By Phillip Niedzielski-Eichner
Monday, December 19, 2016
#I endorse the Connection
Newspaper’s recent editorial on the progress Fairfax County has made
implementing the recommendations of the Ad Hoc Police Practices Review
Commission, on which I had the honor of serving as chairman of the Use of Force
Subcommittee. I have had the opportunity to interact with many members of the
Fairfax Police Department, ranging from commanders to precinct-level
supervisors and officers, all of whom I hold in high regard. We have a fine
police department that we are fortunate to have protecting us day-in and
day-out.
#While the August 2013 shooting
death of John Geer was the catalyst for the commission’s formation, our charge
was to assess the Department’s performance against national best practices. As
we executed against this charge, we identified both areas for improvement and
mechanisms we believed would strengthen the public’s trust and confidence in
the department.
#Forming a commission is a
time-honored tool by public officials to delay action — or avoid it altogether
— since there are always significant barriers to achieving change to
deep-rooted organizational practices, traditions and culture. I commend both
the Fairfax Board of Supervisors and the Police Department, particularly its
chief and command leadership, with ensuring that the Police Commission’s work
is not sitting on the shelf gathering dust.
#With my seven-month commission
experience and a year’s worth of persistent focus on implementation alongside a
dedicated subset of fellow commissioners, I can state without reservation that
both the letter and spirit of the commission’s recommendations have been
embraced by Fairfax County.
#Fairfax County is well on the
way toward approving and implementing the preponderance of the commission’s
recommendations. Of note in this regard are the following:
The
two-pronged approach to independent Police Department oversight advocated by
the commission and recently approved by the Board of Supervisors is significant
in light of historical resistance to civilian review of police actions.
The
changes directed by the supervisors and Chief Roessler with regard to the
Police Department’s openness and transparency are substantial and have already
helped regain the public trust lost, in part, because of the dismal handling of
the Geer case.
The
county’s investment in Diversion First, which provides treatment rather than
jail for nonviolent people with mental illness, and broad-based police officer
training in crisis intervention techniques, are already paying dividends. Those
with mental illness are being treated with greater sensitivity to their
affliction, easing the potential for unnecessary suffering, while also reducing
the potential for officer injuries and the need for the use of force.
Ultimately, this will also help insure a more effective use of tax dollars.
#As important and forward leaning
as these steps are, I believe the recrafting and rewriting of the Police
Department’s Use of Force policy, also known as General Order 540, warrants
particular note. The new Use of Force policy encompasses the commission
recommendations, which also incorporated use-of-force recommendations made by
the independent Police Executive Research Forum. It gives emphasis to the
sanctity of human life, dignity and liberty of all persons as its overarching
value or driving theme; and it calls for de-escalation as the strategy of first
resort when confronted with a threat rather than the use of deadly force.
#Every member of the Fairfax
Police Department, from command leadership to police officer will receive
training under General Order 540 by the end of January, 2017. Police officer
performance will be assessed against the standards set in this policy, while
recruitment and vetting of police officer candidates will focus on the
abilities and temperament that comport with the values captured therein.
#While the preponderance of our
recommendations have been approved and are being implemented, there are
exceptions. For example, we called for all officers being outfitted with body
worn cameras, to complement the dashboard cameras now mounted in each patrol
vehicle. We believe such cameras will benefit both the public and the police
officer. The supervisors delayed consideration of this recommendation for
important matters of budget and privacy concerns, which I believe will
ultimately be overcome.
#I encourage everyone who is
interested to review the Police Commission recommendations progress report at
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/policecommission/progressreport.htm. In summary,
you will find that 178 of the 202 recommendations (88 percent) have been
approved and are either in process of being implemented or have already been
implemented; 15 (7.4 percent) are still under review; and 9 (4.5 percent) have
been rejected.
#The evidence so far is that the
deep-rooted change of the nature and spirit advocated by the commission is more
achievable now than even the most optimistic expected. This noted, I caution
that the transformative progress I have observed can only be sustained over
time with the continued county and Police Department leadership commitment, the
active involvement of the police rank and file officers and most critically
continued community participation, monitoring and oversight.
#Phillip Niedzielski-Eichner
served as chairman of the Use of Force Subcommittee of the Ad Hoc Police
Practices Review Commission, and continues service on the Implementation
Committee.
