Policing the police: A system subject to abuse

Published 6:45 am Tuesday, July 23, 2024

SOUTH BEND — Over the past year and a half, the Pacific County Sheriff’s Office has accounted for multiple investigations by the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (CJTC). In each case, someone filed a complaint alleging a deputy violated ethics rules or state law.

CTJC oversees all law enforcement inside Washington except for tribal authorities. The agency is the primary investigator of whether an officer violated ethics rules or state laws, risking revocation of their peace officer certifications and careers.

Online, a public database (tinyurl.com/CJTC-data) shows complaints filed against an officer that were deemed substantial enough to investigate. Eight have been launched relating to the Pacific County sheriff and deputies since early 2022. Only two previous investigations are listed — one of a former sheriff who left office six years ago and another involving a deputy in 2014. Both of the older cases are closed.

Pull Quote

‘Your career is then in the hands of investigators. Even if you know that you’ve done nothing wrong, the seriousness of the allegation can still have a negative impact on a law enforcement officer’s career. In short, it can be extremely stressful for the individual involved.’

Cmdr. Mike Parker, Pacific County Sheriff’s Office spokesman

Officers usually find out after their agency is notified, which ripples through upper brass at the sheriff’s office. The process then includes the sheriff’s office reviewing the complaint and determining if they were already aware of the allegations. Not all complaints generate state investigations. Those that do are handed off for eventual findings and/or recommendations.

Pacific County’s surge in CJTC investigations is mirrored statewide — the number soared from 35 in 2019 to 170 in 2023.

Rise since new sheriff took office

Seven complaints that generated still-active investigations have been filed since Sheriff Daniel Garcia took office on Jan. 1, 2023. Investigations are pending conclusion involving PCSO Deputy Ryley Queener and former deputies Jesse Eastham, Anthony Kimball and Kevin Stewart.

Garcia is also listed due to his responding and working multiple calls while at the police academy from mid-August 2023 through late December. The investigation alleges he violated a CJTC policy that bars cadets from acting as law officers while still in training.

It has already been noted in previous coverage by the Observer that it is not uncommon for officers in the academy to work as police. Reserve officers are the most under-regulated per state law, which only states that they have to go to a reserve academy and does not provide a specific time frame — compared to regular officers who only have six months to enter training.

Weaponized system?

Garcia’s situation and the others showcase issues with the CJTC investigation system under state law, which essentially allows the system to be manipulated. The agency has to take every complaint seriously, with some involving thorough investigation that can take months or even years.

Some top officers at the sheriff’s office, including Cmdr. Michael Parker, have been on a first-name basis with CJTC investigators. Parker recently became the target of an allegation.

A complaint alleged Parker and three others failed to thoroughly investigate an incident on March 24, 2024, when a sheriff’s office van hit an elk on U.S. Highway 101 at milepost 39. Sgt. Nick Zimmerman and Deputy Lucas Marthaller were in the undercover van heading southbound to look for an armed and dangerous man.

“The complaint stated that “if a normal citizen were to act in the manner they did, they would be getting a citation or arrested for reckless driving.” The demand was that Sergeant Zimmerman, Deputy Marthaller, and I be de-certified for failing to report the collision,” Parker added.

“Citizens hit squirrels, raccoons, deer, elk, and other animals and do not always report it. This is not illegal, and no citizen is going to be the subject of an investigation for the simple act of hit-and-run involving wildlife,” Parker said.

Parker initially helped with the inquiry but was asleep at home during the time of the elk crash. According to its database, CJTC chose not to launch a formal investigation into the matter.

Some closed, others not

Sgt. Kyle Pettit had a complaint against him closed on March 8, 2024, after an 11-month investigation. The CJTC investigated the allegations contained in his Potential Impeachment Discloser, formally known as a Brady Letter. It pertains to his involvement in a crash on Dec. 29, 2011, that involved one of his friends at a time while he was an officer for the Raymond Police Department.

The investigation against former corrections officer Patricia Rojas for her involvement in the death of jail inmate Crystal R. Greenler on Dec. 13, 2022, is over. Rojas was the lone corrections deputy on an overnight shift and fell asleep at one point and skipped checking a cell housing Greenler. The woman was found dead the following morning.

Rojas pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge after initially facing felony charges for falsifying public records and forgery. As part of her plea, she surrendered her corrections officer certification. The surrender put an end to an 11-month investigation against her by the CJTC because there was no action to take.

Under a microscope

Parker’s recent personal experience with the CJTC gave him insight into what it feels like to have a claim lodged for what, in his case, was an understandable omission.

“Complaints are always a difficult thing to receive,” Parker said. “If a complaint is lodged against any law enforcement, it is unnerving because it’s rarely known who initiated the claim and the entirety of the complaint.”

“Your career is then in the hands of investigators. Even if you know that you’ve done nothing wrong, the seriousness of the allegation can still have a negative impact on a law enforcement officer’s career. In short, it can be extremely stressful for the individual involved,” Parker added.

The remaining deputies and former deputies are still under investigation, and it could be months or up to a year before the investigations are complete. The CJTC states that it “strives” to complete investigations within 120 days but rarely does so.

Doing their thing

Deputies continue their work, even though the threat of a sudden complaint is always possible.

“Even in a case like this, where I was sleeping at the time of the event in question, it still takes time and energy to respond to CJTC, which taps their limited resources and also takes time away from our daily responsibilities to the citizens of Pacific County,” Parker said.

“Though most of these claims are quickly disproven, every accusation against our office potentially raises questions of integrity and impropriety in the eyes of those we serve. Law enforcement has taken a lot of hits over the last ten years, and the relationship nationwide has been damaged as a result of several high-profile events around the country,” Parker added.

The CJTC was contacted via email with several questions and requests for statistics. The agency responded and planned to respond with answers in a couple of days, however a week has passed since the initial acknowledgement.