In response to calls for additional legal assistance, Fairfax County is poised to establish a self-help resource center in the library of its courthouse complex.
At a Fairfax County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday (March 21), the board approved a board matter that would allocate $96,000 in fiscal year 2024 to support the project. The board matter was proposed by Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk and Chairman Jeff McKay.
Reportedly the first of its kind in the state, the center would provide legal information, referrals, forms and resource materials on topics related to court issues. The board matter states that it would serve as an alternative option for people who can’t afford legal services and don’t have pro bono help available.
“In my District, we have had constituents contact my office desperate for legal differential last hey are unable to obtain legal aid services. In one instance, a child custody case, the parents had no idea what to expect at their court hearing and thus were not able to prepare for or understand the court process,” Lusk said in the board matter.
First pitched by the Fairfax Bar Association, which runs the law library, the proposal is being led by Fairfax County General District Court judges Susan Stoney and Dipti Pidkiti-Smith.
A 2019 study by the bar association found that the cost of hiring an attorney and the belief that cases can be handled alone are among the top reasons litigants didn’t have a lawyer.
“Access to justice for self-representative litigants is a significant issue facing the legal community today,” the board matter said.
Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity noted that the challenge is not limited to “Black and brown communities.”
Responding to Herrity, McKay emphasized that the board matter specifically refers to economically challenged residents and other communities who are most in need.
He said that statement was “absolutely factual” and “all encompassing.”
Police took two people into custody yesterday (Thursday) after a reported armed robbery in Great Falls turned into a dizzying pursuit from Tysons to Herndon and back again.
Officers were called to the Safeway at 9881 Georgetown Pike at 12:05 p.m. for a report of a man and a woman stealing merchandise, the Fairfax County Police Department says. The suspects allegedly pointed a gun as they left the store.
According to the initial police dispatch, the individuals took Tide detergent from the store. The vehicle tag was traced to a man with an outstanding felony warrant for robbery in Prince William County.
“The two left in a car with a child in the backseat. Officers saw the car and attempted a traffic stop that resulted a pursuit,” FCPD spokesperson Sgt. Jacob Pearce said.
Per scanner traffic, the chase began on southbound I-495 (Capital Beltway) at Georgetown Pike before exiting to the westbound Dulles Toll Road toward the airport, as officers asked for a helicopter to assist.
After feinting an exit multiple times in the Reston area, the driver turned off at Centreville Road in Herndon and swung back around to the eastbound toll road. The screech of tires can be heard on the police radio.
“Do not PIT the vehicle,” a supervising officer said, referring to a maneuver used by law enforcement to stop moving vehicles. “At most, try to bring the car to a stop slowly. I do not want any reckless driving behavior to endanger the child’s life inside the car.”
The pursuit continued into the Dulles Toll Road’s airport lanes and exited onto Route 7 (Leesburg Pike), where the driver jumped a curb to cross from the eastbound to the westbound lanes.
After turning onto Trap Road, back onto the toll road, and off at Dolley Madison Blvd in McLean, the chase made its way onto the Beltway and finally ended in the northbound lanes near Lewinsville Road, where the driver was arrested.
: Wreck on 495.https://t.co/ZCXBmMXPPj
— Henry Bright (@HCBright10) March 23, 2023
The woman was also taken into custody, according to the FCPD.
“No injuries were sustained as a result of the incident,” Pearce said. “The child is safe and is currently with caregivers. No crashes were reported during the pursuit. Detectives are actively investigating. The names and charges will be released once charged.”
Close to 40 police vehicles were involved in the chase, including both local and state agencies, according to a tipster who said they followed part of the saga on Route 7 and the Dulles Access Road. At one point, an officer said on the radio that there were “too many vehicles” in the pursuit.
Photo via @notaveryh/Twitter. Hat tip to Alan Henney, Henry Bright and KKirkhart.
