Politics
WA lawmakers want new police decertification law to apply to past misconduct
Legislators say they didn’t mean for past misconduct to be off-limits, but that’s how a state commission has interpreted the new law.
Legislators say they didn’t mean for past misconduct to be off-limits, but that’s how a state commission has interpreted the new law.
A law making it easier to decertify problem officers won’t cause elected sheriffs to lose their jobs, as it would for other cops.
Plus, a closer look at some of the concerned statements made by police chiefs and sheriffs.
In Washington state and around the nation, some cops fired for dishonesty or misconduct remain on the beat because private arbitrators gave them their jobs back.
Prosecutors must flag officers who have known incidents of dishonesty or other misconduct. A Crosscut investigation found at least 22 officers with such issues still found new jobs at other agencies.