Key steps in Use of Deadly Force Investigation Audits process
Incident
A law enforcement officer uses deadly force, which results in death, substantial bodily harm or great bodily harm.
Investigation
The use of force is investigated by the Office of Independent Investigations (OII) or a regional independent investigation team (IIT) made up of detectives and other crime scene investigators from law enforcement agencies in the region where the use of force occurred. Agencies involved in the deadly force incident cannot send detectives to be part of the independent investigation team.
Prosecution
The county prosecutor reviews the OII's or IIT’s completed investigation.
The prosecutor decides whether or not to criminally charge the officer that used deadly force. These charging decisions can depend on completion of related reviews, such as a coroner’s inquest.
If the prosecutor decides not to pursue criminal charges, SAO begins review of the OII or IIT investigation. Or the prosecutor may pursue criminal charges. SAO cannot begin audit work until the resulting court case, including appeals, is completed.
SAO's Audit
If the use of deadly force is investigated by an IIT, SAO compares the elements of the investigation as it was conducted to criteria outlined in the rules established by the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission.
If it is an OII investigation, SAO compares the steps taken to the agency's own policies and procedures. Those rules are substanially similar to the rules guiding IITs but differe in some respects.
The rules and policies are designed to ensure investigations are independent, transparent, thorough and communicated to the public and affected people.
SAO issues a report that describes any criteria the investigation did not follow and offers recommendations to improve compliance.