. Officials are still weighing whether board members can be paid a stipend. If they can be, those who participate in other use of force investigations may be paid more.
The board will report directly to the City Council in an advisory capacity.
Board members can serve a maximum of two 3-year consecutive terms. Terms will be staggered so no more than three members’ terms expire in any given year. Members can be terminated if they are absent from three consecutive regular or special meetings, or have missed more than a third of board meetings in a year’s time.
The council can also remove members by a majority vote.
Board members have to participate in at least one ride-along with an officer within the first six months of their appointment. They must also attend the department’s Community Academy within a year of their appointment.
The Community Board will help the City Council select a Civilian Police Auditor. They’ll advise the auditor regarding their annual work plan and check to see if the auditor has met expectations regarding interacting with the board.
The two will meet in person at least once per quarter, which will give the auditor a chance to update the board on misconduct complaint investigations and use of force investigation audits.
The Civilian Police Auditor
Under the Social Justice and Equity Commission’s plan, the Civilian Police Auditor will have a number of responsibilities that would increase accountability and transparency with the OPD.
The auditor will be selected by the City Council with feedback from the Community Board. Those interested should have significant experience in legal, investigative, criminal justice, civil rights, law enforcement oversight, labor law, auditing, or prosecutorial work, under the commission’s recommendation.
It’s preferred that the auditor have a law degree. The auditor can’t have been formerly employed by the OPD. They will also be subject to a background check.
The city may hire a police auditor for compensation under a professional services contract or directly as a City employee.
The Police Auditor will be expected to submit monthly activity reports, a mid-year report, and an annual report. The mid-year reports will be filed with the City Council. Copies of the monthly reports will be posted online.
Draft reports have to be submitted to the Community Board at least seven days before scheduled mid-year and annual meetings.
The auditor will audit misconduct complaints and reportable use of force investigation systems. They will make recommendations for operational, training, or policy changes, as well as assess how officers interact with the community.
The auditor themselves will be expected to engage with community members about policing, police oversight and more. They’ll work independently but be expected to have open communication with the OPD, city officials and the board.
The City will explore having an auditor serve a four-year term. A Police Auditor Pro Tempore will take over if the auditor recuses themself from review or is unable to fulfill their duties for any reason.
OPD’s role
The Social Justice and Equity Commission made a number of recommendations for how the OPD can help ensure the success of the civilian oversight program.
OPD is being asked to create a dashboard where their responses to each recommendation made by the auditor can be tracked. This will show whether recommendations will be implemented or not, and how and why.
The Community Board will work with OPD to determine what other types of data should be made available to the public and the auditor. And the two will find ways to improve communications regarding use of force investigations.
The commission asked that OPD provide information on the city’s police oversight system and opportunities for community involvement in its Community Academy curriculum. The department was also asked to consider more ways to involve community members in its decision making.
Lastly, the commission wants the OPD to consider pursuing a change in state and local law to set a specific timeline for the decision in use of force cases that go through the prosecutorial system.
Next steps
Ray said the City Council is set to formally consider the recommendations on July 9. If approved, the board recruitment process would start mid-fall. An RFP for an auditor would launch at the beginning of 2025. Board members would be appointed by April, and an auditor would be hired by this time next year.
A program specialist and staff liaison will be hired through the City Manager’s office to help move the work along and educate the public on the city’s plans.
There are also plans to conduct outreach with justice system-impacted people to ensure they know about methods they can use to file complaints or voice concerns.
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