Why police accountability efforts failed again in the Washington Legislature
For a second year in a row, Washington police accountability advocates have seen their priorities fall flat in Olympia.
They entered this year’s session wanting to grant the attorney general stronger oversight of local police departments. They also wanted to create an independent prosecutor to handle cases when police use deadly force; restrict when officers can pull drivers over; block law enforcement from lying during interrogations; and set new standards for police chiefs and sheriffs.
None of those proposals will become law this year. None even received votes from either chamber of the Washington Legislature, despite growing Democratic majorities.
“This is the saddest time of my life, because this is the world I have to leave my children,” said Nickeia Hunter, an advocate from the Coalition for Police Accountability, whose brother was killed by police. “We have to stay on top of fighting for what we started.”
https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/05/06/why-police-accountability-efforts-failed-again-in-the-washington-legislature/