Supreme Court Tosses County Zoning Update — “The Virginia Supreme Court has voided a massive zoning modernization plan approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2021 because the board’s approval occurred during a virtual meeting. The court’s ruling, issued Thursday, could call into question scores of routine decisions made by local governing bodies during the first 15 months of the COVID-19 pandemic.” [Inside NoVA]
D.C. Cherry Blossoms Reach Peak Bloom — “The National Park Service announced that Washington’s cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin reached peak bloom Thursday. Peak bloom occurs when 70 percent of cherry tree buds are flowering…The National Cherry Blossom Festival started Monday in coordination with the flowering of the cherry blossoms.” [The Washington Post]
Fire Department Advises Properly Disposing of Cigarettes — “During March, there have been two significant house fires caused by improperly discarded smoking materials…In addition, there have been a few, relatively minor, fires caused by improperly discarded smoking materials. Improperly discarded smoking material fires are totally preventable!” [FCFRD]
Public Hearings Set on Parking Changes — “The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors say they will take the time to get proposed ‘Parking Reimagined’ zoning, policy and procedural changes done right, rather than force them through despite concerns that continue to fester in the community.” Public hearings will be held by the planning commission on April 19 and the board on June 6. [Gazette Leader]
Tech Industry Finds Home in Northern Virginia — “HQ2 may be facing a hiccup, but local tech companies specializing in defense contracts, AI, space, cloud computing and healthcare are thriving. Northern Virginia is home to 17,000 tech companies, nearly half of them in Fairfax, a concentration that has led to an insatiable thirst for workers.” [FCEDA]
Park Authority Calls for One Hour Without Lights — “The Fairfax County Park Authority is encouraging participation in the annual One Dark Hour event, Saturday, March 25…To participate in One Dark Hour, simply turn off your outdoor lights on Saturday, March 25, between 8:30 and 9:30 p.m.” [FCPA]
Herndon HS Band to Play at Pearl Harbor — “It’s a big year for the Herndon High School Band: The Pride of Herndon which is celebrating its 75th year as a band. Amidst the celebrations, the band received the invitation to be Virginia’s ambassador at the 2023 Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade.” [Patch]
Hayfield SS Graduate Reflects on Journey to NASA — “Hayfield Secondary School alum Swati Mohan is making history as an aerospace engineer with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab and Mars 2020 mission. But in high school, Mohan didn’t imagine that’s where her career was going…until she was inspired by her FCPS physics teacher and two vastly different Science Fair projects.” [FCPS/Facebook]
It’s Friday — Rain throughout the day. High of 71 and low of 48. Sunrise at 7:07 am and sunset at 7:25 pm. [Weather.gov]
(Updated at 6:20 p.m.) The Fairfax County police officer who allegedly fired the gunshot that killed Timothy McCree Johnson outside Tysons Corner Center last month will be fired, Chief Kevin Davis announced this afternoon (Thursday).
Davis didn’t identify the officer removed from duty, but the Washington Post reports that Sgt. Wesley Shifflett, a seven-year veteran of the Fairfax County Police Department, is believed to have fired the fatal shots.
The announcement was made at a 1 p.m. press conference, where the FCPD publicly released surveillance and body camera footage of the Feb. 22 encounter, which began with Johnson allegedly shoplifting a pair of sunglasses from Nordstrom and evolved into an extended foot chase.
“As a parent, my heart is still broken,” Melissa Johnson, Timothy’s mother, said. “I feel like I can just breathe a little bit lighter after hearing the announcement today, but we’re still waiting to see exactly what’s going to happen.”
The second officer involved — previously identified as eight-year veteran James Sadler — has been kept on modified restricted duty as a criminal investigation into the shooting continues.
Carl Crews, a lawyer representing Johnson’s family, called Shifflett’s firing an “appropriate” move for an apparent violation of the FCPD’s use-of-force policy.
“But we’re not satisfied,” Crews told FFXnow. “The process needs to continue. The Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office needs to indict. There needs to be a charge against the officer, because a life was taken wrongly.”
The FCPD policy permits the use of deadly force against someone who’s fleeing if they’re suspected of committing a felony and their escape could pose a “significant threat” to others.
It’s unclear exactly where Johnson was in relation to the pursuing officers from the over eight-minute video compilation that the FCPD released. Shifflett can be heard saying that Johnson is going into the woods and yelling “get on the ground.”
He then appears to trip on the underbrush and says “Stop reaching.” The body camera’s lens gets briefly covered up as Shifflett reports “shots fired,” though the video needs to be slowed down and digitally enhanced to hear the three “pops” of gunshots.
Johnson did not have a weapon.
Police have confirmed that both Shifflett and Sadler fired their weapons, which means they both need to be held accountable, Crews argues.
“If [the other officer] was involved in the shooting, firing his weapon…he also violated the Fairfax County police officer policy for the use of deadly force, so he should be fired as well,” Crews said.
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay confirmed that a notice of separation was served to one of the officers involved, expressing support for Davis’s decision in a lengthy statement that called the released video “disturbing.”
“I know Mr. Johnson’s family members are still grieving the death of their loved one, and I grieve for them,” McKay said. “Understandably they are also demanding answers. I hope the continued progress in this case will bring them a level of assurance that Fairfax County has heard them and is working transparently and with integrity.”
In a statement released prior to the press conference, Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said he expects to make a decision on whether to pursue charges against the officers “in the coming weeks.”
Later today, the FCPD will release body camera footage of the death of Timothy McCree Johnson.
CA Descano’s statement: pic.twitter.com/Gdk6sNwTei
— Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Descano (@FairfaxCountyCA) March 23, 2023
“I have seen and am devastated by the body-worn camera footage showing yet another death of a Black man at the hands of police,” Descano said. “My heart grieves for the Johnsons, who lost a beloved family member over an incident involving a pair of sunglasses. Like many members of our community, I sincerely hope to see the day when police shootings are a thing of the past.”
