The frustrating limits of transparency...again

When I arrived in Wichita I committed to increasing transparency and changed practices such as notifying the public as soon as possible when a police officer has been arrested.  Recently, I came across this blog I wrote when I was a chief in Minnesota. It references a serious officer misconduct case from 2012. Today, I feel some of the same frustrations regarding recent WPD issues and what information we can or can’t provide due to labor agreements, the Kansas Open Records Act, active criminal investigations and City policy.  Having served as a chief for nearly 12 years, I have worked diligently and sincerely to be as transparent as allowed by law, policies and union agreements. I will continue this work with the help of WPD partners and other community stakeholders. Following is the blog from when I was chief in Minnesota:

 

The police department is one of the most visible and critiqued areas in local government. Transparency and dissemination of timely information to the public is critical in every corner of the policing world. Dealing with data privacy laws, while trying to be transparent and keeping the community informed, is a tough line for police administrators in Minnesota.

 

One particularly difficult incident occurred a few years ago, when I terminated an employee in a use of force case that received a lot of media attention. Due to Minnesota law I was unable to publicly share that I had terminated the employee. Unfortunately, law forbids releasing employment information until final discipline occurs, which is after the grievance period or arbitration. The only information I could release was previous discipline, employment status and whether it was paid or unpaid. In this case, it was unpaid administrative leave even though the employee had been terminated.

 

Many in the community asked why I did not terminate the employee and were upset the officer's employment status was "administrative leave." Some believed we were not being transparent and I found myself frustrated that I could not talk more openly about what action had been taken. The termination eventually became public when the union dropped its grievance, but it was tough from a community relations standpoint to not speak directly to the matter at the time. The fact the employee was terminated 18 months later was no longer news and the fact the employment status remained “unpaid leave” simmered in many communities.

Yesterday, Sunday, February 12th, off-duty City of Wichita a police officer was  accused of rape by an adult female acquaintance.  The incident was reported to the Wichita Police Department who, in order to avoid any conflicts, requested the investigation be handled by the Sedgewick County Sheriff's Department.  The officer has been employed by the department for four years and has been placed on administrative leave. His police powers have been suspended.  On Sunday evening, the officer was booked by the Sheriff's department for felony rape and charges are pending review by the District Attorney. 



As a police department we are evolving and improving in how we communicate issues when police are alleged to be involved in criminal behavior.  When an officer is arrested, booked or charged for a crime we will communicate with our community and media swiftly, openly and neutrally.



We have the highest standards of conduct and were disappointed to learn about this incident. Unfortunately, policing is sadly unique in the sense that when one officer engages in misconduct, it reflects poorly on our entire profession.



 We treasure our trusted and close relationship with our community and while we respect everyone’s right to due process under law, I can’t help but be very disturbed by the nature of this allegation and in no way should this reflect on the good people of our department.



I will refrain from further comment on this case while the wheels of the system engage. 



 The Sheriff and I have been working for the last eight weeks on an agreement whereby the Sheriff's Department would investigate all Wichita Police officer involved criminal cases and vice versa. The agreement is intended to alleviate conflict of interest concerns and bring more credibility to the criminal investigation process. We were going to announce the agreement later this week, but due to this incident we are announcing it now. 



It is one of the first such agreements involving a major city of which we are aware and believe this will be a good practice as our profession evolves and improves.

Discretion and Policing

I often discuss the importance of officers using good discretion in their daily work. When I refer to using discretion, I am referring to petty and minor violations, not crimes of violence, where victims are concerned or of serious or dangerous nature.  An example of a discretionary act was when an elderly driver pulled out of a parking lot at dusk and had forgot to turn on her headlights on. When I pulled her over, she immediately realized her error.  She had a good driving record and was clearly aware of her mistake, so I decided a warning was the best way to handle this situation.

I was recently asked if we have a written matrix officers can use to help in their decision making process in the use of discretion. The reality is that there are a multitude of discretionary scenarios officers face daily involving minor violations that it is impossible to cover every situation. So how do we decide what to do? 

The Wichita Police Department prioritizes hiring educated, bright, problem-solving police officers who are capable of working through difficult, complex and often life threatening situations.  These officers are then put through rigorous and thorough training. First, in order to be a Wichita Police officer they are required to attend The Wichita Police Academy which is 26 weeks long- 14 weeks longer than the regular 12 week Kansas State Academy. During that training discretion, problem solving and critical thinking is taught and discussed.  After the training academy, the officer then has an additional three months of training with individual training officers where laws, values, mission and vision of the department are further learned.

When I taught new recruits discretion, we would discuss the letter of the law versus the spirit of the law and the importance recognizing the difference. An example of this is while we legally could ticket people for going one mile per hour over the speed limit we don't. The spirit of the law is to manage traffic flow and keep people safe. 

 From time to time I hear from citizens about tickets they've received for minor violations they felt were petty and unnecessary.  Often the theme of the complaint is that the police action taken was antagonistic and unnecessary.  One of the recent complaints involved a license plate light that worked but wasn't visible within the required distance and another came from a citizen to an elected official where they were cited for not immediately turning into the closest lane after making a right turn.  Neither caused and accident or were associated with causing danger.  I share these examples to show how the issuance of minor tickets concern citizens and elected officials.

Discretion goes beyond just traffic enforcement. As I work to advance our organization's values I recently spoke to our latest recruit class about the use of discretion when dealing with youth.  It is my expectation of our police to find opportunities to interact positively with youth and serve as good role models in their life.  When kids are testing boundaries or involved with minor violations, whenever possible and practical, officers should guide, coach, mentor and divert them from the criminal justice system. 

Don't get me wrong, I still go out and patrol the streets and like to catch bad guys victimizing our good citizens.  I like to take law enforcement action when people are driving recklessly and putting others in danger.  The discretion I am talking about is about minor violations where, through a warning, we feel we can change behavior.  

I see discretion as one of the most powerful tools in an officer's tool belt. Using the hammer for minor violations can create an antagonistic relationship. As the old adage goes, "if we believe the only tool we have is a hammer, you will treat everything like a nail."  Our best officers consistently use good discretion and by doing so they are able to make positive, lasting impacts on the people's lives they serve.