WCSO 2021 Annual Report - Flipbook - Page 28
PURSUIT OF
EXCELLENCE
CONTINUED
Use of Force and Polis Solutions
The Washington County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO)
recognizes public trust and accountability are of
the utmost importance. To ensure WCSO policies,
procedures, standards, training, evaluation, and
accountability related to the use of force align with
best practices, WCSO contracted with Polis Solutions to
thoroughly review all elements of WCSO operations and
administration associated with the use of force.
As stated in the report, “Sheriff Pat Garrett gave clear
directions to the Polis team to generate a report that
would include practical, actionable recommendations
with significant potential to measurably improve how
WCSO manages the use of force.” Additionally, Polis stated
their “…primary recommendation would eventually be
this: work deliberately to foster internal trust within the
Sheriff’s Office, and external trust between WCSO and
the people of Washington County.” Notably, the Sheriff’s
Office’s Vision is in alignment, “Enhancing public safety
by fostering a culture of professionalism, compassion
and trust within the communities we serve and our
Sheriff’s Office team.”
In December 2021, WCSO received the final report from
Polis Solutions and evaluated all the recommendations.
Throughout 2022, WCSO will assess and prioritize
recommendations for implementation. While WCSO
will implement some of the recommendations in the
near future, other recommendations will take longer to
implement. WCSO asks the community to allow time
to assess the recommended changes and make any
appropriate decisions.
Polis Solutions’ review found “Overall, reported use of
force rates in Washington County [Sheriff’s Office] are
significantly lower than the estimated national average
of police use of force, which is generally thought to
occur or be threatened in approximately 1-2% of policecommunity contacts.”
Sheriff Garrett said he was not surprised when he initially
reviewed the report from Polis Solutions and read, “…
throughout all of our interviews and conversations
with the members of the WCSO, deputies spoke of the
Washington County community with gratitude, respect,
and appreciation for the level of public support they
feel they have. The Polis team is hard-pressed to think
of another agency where personnel expresses such
unequivocal high regard for the community they serve.”
You can find a copy of the report from Polis Solutions on
the Washington County Sheriff’s Office Accountability
web page: bit.ly/WCSO_Accountability.
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