Letters to the editor can be submitted to news@chronline.com.
During the November 24th Centralia City Council meeting, councilors held a discussion about the proposed 2021-22 city budget which included funding for riot gear for the Centralia Police Department. A number of Centralia residents and human rights advocates contacted their city council voicing concern about the purchase of riot gear. These concerns came in the wake of comments from Police Chief Stacey Denham citing increasing numbers of people of color moving to the area. To be clear — people of color moving to Centralia does not justify the purchase of riot gear and should strike a chord with our entire community.
In response to concerns from citizens, Mayor Susan Luond highlighted that the officers of the Centralia Police Department (CPD) are community members who deserve to be safe on the job and go home to their families at night. And she’s absolutely right. Everyone who works, lives, or visits Centralia deserves to be safe in our community — both police officers and civilians alike.
Rather than spend limited city resources on riot gear that will likely sit in a closet gathering dust, we encourage the city council to invest those dollars into body-worn cameras for the officers. These devices can be mounted to an officer’s eyeglasses or chest, and provide real-time information about the sequence of events when an officer comes into contact with a member of the public.
According to the National Institute of Justice, a branch of the United States Justice Department, body-worn cameras can increase officer safety. Initial research suggests that body-worn cameras can lead to higher rates of civilian compliance with officer commands during interactions. The simple act of informing civilians that the interaction is being recorded has been shown to reduce the potential for situations to escalate to the point of an officer using force.
Additionally, Chief Denham made remarks about social media often rendering a judgment against officers before all of the facts are known when there is an altercation. Body-worn cameras would help in this instance as well as they provide an added level of accountability and transparency. When complaints are made against an officer, footage from body-worn cameras can lead to quicker resolution of complaints and lawsuits. This, in turn, can increase the public’s trust in their police department.
We applaud the Centralia City Council for delaying the funding for riot gear until further conversations with the broader community can take place, though we urge the city council to reconsider the approved funding for gas masks. We also appreciate the willingness to invest in training for police officers aimed at increasing CPD’s cultural awareness and responsiveness. Training is a critical step to avoid problematic statements and actions from our leaders moving forward.
Let’s put our tax dollars to work where they’ll be most effective at increasing the safety of all community members by investing funds into body-worn cameras for the Centralia Police Department. After all, everyone in Centralia deserves to be safe and go home to their families at night.
Mary McHale
Centralia
Sarah Brown
WA State Area Coordinator
Inclusion, Diversity,
Equity & Accessibility Team
Amnesty International USA
