Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell

As you may know, on March 31, 2011, the Department of Justice (DOJ) indicated its intent to investigate the Seattle Police Department to determine whether its use of force has an unlawful and unfair impact on people of color and vulnerable communities. Very recently, I wrote a letter to US Attorney Jenny Durkan, indicating my support for this investigation and my hope that strong recommendations and improvements result from it.

My relationship with Ms. Durkan dates back to the 1980s when we were classmates in law school. As life continued, our children became playmates. I know she shares a passion and commitment to establish optimum public safety and optimum police accountability. She understands that these goals are not mutually exclusive.

I recently met with the Chiefs of Police in Oakland and San Jose. It was an opportunity to better understand how these police departments have used camera technology as a means to increase police accountability and restore public trust. Based on my research and as chair of the City’s Technology committee, I wrote US Attorney Durkan about the results of a similar investigation that was done in Cincinnati in 2002. That investigation resulted in a Voluntary Agreement between the Department of Justice and the City of Cincinnati. To view a copy of my letter to Ms. Durkan that supported the effectiveness of body-mounted cameras and the use of video technology [click here]. It should be noted that the use of technology is not a substitute for increased education and skill building for our officers; it is an enhancement. As the DOJ continues its investigation, my goal is to make sure we have recommendations and requirements that make Seattle a safer place to live and serves as a basis to increase public trust to unprecedented levels.

Councilmember Statement issued: 2/16/2011

SEATTLE – “I am very disappointed in the King County Prosecutor’s decision not to file criminal charges regarding the death of Mr. John T. Williams. This matter demonstrates that changes to state law regarding the Public Inquest proceedings should be made. The public must have a restored confidence that the inquest process is fair, impartial and thorough. This result erodes public confidence in that process.

“Officer Birk should be disciplined to the fullest extent provided under the internal process used by the City of Seattle. Our recruitment and training of police officers must prevent this type of tragedy from occurring again. We must adopt a zero tolerance culture relative to the unlawful use of force.

“My proposal that officers be required to wear body-mounted cameras when they are dispatched to potentially violent situations, as opposed to relying on their stationary dashboard cameras to provide evidence, remains a feasible solution to restore public confidence in any process that examines police accountability and possible misconduct.”

By Bruce Harrell and Peter Steinbrueck
Special to The Times

The dramatic video of Seattle Police Officer Ian Birk approaching John T. Williams shows Williams walking across the street directly in front of Birk’s car. The video, captured by equipment known as digital in-car video, also shows the officer leaving the car and commanding Williams to drop a knife.

But then, you only hear the chilling sounds of four bullets fired from Birk’s gun. The video range was too limited.

The city will now spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not millions, trying to determine and address what actually occurred outside the range of the video. As Councilmember Bruce Harrell proposed in September, Seattle could avoid similar situations by equipping police officers with small body-mounted cameras that weigh about the same as a cellphone — something Oakland, San Jose and Cincinnati and other cities have done.

In 2009, video from a body camera exonerated a Fort Smith, Ark., police officer who used lethal force after ordering a man to drop a gun nine times. In Cincinnati, a body camera showed an officer telling a suspect repeatedly to put his hands behind his back. The suspect refused and said, “Tase me then.” The officer did.

Today, most cellphones have video-camera capability. Seattle has been tarnished by police events being video-recorded by citizens and put on the Internet for national dissemination. These devices could also capture when the officer’s conduct is professional, appropriate and procedurally correct.

We just witnessed weeks of proceedings of a public grand-jury inquest that reviewed the Williams shooting. All eight jurors concluded that they still did not know whether Williams tried to put the knife down after the officer’s order; four believed the knife blade was open and four did not know; and four believed Williams did not pose an imminent threat of serious harm to Birk, yet three did not know. Clearly, had the officer recorded the incident with a body-worn video camera, the jury may have been better able to ascertain facts.

The city of Seattle’s 250 patrol cars are already equipped with in-car video equipment. The obvious limitation is that the camera is stationary. The current equipment is nearing its end and will soon be replaced — at a cost of as much as $5,000 per unit. However, the small body-mounted cameras cost only about $900 — or a fifth of what the in-car equipment costs — and can also be placed on the officer’s dashboard and serve the same function.

