Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently announced her support for a series of policy plans for police reform in Michigan, calling on Michigan law enforcement agencies to enhance their training and policies to help create a police culture where all Michiganders are treated with dignity and respect under the law.
She also voiced her support for measures that require law enforcement officers to complete training on implicit bias and de-escalation techniques, and applauded the Senate for taking up Senate Bill 945, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Irwin, which addresses many of these issues.
Attorney General Nessel issued the following statement today on the passage of Senate Bill 945 that would require all incoming law enforcement officers to complete training on implicit bias, de-escalation techniques, and mental health screening as part of the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) certification requirements:
“The passage of Senate Bill 945 is a necessary step in the right direction. This will not undo years of overly aggressive police actions, but it does serve as an acknowledgement of the problems with how we police and the steps we must take to drive change in the days, months and years to come. We cannot allow the system to continue to fail communities of color and this bill will allow us to move forward to bring about concrete change.”
The governor also urged police agencies to require their officers to intervene when they observe an excessive use of force by another officer, which will save lives and help to keep people safe.
ACTIONS THE GOVERNOR IS TAKING:
- Requesting that the Michigan Commission of Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) provide guidance to law enforcement agencies on continuing education that will help officers keep up with the everchanging landscape of new laws and issues facing the community, including diversity and implicit bias training.
- Encouraging police departments to participate in efforts that are underway on comprehensive reporting on the use of force by police departments.
- Urging law enforcement agencies to implement duty to intervene polices.
- The governor applauded Southfield Police Chief Elvin Barren and Lansing Police Chief Daryl Green for their efforts in ensuring their officers intervene when an officer observes another officer doing something inappropriate or illegal.
- Calling on the Legislature to act on SB 945.
- Under Senator Irwin’s bill, SB 945, incoming law enforcement officers would be required by law to go through training on implicit bias, de-escalation techniques, and mental health screenings.
Under the leadership of Governor Whitmer and Col. Joe Gasper, the MSP has already taken a number of actions to reform policies that will ensure MSP members treat all Michiganders with dignity and respect.
ACTIONS MSP HAS TAKEN:
- Created an Equity and Inclusion Officer position within the department.
- Set a goal to increase the racial minority trooper applicant pool to 25 percent and the female trooper applicant pool to 20 percent, in an effort to diversify the department.
- Established community service trooper positions to institute a community policing concept statewide.
- Posted all non-confidential department policies online to increase transparency.
- Implemented recurring implicit bias training for all enforcement members and assisted in the development and pilot of a nationwide implicit bias training for civilian personnel.
- Generated a public-facing transparency web portal for FOIA requests.
- Revised the department’s pursuit policy to limit the circumstances in which MSP members can engage in a vehicle pursuit.
Whitmer has been committed to enacting criminal justice reforms since the day she took office. In April of 2019, she signed an executive order to create the Michigan Task Force on Jail and Pretrial Incarceration, chaired by Lieutenant Governor Gilchrist, which has reviewed the state’s jail and court data to expand alternatives to jail, safely reduce jail admissions and length of stay, and improve the effectiveness of the front end of Michigan’s justice system. The task force has produced a report and made recommendations that are awaiting action by the legislature.
In January of 2019, the governor signed Executive Order 2019-9, which requires each director of a state department and head of an autonomous agency to designate an Equity and Inclusion Officer to help strengthen non-discrimination protections for state employees.
