A Letter to the Community from Police Chief Ed Holmes: 2021 Police Reform Legislation

Mercer Island Community,

Lawmakers across the country have been contending with the role their law enforcement officers serve when facing complex and intersectional social issues.  Here in Washington, our State legislature recently enacted a number of new laws in this vein that shape how police officers will do their jobs. Some of these laws are simple and straightforward, but others give me some pause as I consider the potential for unintended consequences. 

On July 25, Washington’s HB1310 and HB1054 went into effect. As such, our communities may see some changes in the ways police respond to calls for assistance.  While some of these new laws align with the way the Mercer Island Police Department (MIPD) already operates, others will change how we do our jobs. Additionally, there is uncertainty in how some of these laws should be applied. 

Here are some changes I’d like to share with our community: 

Use of Force (HB 1310): Under this new law, officers may only use physical force when there’s probable cause to make an arrest, to prevent escape, or to protect against an imminent threat of bodily harm.  Prior to this new law, officers could physically detain someone when they had “reasonable suspicion” to believe that the person had just committed a crime.  Under Washington’s new law, police officers cannot use any amount of physical force to detain someone unless they have first established “probable cause” to believe the person committed a crime.  The bar officers use to establish probable cause is higher than that for reasonable suspicion, and probable cause is typically not established until after the officers are able to do their initial investigation.  For example, if responding officers see a suspect fleeing the scene of a crime, they cannot use physical force to detain the suspect unless they have first established probable cause for an arrest.  As a result of this change, suspects may be able to leave the scene of a crime with officers unable to stop them from doing so – this could delay identifying and apprehending suspects. 

This new law also directs officers to exhaust available de-escalation tactics prior to using any physical force.  Several examples of such tactics are provided in the law, to include calling in mental health professionals and/or simply leaving the area if there is no threat of imminent harm and no crime has been committed.  Our training already includes de-escalation techniques, but this new law may change how officers can intervene in situations where someone needs help – such as a mental health call – but no crime is being committed. 

Tactics (HB 1054): This new law prohibits officers from using chokeholds and neck restraints, bans the acquisition or use of military equipment, and greatly restricts when officers can engage in vehicle pursuits.  MIPD already considered neck restraints to be deadly force, however they are now banned in all situations. Additionally, prior to this new law going into effect, officers had been allowed to pursue vehicles when they had reasonable suspicion to believe the person committed a life-endangering crime. Such incidents were already very rare, but now will only be allowed if officers have first developed probable cause to believe the person in the vehicle has committed a violent or sex offense, or if the officer has reasonable suspicion to believe the driver is under the influence of drugs or alcohol. 

Drug Laws: A recent Washington State Supreme Court ruling (State v. Blake) found that Washington’s simple drug possession law was unconstitutional because it only required a person to possess illegal drugs without any requirement for the person to know they possessed drugs.  In response, the legislature enacted a new law that, among other things, requires police officers to refer someone caught with drugs to a drug-help resource two times before an arrest can be made.  The third and subsequent violations are now misdemeanors, and the new law encourages prosecutors to continue to defer these cases.  Since there is currently no state-wide system to track the number of times someone has been referred to drug counseling, agencies are now working to create such systems. 

I strongly support policing reforms that build equity and strengthen public trust.  I am optimistic that over the course of the next year, we can collaboratively refine and clarify how we implement changes to our policing laws.  I want to assure the community that the Mercer Island Police Department will continue to respond to calls for service, but some of our responses may look different now. Our department will always focus on de-escalating situations and getting people connected to the services they need as part of our duty to uphold public safety.  We are honored to serve as your police department and are committed to keeping Mercer Island a safe and welcoming community for all. 

Ed Holmes
Chief of Police | City of Mercer Island