Submitted by League of Women Voters of Tacoma-Pierce County.
Earlier this year, Governor Jay Inslee signed House Bill 2037, a measure which rolled back parts of sweeping police reform legislation passed in the previous year. These reforms came following widespread protests for police accountability in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder and ensuing unrest, particularly in Seattle.
The reforms have been somewhat controversial and widely discussed. The League of Women Voters is sponsoring a discussion of HB 2037 and other laws that affect how the police and community interact on matters affecting police use of force, de-escalation techniques, and the impact of police practices on civil liberties.
Participants include representatives from the ACLU, the Criminal Justice Training Commission, the Tacoma Community Police Advisory Committee, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tacoma Police Department. They are:
Capt. Gretchen Aguirre, Tacoma Police Department. Capt. Aguirre is currently assigned as the Transformation Captain at the Tacoma Police Department. Her unit is responsible for policy and procedure, body-worn and dash cameras, legislative mandates, and community engagement – the goal is to reduce barriers to police and community interactions and increase opportunities for proactive police initiatives. Capt. Aguirre is a Tacoma resident and has been with TPD for 24 years.
Monica Alexander, Executive Director of the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (WSCJTC). Before working for the WSCJTC, Ms. Alexander worked for the Washington State Patrol, where she retired as a captain after 23 years of service.
Roxana Gomez, Lobbyist, ACLU of Washington. Ms. Gomez lobbies on policing, criminal legal reforms and juvenile justice issues in Olympia. Prior to joining the ACLU, she worked alongside former Seattle City Council President M. Lorena Gonzalez.
Jabari Hampton, Tacoma Police Advisory Committee Member, is a resident of the south Hilltop area and works for King County Metro as a Capital Project Liaison. Mr. Hampton is also a business owner with an MBA from Saint Leo University in Florida.
Chief Micah Lundborg, Chief of Patrol, Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, which includes the Central Patrol Division and Mountain, Foothills and Peninsula Detachments. He is also responsible for our traffic operations and special programs. Chief Lundborg has served with the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department since 1994 in a variety of capacities.
The meeting program will be offered on both April 14 and April 16. Register for Thursday, April 14, 1:00 pm, at https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIoduCvqT0rGNQkFzLEpU6F-OO0dlYmXj2P. Register for Saturday, April 16, 10:00 am, at https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0scOygrzwvGNYdour5UEC7iHj9j8pVFymf.
May as well call yourselves “anyone but a man club”.
I’ve sat through countless meetings, listening to your voice of empathy, equity, and inclusion, as career cowards nodded their heads in agreement.
I’ve watched these destructive policies implemented at your behest.
I’ve suffered an exponential increase in violent crime against myself, my family, my employees, my tenants, and my property. Everyone at ground-level has as well.
I’ve watched as police officers are killed across this nation by released and newly-emboldened criminals.
Your response? Call for new policy to disarm law abiding citizens with your constant attack on what you call toxic masculinity.
You’ve gotten comfortable with the lgbtq+ community because that bolstered your numbers, but now your Title 9 program is being destroyed because of it.
You claim the moral high ground while treating life and death policy as if it is your personal laboratory to play with.
The only consistent factor I see in your reasoning is emotion, which changes constantly.
Of course you will say that is my toxic masculinity and privilege talking.
I would say do the math, but you have labeled that as racist and toxic, as it drives to singular conclusion.
I would say to use logic, but that would be to think critically.
So as you review the “Effects of new police reform legislation”, are you going to accept responsibility for the destruction your knee-jerk implementation caused?
You might want to start with an apology to the families of all the people who were killed and harmed.
Short of that would be a display of your toxic arrogance.
There is no knight in shining armor coming to your personal rescue, only to ride off into the sunset when you are finished with them.
Backtracking on more bad ideas but accepting zero responsibility for the carnage you cause. Washington state politicians are the enemy of the people. When will the masses wake up and vote on he lot of you all out.