King County, Washington, Charter Amendment 4, Office of Law Enforcement Oversight Subpoena Power Amendment (November 2020)

King County Charter Amendment 4
Election date November 3, 2020
Topic Local law enforcement and Local charter amendments
Status a Approved
Type Referral	Origin Lawmakers
List of Washington measuresWashington Referendum 90Washington Senate Joint Resolution 8212Washington Advisory Vote 32Washington Advisory Vote 33Washington Advisory Vote 34Washington Advisory Vote 35Submit

King County Charter Amendment 4, a charter amendment to authorize the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight to subpoena witnesses and evidence in its investigations, is on the ballot as a referral in King County on November 3, 2020.

A "yes" vote supported amending the county charter to authorize the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight (OLEO) to subpoena witnesses, documents, and other evidence in its investigations of law enforcement personnel.

A "no" vote opposed amending the county charter to authorize the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight (OLEO) to subpoena witnesses, documents, and other evidence in its investigations of law enforcement personnel, thereby maintaining that the OLEO has subpoena power through the county code.

A simple majority was required for the approval of Charter Amendment 4.

Election results

King County Charter Amendment 4
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		921,750	81.51%
No		209,037	18.49%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title for Charter Amendment 4 was as follows:

“

Shall Section 265 of the King County charter be amended to authorize the office of law enforcement oversight to subpoena witnesses, documents and other evidence related to its investigations and reviews of county law enforcement officers?   Yes No

”

Ballot summary

The ballot summary for this measure was:

“

King County Charter Section 265 was adopted by county voters in 2015 and established the civilian office of law enforcement oversight (OLEO) as a charter-mandated county office within the legislative branch. Under the charter and established by ordinance, OLEO has the authority to investigate, review and analyze the conduct of county law enforcement officers who have been the subject of a complaint and to investigate the use of force by county law enforcement officers. OLEO also has the authority to review and analyze internal investigations conducted and disciplinary action taken by the county department of public safety in response to complaints and use of force. Chapter 2.75 of the King County Code as adopted by the county council further describes the organization, powers and duties of OLEO. If adopted, Charter Amendment No. 4 would amend Charter Section 265 to give OLEO the authority to subpoena witnesses, documents and other evidence relating to its investigations and reviews. It would also authorize OLEO to administer oaths to the subpoenaed witnesses and would provide that any subpoenaed witnesses would have the right to be represented by an attorney. While OLEO currently has subpoena power through the county code, the code can be amended by the county council. If the power is added to the charter, it can only be amended or removed by a majority vote of county voters.

”

Full Text

The full text of this measure is available here.

Support

If you know of endorsements or arguments that should be posted here, email editor@ballotpedia.org.

Supporters

Officials

• King County councilmember Claudia Balducci (Nonpartisan)
• King County councilmember Rod Dembowski (Nonpartisan)
• King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn (Nonpartisan)
• King County councilmember Jeanne Kohl-Welles (Nonpartisan)
• King County Councilmember Joe McDermott (Nonpartisan)
• King County councilmember Pete von Reichbauer (Nonpartisan)
• King County councilmember Dave Upthegrove (D)
• King County councilmember Girmay Zahilay (Nonpartisan)

Arguments

• Liz Ford, Nikkita Oliver, and Rob Saka submitted the following arguments to the county election's department: "After careful investigation and discussion with community leaders, the King County Charter Review Commission recommended that the King County Charter be amended to provide subpoena power for the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight (OLEO). The Commission found that adding subpoena power would help strengthen police accountability and transparency. The King County Council agreed, forwarding this issue to voters. We urge a 'yes' vote on this commonsense change to the County Charter. Without subpoena power, OLEO can request information from the Sheriff, but it has no ability to legally require it. Among civilian oversight agencies nationwide, the ability to issue subpoenas is commonplace, including those in both liberal and conservative-leaning areas. King County is an outlier because both the Sheriff and the union representing officers have consistently opposed this commonly accepted practice. Given the recent officer-involved killings and the movement for Black Lives locally and nationally, the time is now to grant OLEO the sensible power it needs to effectively conduct its oversight mission."

Opposition

If you know of endorsements or arguments that should be posted here, email editor@ballotpedia.org.

Opponents

Officials

• King County Councilmember Kathy Lambert

Background

George Floyd death and protests

See also: Policy changes in response to the killing of and protests about George Floyd

On May 25, 2020, Minneapolis police officers arrested George Floyd, a black man, after receiving a call that he had made a purchase with a counterfeit $20 bill. Floyd died after Derek Chauvin, a white officer, arrived at the scene and pressed his knee onto Floyd's neck as Floyd laid face-down on the street in handcuffs. Both the Hennepin County Medical Examiner and an independent autopsy conducted by Floyd's family ruled Floyd's death as a homicide stemming from the incident. The medical examiner's report, prepared by Dr. Michael Baden and Dr. Allecia Wilson, said that it was "not a legal determination of culpability or intent, and should not be used to usurp the judicial process."

