Failure to intervene must have consequences

A lawyer is required to report substantial questions regarding another lawyer's honesty, trustworthiness or fitness to the appropriate professional authority. A physician is obligated to report another doctor's incompetent or unethical conduct that may put patients at risk.But police officers have for too long observed the "blue wall of silence" in which an officer does not inform on another officer who steps out of line or stands by when it happens. Fortunately, that may be changing. The Johnson City Police Department has a new duty-to-intervene policy, which would require officers to step in if they see a colleague violating a law or procedure.But any such policy needs to provide strong incentive to comply, which could range from immediate dismissal to criminal prosecution.Some departments have had duty-to-intervene policies for years. The Minneapolis Police Department implemented an intervention rule in 2016 that required its officers to "stop or attempt to stop" unnecessary violence by their colleagues.But that policy did not keep three officers from standing by on May 25 as their colleague, Derek Chauvin, knelt on George Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes.Johnson City Police Chief Karl Turner said there are duty-to-intervene requirements in the department's revised use of force policy, but he wants the expectation to extend beyond instances of force to include other circumstances."Duty to intervene is not just stopping an unreasonable use of force," he said. "If I'm making a mistake on a search or something, then we would ask our officers to intervene there as well."In July, Gov. Bill Lee put together the Law Enforcement Reform Partnership to improve local policing policies, enhance information sharing, and boost officer training. This process included reviewing use-of -force and duty-to-intervene policies at local law enforcement agencies. Reforms included ensuring chokeholds weren't used as a restraining technique and requiring law enforcement officers to stop fellow officers from violating a law or policy.Turner said the department already was in the process of making adjustments to policies before officials received the governor's recommendations. For instance, the department will classify pointing the muzzle of a weapon at someone as a use of force, which previously wasn't reported as such.The governor's office also announced increased access for law enforcement agencies to the National Decertification Index, a registry that tracks officers who have lost licenses or certificates because of misconduct. Capt. Kevin Peters, who leads the JCPD's Criminal Investigations Division, said everyone hired by the department must already be POST-approved, which can tell the agency if potential new recruits have been decertified in another state.In addition to other training enhancements, the governor's office said the Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy will now require annual in-service training that includes 10 hours dedicated to topics like de-escalation techniques and duty to intervene, officer wellness and community immersion.Law enforcement officers have one of the toughest jobs going. They've got to maintain control in circumstances where they may be challenged beyond the ability of most of us have to do that. We appreciate and support their service.But more reforms are needed. For instance, what seems a standard practice of searching vehicles and their occupants over a simple traffic violation — in the absence of other just cause — should end.And duty-to-intervene policies should be adopted by every law enforcement agency in the nation to create a culture where what happened to George Floyd does not happen again.