Recently, the Oakland City Council passed a resolution authorizing the purchase of 350 body-mounted cameras from a Seattle-based company that manufactures small, body-mounted cameras for police work.

Our public demands better officer training in the use of de-escalation tactics and nonlethal force. The police seek better public understanding of the difficult, split-second decisions officers must make in dangerous, life-threatening situations. With the use of body cameras, the circumstances of what happens on the streets can be better understood and improve the work of policing.

As San Jose’s police Chief Rob Davis stated, body cameras provide invaluable evidence and save the internal affairs department the time and cost of pursuing complaints hinged on one person’s word against another’s.

Describing body cameras are the “wave of the future,”Cincinnati’s Police Chief Tom Streicher stated: “What better way of evaluating that officer’s conduct by taking a look at what that officer is seeing?”

Like a growing number of law-enforcement agencies across the country, the Seattle Police Department can demonstrate to the public it embraces accountability and professionalism through the deployment of this technology.

Healthy and sustainable communities work in close partnership with those in uniform whose sworn duty it is to protect them.

Bruce A. Harrell is a member of the Seattle City Council and chair of the Energy, Technology and Civil Rights Committee. Peter Steinbrueck is a former Seattle City Council member and principal of Steinbrueck Urban Strategies.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2014199894_guest14harrell.html

By now, most of you are aware of the fatal shooting of Native American carver, John T. Williams. Politicians are usually adept at avoiding the unpleasant conversation regarding what the implications of this shooting are or how they actually “feel” about these tragedies. In contrast, on September 15, 2010 I convened a 4-hour hearing in Council chambers to openly discuss the full event and all of its ramifications. The Seattle channel video of the discussion is below and the Seattle Human Rights Commission discussion starts at 17:28.

The purpose of the discussion was to make sure a fair and full investigation of this matter was conducted and to discuss what we can learn from this unfortunate event.

Our discussion included officials from the City of Seattle Native Employees association or CANOES, Seattle Office for Civil Rights, Washington Indian Civil Rights Commission, Washington Human Rights Commission, City of Seattle’s Human Rights Commission, Chief Seattle Club, United Indians of All Tribes, National Indian Urban Coalition, Suquamish Tribal Council, and the Puyallup Tribal Council. Seattle Police department officials were invited, but did not attend. To read the specific recommendations resulting from the discussion, please click the links below.

• CANOES (City of Seattle Native American Employees)
• Seattle Commission for People with Disabilities
• Seattle Human Rights Commission
• The Seattle/King County
  Coalition on Homelessness (SKCCH)
• United Indians of All Tribes Foundation

As you may know, the Firearms Review Board has preliminarily indicated that the shooting was not consistent with its rules and procedures for use of deadly force. At the time of this writing, the King County Inquest proceeding is underway to determine whether any criminal charges should be filed as a result of the shooting. In that proceeding, an actual jury is convened to hear arguments advanced by the Prosecuting Attorney and opposing arguments made by attorneys for the Police Officer.

I have been very vocal about this shooting for the simple reason that I believe Seattle has to find a better way, a more humane way, if you will, to address this kind of situation. My heart goes out to the family of Mr. Williams and to Officer Ian Birk and his family. I think it as tragic to take a life while on duty, and certainly tragic to die unnecessarily. That fateful day cannot be rewound.

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Press Release issued on Thursday, 9/23/2010:

Councilmember Harrell’s proposal gaining momentum in Seattle

Seattle – Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell today lauded the City Council in Oakland, California, which recently approved legislation to equip all 350 Oakland police patrol officers with body-mounted video cameras.

“Like Oakland, outfitting Seattle Police Officers with this technology will enhance transparency and provide impartial evidence when controversial incidents occur,” said Councilmember Harrell. “Cameras physically located on officers will help educate all investigations of police incidents by showing what happened from beginning to end.”

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Joint Press Release issued (8/05/2010):

Pilot Project to test LED effectiveness on arterials

Seattle – Councilmember Bruce Harrell today announced the next steps of Seattle’s transition to Light Emitting Diode (LED) streetlights with installations completed on arterials in Belltown and the Central District. LED streetlights last three times longer than the currently used high pressure sodium lights and use approximately 40 percent less energy. These are the first arterials in the city to be tested for LEDs and will provide the information necessary to move forward with future arterial installation.

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