SB 6130 & HB 2394 Would Grant More LE Authority to Liquor Officers MAJOR CHANGE

[bigtex]

Another point I wish to make here bigtex is jurisdiction how is that supposed to work?A municipal cop has jurisdiction in his or her city,a sheriff has the entire county,And state patrol has the state highways.This bill would give these other groups statewide authority? 

You were correct up until state patrol.

State patrol has statewide authority, not just on the highways. They are essentially the "super" county deputy in that they can go in all counties and do everything. WDFW and WSP are the two state agencies with this authority.

The original bill would have made LCB join the list of WDFW and WSP, LCB could have gone everywhere and done anything.

Now the bill will just limit LCB the additional authority of traffic (RCW 46), RCW 9 (crimes and punishment, and RCW 9 (WA Criminal Code).

Right now LCB has statewide authority simply over alcohol, most drugs, and tobacco laws as they pertain to taxing and use by minors.

[bigtex]

I just read the comments section on this bill from the LCB and it says if certain conditions have been met by the LCB officer,What are these conditions?

When the hearing for the bill happened the bill being discussed would have granted full law enforcement authority for LCB Officers and most would need additional training.

Now the bill is simply granting authority over three new RCW sections and not granting full LE authority. No additional training is needed.

[bigtex]

I would prefer that the state give the money and responsibility to the local sheriff's office, but if that wasn't an option then I would still support it.

I am sure you already know this but the state doesn't give money to non-state law enforcement agencies. This is how it works in most states. County/city agencies are funded by their city/county funds.

[bigtex]

Having read through this thread I have yet to see one decent argument against it.  Ask any cop what they need, and the reply is almost always MORE cops.  They are being asked to do more with less, and every state, county, and city agency are going through major cuts or barely holding on. 
I would prefer that the state give the money and responsibility to the local sheriff's office, but if that wasn't an option then I would still support it.

But in this case they are requesting to do more.

I agree and disagree with you. They are certainly asking for more authority, but they aren't going to be sitting up on I-5 running traffic or any additional duties. They are simply wanting authority to deal with the things they already encounter during their jobs already.

It was said in the committee hearing. A fight happens in a bar and LCB is there, they cant do anything but call for city/county. You now have at least 2 officers from at least 2 agencies dealing with a situation which in many cases can be handled with one full authority officer. How much money is being wasted here?

[bigtex]

Also I would like to point to RCW 9A.16.020,To show what I meant when I said every citizen of Wa. state allready has that authority.9A.16.110 for the bar fight brought up. 

You also need to understand law enforcement agencies. Agencies (nationwide) tell their officers do NOT get involved in anything outside your authority. The idea of an on-duty officer making a citizen arrest for something outside their authority is grounds for termination in most agencies 

[bigtex]

They allready have the authority just like all the citizens of this state,,,,,,,,,,,,,Call it in.I've called Leo several times on drunk or out of control drivers.Its not very often that a LEO does anything before he/she calls it in any way.Before a LEO pulls over a drunk driver they call it in first,pull the driver over and the other LEO know whats going on and can assist,and do most of the time.So these other groups trying to get the authority dont need it any more than any of us. 

So when that DUI driver in front of a LCB Officer goes off the road and kills a pedestrian walker in your mindset this is ok? Because that's what your saying steve. You don't want a dangerous driver to be pulled off the road just because the officer has LCB on his badge and not WSP, Sheriff or City. You act like LEOs are around every corner, what if the closest non-LCB Officer able to stop the DUI driver is 30 minutes away from the LCB Officer? The Skamania Sheriff said this last year at the committee hearing and he was basically booed out of Olympia and the Sheriff's Association doesn't even want him to testify on bills anymore.

I'd hate to be a legislator and have the media ask me why the DUI driver who killed someone couldn't be taken off the road even though there was a state law enforcement officer driving behind them.

Sorry Jimmy your dad died because a drunk driver hit him, even though there was a state law enforcement officer behind him he couldn't pull the driver off the road because some people don't want LCB Officers to take dangerous people off the roads....

No bigtex, thats not what I said,I would like for you to quote me word for word on that statement and show me exactly where it is.And I guess since he was booed out of the hearing Im not alone with my mindset,now am I?

You said the LCB Officer should call in the DUI, which I assume means have a deputy, trooper, city cop pull the drunk over?

And what happens if that other officer doesn't get their in time to pull the individual over and now the driver has killed someone? LCB cant make traffic stops for traffic offenses.

[stevemiller]

Dont forget the part where I said the courts are the first to be blamed for the DUI problem not the LEO.10 DUI's and still not in prison,I hear it all the time.

