The Battle Ground police chief and the Clark County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) enforcement chief both oppose Washington House Bill 1512, otherwise known as “Traffic Safety For All.”
The proposed legislation limits the circumstances when police officers can stop or detain a motorist and adds additional requirements for traffic stops. It authorizes police to send a warning of a traffic infraction via mail rather than stopping a driver.
In addition, the bill would establish a grant program to assist low-income drivers in addressing non-moving violations, such as a defective headlight or taillight.
Both Battle Ground Police Department (BGPD) Chief Dennis Flynn and CCSO Enforcement Chief Chad Rothenberger said their agencies will ultimately enforce all laws approved by the Legislature, but both believe the legislation would have negative impacts.
The bill is a response to a rise in crashes on Washington’s roads, according to backers. Traffic collisions have increased statewide, and supporters of the bill are looking to focus limited law enforcement resources on enforcing traffic laws that address serious and immediate threats to drivers’ safety rather than focusing on minor maintenance issues.
The legislation has been put forward by Democrats in the House.
Flynn and Rothenberger said maintenance stops are primarily for education and not for enforcement.
The bill’s backers say traffic stops for maintenance issues disproportionately affect drivers of color, “often leading to unnecessary tension, racial profiling and violence — all without improving public safety,” the legislation’s background states.
“It is very common that an officer will stop a car, and we don’t even know the sex of the person that’s driving it, much less their race or nationality or any other identifiers until we walk up and make contact with the driver,” Flynn said.
Flynn said minor equipment violations often include hazards to other drivers.
“You know, a burned out tail light, I mean that reduces the vehicle’s visibility to others, so it increases the likelihood of an accident,” he said. “If you have items hanging from your rearview mirror that can obstruct the driver’s vision, posing a hazard. Now, addressing these issues helps make sure that the vehicles on the road meet safety standards. You know, we share the road with countless other drivers, so we want to make sure that the people that we’re sharing the roads with have demonstrated that they can safely operate a motor vehicle to obtain their driver’s license, that the vehicle’s safe to operate on a public roadway, registration, and that they possess insurance so if there’s an accident so not just protects you and I, but it protects our loved ones and those around us.”
Flynn said people who commit crimes very commonly utilize a vehicle. He said police officers making routine stops often make “tremendous discoveries.”
“The best example I can give you is the Oklahoma City bombing, which was on April 19 of 1995,” Flynn said. “One-hundred-sixty-eight people were killed and 680 people were injured. Timothy McVeigh was arrested 90 minutes after that crime because he was stopped by an Oklahoma state trooper for no license plates. Then he was found with a pistol and he was arrested.”
Rothenberger said he disagrees with some of the foundational aspects behind the legislation as well as the suggestion that it would address traffic safety on the state’s roads.
“By only enforcing DUIs and reckless driving, I think there’s so much more that leads to significant crashes that just to say we’re only going to enforce DUIs, distracted driving and reckless driving. I mean, there’s so much more that plays into our traffic collisions than just those three scenarios,” Rothenberger said.
Rothenberger said, oftentimes, maintenance stops are more for education than for enforcement. He said a deputy or officer will often simply make sure all lights around the vehicle are working properly.
Law enforcement can still enforce maintenance violations under the bill, but would have to do so by mail, creating delays.
If an officer isn’t allowed to stop a vehicle for an equipment malfunction, Rothenberger said, “What happens 2 miles down the road when I can’t stop this guy without headlights and then they’re involved in a fatal collision with either another car or a pedestrian, and I had the ability to prevent that crash?”
He added that he does agree with the bill’s grant program concept. The bill would create a grant program that helps low-income drivers fix their vehicles to keep them in compliance.
“Equipment violations are often a sign of poverty, not dangerous driving,” the legislation’s background states.
The bill was scheduled for a public hearing in the House Committee on Community Safety on Monday, Feb. 10.
Read more about the legislation at https://tinyurl.com/293rr8hy.
