Bellingham deputy chief responds to calls to defund, reform police at justice forum

Bellingham Deputy Police Chief Flo Simon responded to calls to defund and reform the police during a virtual racism justice forum on Wednesday, July 1.

Over 250 attendees listened to five community leaders discuss how the county can respond to calls for police reform and racial justice. The forum touched on police reforms and the obstacles presented by systemic racism.

The Bellingham Friends Meeting, also known as the Bellingham Quakers, organized and moderated the forum following protests related to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody.

Simon said she agreed with funding more social service work but cautioned against defunding the police. She said cuts to the police budget would first affect their training, which some activists have criticized during the Black Lives Matter movement.

“When people say defund, I don’t want them to get the misconception that we get extra money to deal with mental health services, homelessness (and) addiction,” Simon said. “What would happen is if you defunded the police department or the sheriff’s office or any other law enforcement agency is the first thing that gets cut is training. Second thing that gets cut is the positions of police officers themselves.”

In addition to Simon, four panelists spoke: Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu, Rosalinda Guillén of Community to Community, Shirley Williams of Lummi Nation and White Swan Environmental and Jonathan Randolph, a Black entrepreneur and professional vocalist who is a member of the Bellingham Friends Meeting.

Randolph described the everyday concerns he feels as Black man living in Bellingham. He said he has worried store managers would suspect him as a shoplifter and has introduced himself to all his neighbors to assure them he’s not a neighborhood trespasser.

“Having an officer following and surveilling my family and I as we’re walking down Cornwall Avenue is one of the many obstacles that I faced in Whatcom County,” Randolph said. “I’m an optimistic man, however I know of Blacks and other people of color here that have been alienated because of the bigotry that still exists in America today.”

He said Bellingham should focus on demilitarizing and reforming the police rather than defunding them as some protesters have called for. He added he thinks the police need to diversify their ranks to better represent the minority communities they protect.

Guillén said her organization has been bringing attention to the injustices felt by the Latino community and shared reform ideas with local government to no avail for several years. She said she felt Whatcom County contains a subtle, courteous form of racism that marginalizes and oppresses the Latino community.

“We need to find a way to end the fear that is sitting in the background all the time for people of color in Whatcom County,” Guillén said. “We need to change the culture to a culture of no fear, where we can really trust the local law enforcement that is not law enforcement, but is community security, community safety for everybody.”

Simon said Bellingham police have met with supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement to listen to their concerns. She added she thinks her department’s policies align with most of the “8 Can’t Wait” policy proposals on use of force.

The “8 Can’t Wait” campaign calls on police departments to ban chokeholds, strangleholds and shooting at moving vehicles.

The campaign also advocates for police departments to require de-escalations, a warning before shooting a gun, the exhaustion of all alternatives before shooting, a duty to intervene when other officers are using excessive force, comprehensive reporting and a use-of-force continuum.

Simon said Bellingham police banned chokeholds and strangleholds, but they are still allowed to use a similar move called a vascular neck restraint because it can be used to quickly secure a person before they could reach for a weapon.

“I think we have to leave those tools on the table,” Simon said. “But when you leave them on the table, you have to have training, you have to have yearly training on it, you have to be certified in it and you have to pass an exam on it. So, you just can’t use it just to use it.”

Bellingham police officers undergo an initial 40 hours of de-escalation training and more training on a yearly basis, Simon said. Police also use warning shots when feasible, have a duty to intervene and make reports, she added.

Simon said Bellingham police have not banned shooting at moving vehicles but added this should be a last resort. She also said she thinks force continuums are difficult to implement because officers of different builds and sizes may need to use different levels of force.

“If I’m a 5-foot-6-inch woman and a 200-pound person is going to attack me, I will respond differently than my co-worker who might be 6-feet-2-inches and 280 (pounds),” Simon said. “The continuum is different for me. Where he might go hands on with somebody, I might tase somebody.”

Sidhu said he has met with the county sheriff to evaluate their policies. He added progress has been slow but is moving in the right direction.

Regarding calls to defund the police, Sidhu said he does not think people want to abolish the police. Instead, he thinks people want more money directed at rehabilitating individuals experiencing mental illness or drug addictions.

“There are many other reasons we need to have police,” Sidhu said. “I think what they are crying for or asking for is we should spend more funds on rehabilitation, on separating criminals from people who have other problems. They should not be treated the same.”

To that end, he said the county funded the construction of a 32-bed crisis stabilization facility on Division Street last year to accommodate such people for up to seven days. He added the project missed its July opening date and will instead likely open by late September.

While this facility solves a problem for the community, Sidhu said he thinks it is not enough in its current form. He said he thinks the county should invest in a similar facility that can support more people for three to 12 months.

However, he added he expects funding for such a project will be delayed about two years because of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis and the economic recession.

Looking forward, Williams said change could start in Bellingham if the community invested in sharing the culture and stories of the indigenous peoples and minority communities.

“I think we need to create a new model and Bellingham is the place to start,” Williams said. “I have to believe healing could start here. Knowledge democracy is honoring all people… and it could start here.”

Guillén said the community could start on the path to ending racism by recognizing systemic racism and refusing to tolerate racist behavior.

“I’m exhausted with the subdued racism of some Bellingham people, especially structures,” Guillén said. “We’ve got to tell the truth about what’s really happening around us.”

After the forum, Virginia Herrick, a recording clerk for the Bellingham Friends Meeting, said she thought the meeting went well because the panelists offered diverse viewpoints while remaining collegial.

“I felt like the panelists really responded to one another and to the questions of the attendees with a lot of respect and incredible thoughtfulness and compassion,” Herrick said. “So, I’m very encouraged, it’s just the beginning, but it’s a good one.”

Herrick said the Bellingham Friends Meeting has not yet decided to host a follow-up forum, but they intend to encourage more discussions around racism in Whatcom county.