‘We will strive to do better,’ Lummi Police chief says after incident caught on video
The Lummi Nation Police Department is reviewing a late-night interaction between officers and several Lummi Tribal members that occurred Saturday, June 6, along the beach, according to a statement put out by the Lummi Nation on its Facebook page Sunday evening.
The concerns were raised after videos were posted to social media showing Lummi police officers’ interaction with a group Lummi women who were angered after police they called to deal with a group of men harassing the women on the beach took no action about the men, but questioned the women about drinking and breathalyzed a woman who drove to the beach.
Numerous comments, suggestions and opinions regarding the incident have since been shared, the Lummi release stated.
“We take the safety and well-being of Lummi Community members very serious and want to deal with the concerns as quickly as possible,” Lummi Police Chief Bob Wilson said in the release. “We, as a police department, must be open-minded and willing to learn from the community. We will strive to do better and will work to gain back trust from everyone involved.”
The video was posted to Facebook at 2:15 a.m. Sunday, June 7, and showed the women’s interaction with two uniformed officers after they placed a call for assistance.
The post said that a “group of white guys” walked up to the women while they were having a small fire and yelled at them about the Lummi Reservation being under a Shelter in Place order. Though the video did not show officers’ interaction with the men, it did show the women question police about why the men were allowed to leave while the Lummi women had to submit to a sobriety test.
Lummi Nation Chairman Lawrence Solomon said in the release that the nation’s past leaders and ancestors made it a responsibility for Lummi leaders and police to care for their people and that officers take an oath “to protect our home and our people” and to “uphold the safety and rights or our citizens.”
“Our law enforcement are our safety officers. So, it is disappointing to see videos arise that show our people being treated poorly and our people feeling like they are unsafe, especially by our own law enforcement, who have taken and oath to protect us,” Solomon said in the release. “We want to reassure our people that we are working with the Chief of Police to review this situation and will take appropriate steps to address this issue.”
Solomon went on to say that the Lummi Nation is striving to implement cultural sensitivity and build community trust.
“This incident was a clear indicator that we have a lot of work to do to accomplish this objective,” Solomon said in the release. “We hope that our community will trust that we are addressing this issue head on, and we hope the community understands that this incident is not a reflection of all LNPD.”
Solomon thanked the women for bringing the incident to light and that it could “reinforce our expectations of our police force to do better.”
The video shows officers responding to the women’s questions about why they were being tested and the men weren’t by saying, “You’re driving, and they’re walking,” “I just want to make sure you make it home safe,” and “What crime did they commit?”
As of Monday morning, the post had more than 350 comments and 280 reactions and had been shared 250 times.
“We deeply apologize to the young ladies and the families that were negatively impacted by this incident,” Solomon wrote in the Lummi release. “We love you all.”
The Bellingham Herald has reached out to Cross and Police Chief Wilson for more details.
This story was originally published June 8, 2020 at 10:42 AM.
