United for Peace of Pierce County, WA - We nonviolently oppose the reliance on unilateral military actions rather than cooperative diplomacy.

Gail Johnson teaches in the Master of Public Affairs program at The Evergreen State College in Olympia. -- Johnson holds a Ph.D. in political science and also a graduate degree in public affairs from the University of Connecticut, has worked for several Federal agencies, including the U.S. General Accounting Office (whose name changed in 2004 to the Government Accountability Office). -- On Tuesday, a few hours before the even graver incidents of Nov. 13-14, she formulated her concerns about police actions in Olympia on Sat., Nov. 10, in a 1,100-word statement to the Olympia City Council entitled "RE: City's Actions at the Port." -- She poses twenty-five precisely worded questions about behavior Johnson personally observed, viz. 1) the decision not to arrest peaceful demonstrators and to use pepper spray on them instead; 2) the idleness of medical responders; 3) the use of excessive force to remove demonstrators; 4) the removal of persons from a public space without legal authority; 5) the appropriation of demonstrators' belongings; 6) the failure of some officers to display identifying information. -- She has asked the city council for "a formal written response to each of my questions."[1] -- Thanks to Gail Johnson for permission to post this statement on the UFPPC web site. -- To second these questions to the Olympia City Council, which proclaims on its web site that it "is committed to an open and responsive government," call the council's 24-hour message phone (360-753-8569) or the direct line to the council office (360-753-8447). -- The Olympia Police Department's non-emergency number is 360-753-8300....

The actions of the City in dealing with the peace activists at the Port of Olympia raise a number of questions that I want answered.

1. When the Police arrived on Saturday morning at the Port, it was clear that they had no intention of arresting the demonstrators. Arrests are standard practice in civil disobedience actions. It would have been the appropriate course of action, requiring a minimum of force. The Police merely had to tell them that if they did not move, they would be arrested. The only decision at that point would have been whether the demonstrators would have walked or been carried to a waiting police van.

However, the Police chose to use pepper spray at close range at the main gate. I am sure the police photographer has similar photos to those taken by observers.

Questions: Who made the decision not to arrest the peaceful demonstrators? What did the Chief of Police, the City Manager, the Mayor, and the City Council know about this plan and when did they know it?

Is it City policy to pepper spray citizens who are not resisting arrest? Is it City policy to pepper spray citizens who pose no threat to the safety of the Police or the community? If it is not City policy, what is the process for disciplining these officers and when will that take place?

Was the officer doing the close spraying following Department SOPs? If not, who authorized such close use of pepper spray and repeated use of pepper spray? Who will investigate and how will that officer be disciplined?

2. The behavior of the medical responders also requires investigation. While a fire truck and ambulance showed up and stationed themselves at the far end of the parking lot on Market Street -- a good distance away from those injured at the front gate -- they did nothing to help the two women who were brought to them. They stood around talking to each other and enjoying the sunshine. One woman in particular was in great distress but the medics did nothing other than make some bottled water available. Other activists attended to the women, not the professional city employees who are designated as first responders.

When I asked one fireman why they were not helping, he told me it is best for friends to calm her down. She also was shaking from head to toe. When I asked if she might be going into shock, he said no, she was just cold. No City employee there, however, offered any blanket or did anything to help. One of the activists arrived with a blanket. The Medics did not take her pulse or do any kind of assessment while I was there. When I asked how he knew that she was not going into shock, he said she wasn’t showing signs. What were the signs? He told me she was screaming. Perhaps tired of my questions, after a few more minutes, he asked the young woman if she wanted to go to the hospital. By that time, a few of her friends came over and said they would take her home. The City employees then left.

Questions: Is it standard City policy for Medical personal to stand around and not assist injured citizens? If it is not, then who authorized them to stand around? If they chose to not help on their own authority, who will investigate and how will they be disciplined?

3. After the peaceful demonstrators at the fence were pepper sprayed, the Police moved in to remove them. It appears that excessive and unnecessary force was used.

Questions: Who will investigate the actions of the police in dispersing the crowd to determine whether excessive force was used? Who was responsible for assuring that the Police would use the minimum force needed to handle the situation and who made the decision to use more than the minimum required? How will police officers found to have used excessive force be disciplined? What is the punishment?

4. The Police pushed people off of the sidewalk in front of B&B on Market Street.

Questions: What authority did they have to remove people from a public space? Who approved that decision?

5. People other than the Police went onto the property of B&B and moved the peace activists' belongings.

Questions: Is it City policy to have non-police remove people’s property? Do the Police have the authority to ask civilians to do this kind of work? If so, what procedures were in place to make sure that all of the property was safely moved and fully accounted for? Who supervised? If not, who was responsible for this action and will that person be disciplined?

6. Some Police officers on both Saturday and Sunday did not have any identifying information visible.

Questions: Is it the OPD’s policy to allow officers to engage in police actions without visible identification? If not, who gave these officers permission to not have their badge number visible? Who will investigate and how will they be disciplined?

As a citizen who has long been sympathetic to the tough job that the police have, I have come away from this experience shaken. To see the Olympia Police Officers hosing peaceful demonstrators with pepper spray at very close range was very disturbing.

The policing decisions made on Saturday will now result in expensive lawsuits that the taxpayers, but not the police officers, will have to pay.

More importantly, this use of force at the Port will have a chilling effect on the people exercising their first amendment right to peacefully assemble.

While the OPD cannot continue to operate without close oversight by a citizens’ board and while the Officers who violated the rules of the Department need to be disciplined, I believe what I witnessed may be the tip of a much larger problem. I now wonder about the culture of the OPD. Do they see their job as punishing people who assemble to disagree with actions of our government? Do they not understand that their job is to protect the 1st amendment rights of all Olympians as much as it is to help the Port?

The City of Olympia has a long tradition of social activism. Much work will now be needed to repair the damage that has been done to the relationship between the OPD and Olympia’s activist community.

What actions will the City Council take? I am requesting a formal written response to each of my questions.