Rep. Chris Corry expressed disappointment following the unanimous rejection by House Democrats to a motion that would have ensured Initiative 2113 (concerning vehicular pursuits by peace officers) received a prompt hearing by the House Community Safety, Justice and Reentry Committee.
"The Washington State Constitution makes clear that initiatives to the Legislature should take precedence over all other measures." In the spirit of that requirement and to show our strong support for the over 430,000 people in Washington who signed this initiative, House Republicans put forth a motion that would have instructed the committee to hold a hearing on I-2113 immediately," said Corry, R-Yakima. "I am disappointed House Democrats refuse to address this public safety issue that impacts all our communities."
"Public safety is a top priority for House Republicans, and fixing police pursuits is one of the most important things the Legislature can do to make the people of the 14th District and Washington state safer," said Corry. "While we were able to roll back some of the restrictions on police pursuits during the 2023 legislative session - as I said at the time and as we continue to hear from our law enforcement - that bill did not go far enough. Now, more than 430,000 Washingtonians have agreed, and it is our job as legislators to honor their voices with a prompt hearing on I-2113."
Regardless of whether I-2113 gets a hearing, state lawmakers have three options when presented with a certified initiative to the legislature:
Pass the initiative as written;
Do nothing and send the initiative to the voters;
Pass an alternative that appears side by side on the ballot next to the original initiative.
Currently, a police officer can engage in a vehicular pursuit if:
there is reasonable suspicion to believe that a person in the vehicle is committing or has committed a violent offense, a sex offense, a vehicular assault offense, a domestic violence offense, an escape, or driving under the influence;
the pursuit is necessary to identify and apprehend the person; and
the person poses a serious risk of harm to others, and the safety risks of failing to apprehend the person are greater than the safety risks of the pursuit.
The initiative would change the law to allow vehicular pursuits if:
there is a reasonable suspicion that a person has violated the law;
the pursuit is necessary to identify and apprehend the person; and
the person poses a threat to the safety of others and the safety risks of failing to apprehend the person are greater than the safety risks of the pursuit.
Commented
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.