[bigtex]

They allready have the authority just like all the citizens of this state,,,,,,,,,,,,,Call it in.I've called Leo several times on drunk or out of control drivers.Its not very often that a LEO does anything before he/she calls it in any way.Before a LEO pulls over a drunk driver they call it in first,pull the driver over and the other LEO know whats going on and can assist,and do most of the time.So these other groups trying to get the authority dont need it any more than any of us. 

So when that DUI driver in front of a LCB Officer goes off the road and kills a pedestrian walker in your mindset this is ok? Because that's what your saying steve. You don't want a dangerous driver to be pulled off the road just because the officer has LCB on his badge and not WSP, Sheriff or City. You act like LEOs are around every corner, what if the closest non-LCB Officer able to stop the DUI driver is 30 minutes away from the LCB Officer? The Skamania Sheriff said this last year at the committee hearing and he was basically booed out of Olympia and the Sheriff's Association doesn't even want him to testify on bills anymore.

I'd hate to be a legislator and have the media ask me why the DUI driver who killed someone couldn't be taken off the road even though there was a state law enforcement officer driving behind them.

Sorry Jimmy your dad died because a drunk driver hit him, even though there was a state law enforcement officer behind him he couldn't pull the driver off the road because some people don't want LCB Officers to take dangerous people off the roads....

No bigtex, thats not what I said,I would like for you to quote me word for word on that statement and show me exactly where it is.And I guess since he was booed out of the hearing Im not alone with my mindset,now am I?

You said the LCB Officer should call in the DUI, which I assume means have a deputy, trooper, city cop pull the drunk over?

And what happens if that other officer doesn't get their in time to pull the individual over and now the driver has killed someone? LCB cant make traffic stops for traffic offenses.

Hire more police officers.

There are still counties in WA that don't have 24/7 Sheriff and WSP coverage. So a LCB Officer driving home after doing bar closing checks at 3AM has a drunk in front of him the closest Sheriff and WSP Officer is at home on-call. What do you do? Just keep following him for 30 minutes hoping he doesn't kill someone until Sheriff/WSP shows up?

You said hire more officers? How much do you want your taxes to go up so we can have an officer within 5 minutes response time of every road in WA 24/7?

[bigtex]

Dont forget the part where I said the courts are the first to be blamed for the DUI problem not the LEO.10 DUI's and still not in prison,I hear it all the time.

I agree. The ability to punish a DUI offender is there, the punishment being handed down is not consistent with the crime 

[stevemiller]

I see your point with this and dont have a lot to say about it,But let me ask you this,Would you pull over after 3 am when an unmarked car without sirens or lights tries to pull you over?

[bigtex]

Exactly.And why do you think this is?  I'm sorry maybe I need a tin foil hat but dont Communist countries have set ups like this where all LEO wear the same uniforms and cover all aspects of law.

Well just about every state in the union allows their State Patrol to enforce all aspects of law within the state.
Almost all states allow their fish and wildlife officers to enforce all aspects of law within the state
Almost all states with alcohol enforcement agencies allow their officers to enforce all aspects of law within the state.
And it most states it has been like this longer then probably all of us have been alive.

Then you have states that have full authority law enforcement officers working for the Horse Racing Commission, Community College Police all with full statewide authority.

[bigtex]

I see your point with this and dont have a lot to say about it,But let me ask you this,Would you pull over after 3 am when an unmarked car without sirens or lights tries to pull you over?

LCB Officers have vehicles with lights, sirens, are dispatched by WSP (like all other state agencies), and wear a uniform with the big word "POLICE" on their back....

So if I saw a car looking like that behind me, yes I would.

[stevemiller]

Oh,lol. I did not know that.

[stevemiller]

What exactly does it meen they are dispatched by WSP?CPS is dispatched by the Sheriffs dept.

[bigtex]

What exactly does it meen they are dispatched by WSP?CPS is dispatched by the Sheriffs dept.

WA Fish and Wildlife, WA Dept of Natural Resources, WA State Parks, LCB, US Forest Service and some other smaller agencies all use the same frequency on WSP radio with Troopers.

So if someone calls in a poaching it goes over WSP radio. If a State Park Ranger checks someone for warrants its on WSP radio. If a LCB Officer says their going into a bar it goes over the WSP radio. If a report of a liquor violation occurs, WSP dispatchers contact LCB over the radio.

All of this is on the same frequency.

So in King County you may hear a Trooper making a traffic stop on I-5, followed by a WDFW Officer checking someone for warrants at Lk Washington, a USFS Officer checking someone's driving license status on Snoqualmie Pass and a LCB Officer saying their going into Joe's Bar.