The King County Office of Law Enforcement Oversight (OLEO), the agency created to provide independent civilian oversight of the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO), is providing residents with an alternative way to resolving disputes they have with sworn members of the Sheriff’s Office.
“Too often, those who have encountered the police during a traffic stop or during a police enforcement operation feel that they were detained unlawfully or that the deputy was rude and discourteous,” said OLEO Director Charles Gaither. “The Office of Law Enforcement Oversight’s mediation program will provide a mechanism to resolve these allegations and improve relationships between the community and the Sheriff’s Office.”
Mediation is an alternate way of processing complaints against employees of the King County Sheriff’s Office. OLEO and KCSO will identify cases in which parties might benefit from a face-to-face discussion. The mediation will be facilitated by King County’s Office of Alternative Dispute Resolution and create an opportunity for a meaningful and confidential discussion between the parties.
The mediator would be a neutral third party, experienced in helping people talk through and resolve their differences in a constructive way. If both parties agree, the complaint will be resolved through mediation, rather than the traditional complaint and discipline process.
A primary benefit of mediation is that it allows a community member and a deputy to resolve the complaint themselves, rather than depend on the judgment of others. Mediation is also a much faster process and can make a real difference in appreciating conflicting points of view.
A complaint may be considered for mediation if it resulted from a failure to communicate or a lack of communication such that the allegation would be resolved better through mediation than through a formal disciplinary process. Examples of such cases include, but are not limited to:
• Discourtesy
• Rudeness
• Use of profanity
• Racial profiling
• Procedural issues related to pedestrian, traffic stops, or police action
• Vehicle operations (e.g., speeding, use of sirens, code responses, etc.)
“Mediation is an important tool for resolving differences between community members and Sheriff Deputies,” said Director Gaither. “This is a huge step forward and I hope it will be embraced by the Sheriff’s Office and members of the community.
For more information about the OLEO Mediation Program, contact Veronika Singh at (206) 263-8870.
