The Lacey Police Department is committed to public safety, social justice, and accountability of police personnel. The Lacey Police Department is comprised of law enforcement professionals who have deep roots and connections to our community. The majority of officers either currently live, have lived, or grew up in and around the City of Lacey. We are committed to being engaged with our community to promote and enhance public safety.
We ensure that all of our personnel are committed to fulfilling the expectations and values of the community of Lacey and its police department. The police department is in compliance with all national, state and local regulations, and has met the strict accreditation standards of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC). The Lacey Police Department has created strict policies on the use, documentation, and administrative review of force used by police officers in the performance of their duties.
We are strong proponents and practitioners of de-escalation whenever possible, and only permit the application of the minimum level of force necessary when an officer must resort to the use of force. Officers are required to report and document all uses of force, or any use of force they observe used by another officer. Officers have a duty to intervene if they observe inappropriate conduct by another police employee. All uses of force are reviewed operationally and administratively to ensure the level of force used was proper, necessary and appropriate.
Officers are provided training on interactions with persons experiencing mental health crises, identification and response to persons experiencing medical emergencies, and de-escalating potentially violent encounters. Officers actively participate in implicit bias training to gain insights on themselves and to understand new perspectives. Fortunately, force is seldom required despite the thousands of encounters police officers experience each year. We de-escalate and use words instead of force whenever possible. We treat everyone with dignity and respect. If someone feels we have not met their expectations, we have a robust and comprehensive process to document and investigate all complaints and allegations.
#8CANTWAIT
The Lacey Police Department has been asked if its Use of Force policies and training are in line with policy initiatives, often referred to as “#8cantwait” — intended to reduce the potential of violent encounters involving police officers. The “#8cantwait” is a project by Campaign Zero.
The “#8cantwait” policy initiatives are:
- Ban chokeholds and strangleholds
- Require De-escalation
- Require warning before shooting
- Exhaust all other means before shooting
- Duty to intervene
- Ban shooting at moving vehicles
- Require use of force continuum
- Require comprehensive reporting
The Lacey Police Department policies, training, and practices are consistent with the foundational principles of the policy initiative listed above.
The Lacey Police Department:
- does not teach or train officers in the application of neck restraint techniques.
- trains and practices de-escalation techniques.
- provides verbal warnings when feasible before the use of deadly force.
- provides training on the duty to intervene to stop/prevent/report misconduct or illegal acts.
The Lacey Police Department Use of Force Policy is consistent with:
- only using deadly force when other options are not viable.
- not shooting at moving vehicles as a general rule.
- the use of force continuum concept.
- the requirement of comprehensive documentation and review of Uses of Force.
The following policies and training address the policy initiatives listed in “#8cantwait”:
Thank you for being engaged with your Lacey Police Department. We are committed to public safety, social justice, and accountability of our personnel.
Diversity
Lacey Police Department Diversity
The Lacey Police Department is sensitive to the interconnected issues of racial diversity, social justice, and public safety.
We believe transparency is a key component of being engaged and accountable to our Lacey community. The following data is provided to better inform our community about their police department and its public safety efforts in 2019, 2020, and 2021. (Please note that the data collected conforms to the Federal Bureau of Investigation racial coding protocols.) The Lacey Police Department prohibits racial profiling, harassment, and discrimination in all forms.
Training
The Lacey Police Department is a progressive law enforcement agency dedicated to embracing all six pillars of 21st Century Policing:
- Building Trust and Legitimacy
- Policy and Oversight
- Technology and Social Media
- Community Policing and Crime Reduction
- Training and Education
- Officer Wellness and Safety
The 5th pillar, Training and Education is an important component of our Accountability Measures. Per Washington State Law, police officers are required to complete at least 24 hours of training each year. Over the past five years, Lacey Police Officers have completed nearly 4000 hours of training in the following topics:
- Crisis Intervention Training (To identify persons experiencing mental health crisis, and reducing the potential for violent encounters, and exploring alternatives to jail for those in crisis.)
- Critical Incident Response (Incidents with a high risk from injury or loss of life and ways to reduce that risk)
- De-Escalation of Conflicts and Potentially Violent Encounters
- Diversity Training and Fair and Impartial Policing Training
- Excited Delirium (Identification of persons in medical crisis and coordination of emergency medical response)
- First Aid, CPR, AED, and Traumatic Wound Care
- Harassment (Identification and prevention)
- Implicit Bias, Recognition and Response
- Less-Lethal Tools and Tactics (reducing the frequency of occurrence and the amount of force applied)
- Use of Force Training, Defensive Tactics, Legal Requirements, Documentation
Use of Force
The Lacey Police Department is committed to working with our community to promote and enhance public safety. We ensure all of our personnel are committed to fulfilling the expectations and reflecting the values of the Lacey community. The police department’s use of force policy and practices are in compliance with all national, state, and local regulations and has met the accreditation standards of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC).
