The King County Sheriff’s Office announced on Friday, June 12, 2020 that it has created new interactive ‘Use of Force’ dashboards on its website, as a measure “for transparency, accountability and action.”
“Building community trust is an important part of what makes the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) a success, and transparency is one of the driving factors in gaining the trust of the communities we serve,” the agency said in a statement.
The new function allows users to query KCSO’s use of force data by day, time and location of force incidents, as well as deputy force tactics.
“To our knowledge, we are one of only two law enforcement agencies in the state, the other being Spokane PD, to provide these dashboards and this level of transparency,” they said.
Here’s more from Sheriff Mitzi G. Johanknecht:
“I am pleased to announce we have placed interactive Use of Force dashboards on our website. Now our community members can query KCSO’s use of force data by day, time and location of force incidents as well as deputy force tactics. To our knowledge, we are one of only two law enforcement agencies in the state, the other being Spokane PD, to provide these dashboards and this level of transparency.
“What data is included in the dashboards? I contracted with Police Strategies LLC to conduct an extensive analysis of KCSO use of force incidents occurring in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. Our intent is that the dashboards will be updated annually. Here is a link:
https://www.kingcounty.gov/
“Further explanation of our uses of force can be obtained in our 2019 Use of Force Report, which is also posted on our website here:
“My desire is to work collaboratively, with both county elected officials and the people we serve, to answer our community’s call for transparency, accountability and action.
“It continues to be my pleasure and honor to serve as your elected Sheriff.”