Floyd's death was filmed and shared widely, leading to protests and demonstrations over racism, civil rights, and police use of force. The first protests took place in Minneapolis-St. Paul on May 26. A protest in Chicago organized by Chance the Rapper and Rev. Michael Pfleger took place the same day, making it the first major city outside of Minneapolis to host a protest over Floyd's death.

Click here to read more about responses to the killing of and protests about George Floyd.

Related 2020 ballot measures

See also: Local police-related ballot measures following the killing of and protests about George Floyd (November 2020)

Ballotpedia identified 18 local police-related or law enforcement measures on the ballot for November 3, 2020, that qualified following the death of George Floyd. The local ballot measures were on the ballot in nine cities and four counties within six states. The local ballot measures concerned police practices, police oversight boards and auditors, police staffing and funding levels, recordings from police body and dashboard cameras, and other policies.

State	Jurisdiction	Title	Description	Result
California	Los Angeles County	Measure J	Requires that no less than 10% of the county's general fund be appropriated to community programs and alternatives to incarceration	a
California	Oakland	Measure S1	Changes the powers, duties, and staffing of the Oakland Police Commission and creates the Office of Inspector General	a
California	San Diego	Measure B	Replaces the Community Review Board on Police Practices with the Commission on Police Practices that would be appointed by the city council to conduct investigations and subpoena witnesses and documents related to deaths resulting from police interactions and complaints made against police officers	a
California	San Francisco	Proposition D	Creates the Sheriff's Department Oversight Board and the Sheriff's Department Office of Inspector General	a
California	San Francisco	Proposition E	Removes the mandatory police staffing level from the city's charter	a
California	San Jose	Measure G	Authorizes the independent police auditor to review reports and records related to officer-involved shootings and uses of force	a
California	Sonoma County	Measure P	Makes changes to the powers and duties of the Independent Office of Law Enforcement Review and Outreach (IOLERO)	a/ot
Illinois	DuPage County	Law Enforcement Budget Advisory Referendum	Advises the county to continue to consider law enforcement and public safety as its top budgeting priority	a
Illinois	DuPage County	Law Enforcement Injury Risk Training Advisory Referendum	Advises the county to continue to fund and support law enforcement training methods that decrease the risk of injury to officers and suspects	a
Ohio	Akron	Release of Recordings from Police Body and Dashboard Cameras after Use of Force Charter Amendment	Requires recordings from police body and dashboard cameras documenting police use of force that results in death or serious injury to be released to the public	a
Ohio	Columbus	Issue 2	Creates the Civilian Police Review Board to investigate alleged police misconduct, subpoena testimony and evidence during the investigations, make recommendations to the Division of Police, and appoint and manage the new position of Inspector General for the Division of Police	a
Oregon	Portland	Measure 26-217	Establishes a new police oversight board in the city's charter	a
Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	Question 1	Adds language to the Philadelphia City Charter calling on the police department to "eliminate the practice of unconstitutional stop and frisk, consistent with judicial precedent"	a
Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	Question 3	Creates a Citizens Police Oversight Commission to replace the Police Advisory Commission	a
Pennsylvania	Pittsburgh	Independent Citizen Police Review Board Charter Amendment	Requires police officers to cooperate with investigations conducted by the Independent Citizen Police Review Board	a
Texas	Kyle	Proposition F	Amends the city charter to authorize the city council to adopt procedures and a committee to review the police department	a
Washington	King County	Charter Amendment 1	Requires investigations into all police-related deaths and to provide public attorneys to represent the decedent's family in the investigation	a
Washington	King County	Charter Amendment 4	Amends the county charter to authorize the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight (OLEO) to subpoena witnesses, documents, and other evidence in its investigations of law enforcement personnel	a
Washington	King County	Charter Amendment 5	Returns the office of the sheriff from an elected position to an appointed position that is appointed by the county executive and confirmed by the county council	a
Washington	King County	Charter Amendment 6	Gives the county council the authority to specify the duties of the sheriff	a

Path to the ballot

See also: Laws governing local ballot measures in Washington

This measure was put on the ballot through an 8-1 vote of the King County Council on July 7, 2020.

See also

Local measures

• Local measures in 2020
• Local law enforcement on the ballot
• Local charter amendments on the ballot
• King County measures

Washington

• November 3, 2020 measures in Washington
• Local ballot measures, Washington
• King County, Washington

News and analysis

• State and local preemption conflicts
• Measures advancing national agendas

External links

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