His office said it had no further comment when asked about the FCPD’s anticipated firing of an officer.
After shootings by police officers spiked last year, the FCPD has agreed to undergo a review of all shootings since 2021 by the nonprofit Police Executive Research Forum, which will also provide recommendations on a possible policy dictating when officers can engage in a foot pursuit.
Saying she’s thankful for the “love and support” her family has gotten from the community, Melissa Johnson expressed support for a foot pursuit policy and any other changes that could prevent future violence.
Clear policies and training that ensures those policies are followed would make officers safer as well, she noted.
“This is not against law enforcement at all. This is some officer that did not adhere to their policy, and unfortunately, my son is not here any longer,” she said. “But now that that has occurred, what can we do so that another parent does not have to endure what we’re having to endure right now?”
Fairfax County could be taking some notes from New York City and Portland as it tries to turn back the surge of recent pedestrian fatalities.
The Board of Supervisors directed the Fairfax County Department of Transportation on Tuesday (March 21) to review turn-calming measures from other jurisdictions, discuss options with the Virginia Department of Transportation, and come back to the board’s transportation committee with an analysis of how that can be implemented.
“Over the past several years, this Board has taken significant steps to prioritize pedestrian safety,” Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said. “Despite these efforts, there were still sadly 32 pedestrian fatalities in Fairfax County on our roads in 2022, the highest number since consistent statistics started being collected in 2010.”
As FFXnow reported last week, FCDOT’s Trails, Sidewalks and Bikeways committee (TSB) delved into the issue and asked the Board of Supervisors to prioritize additional safety measures along major arterial roadways throughout Fairfax County.
“The first is a turn calming, like in New York, San Francisco and Portland,” McKay said. “These programs can reduce turning speeds and thus pedestrian fatalities.”
Left-turn calming aims to reduce turning speeds, eliminate sharp turns, and create “hardened centerlines” that use rubber speed bumps to slow drivers.
McKay said county staff’s report on turn-calming should also include an estimate of the cost.
The second item is a request that no crosswalk at the site of a pedestrian fatality be eliminated unless there is a compelling reason to do so.
The question of eliminating crosswalks took some board members by surprise until Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw explained that the TSB letter references the planned elimination of a crosswalk at Braddock Road and Kings Park Drive in West Springfield.
Walkinshaw explained VDOT intends to move the sidewalk to a safer location.
“The plan is to eliminate that entire signalized intersection and move the crosswalk to a different and safer location, where it’s separated from the turns from Kings Park Drive onto Braddock Road,” he said.
Hunter Mill Supervisor Walter Alcorn noted that, in addition to turn-calming and prioritizing crosswalks, the county also has an ongoing speed camera pilot program.
“I would also note that we are doing our speed camera pilot, which is also getting underway,” Alcorn said. “It underscores that this is really a tough problem…We need to look and see what else can we do to make our streets safer.”
The residential building coming to 6707 Old Dominion Drive will be modest — at least compared to the high-rises going up in Tysons to the south — but it has already altered the future of downtown McLean.
Contractor Trinity Group Construction anticipates beginning work next week on the nine-story, 44-unit project, which will replace the parking lot behind a three-story office building whose current tenants include Chipotle and Fresh Baguette.
“It’s great to finally be here,” property owner Winthrop Investment Group head Hans Schmidt said after a ceremonial groundbreaking yesterday (Wednesday). “…Folks conceptualized this project back in 2016, and here we are in March of 2023, and we’re finally moving dirt. We’re really excited about it. We think it’s going to be a great project.”
The 94,000-square-foot building will stack five stories of condominiums — including five units of workforce housing — on top of a parking garage with four above-ground levels and one-and-a-half underground levels, according to a Trinity spokeperson.
Per a development plan approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2018, amenities will include a 3,850-square-foot roof terrace for residents and a combined 6,100 square feet of public open space from a corner park and a plaza park.
The garage will serve the new residents as well as tenants and visitors at the adjacent office building, which will remain in place, Schmidt confirmed.
Both the developer and local officials admit that shepherding this particular project into being was difficult, from a fraught battle to amend the county’s comprehensive plan to more recent supply chain issues and related cost increases.
“We’ve been working for the past eight months with [Winthrop], finally got it to where it was affordable,” Trinity CEO Mil Wallen said.
One of the biggest challenges was the need to establish a temporary parking plan for office tenants during construction, according to Schmidt, who said the development “would’ve been dead” if no parking sites were found.
Fortunately for Winthrop, three local churches — St. John’s Episcopal Church (6715 Georgetown Pike), St. Luke Serbian Orthodox Church (6801 Georgetown Pike) and St. John the Beloved Roman Catholic Church (6420 Linway Terrace) — have agreed to let commuters use their parking lots, providing a total of 140 spaces.
During construction, which is expected to take about 18 months, drivers will have access to valet service as well as a shuttle that will travel to and from the off-site parking areas. Some on-site spots will also remain available.
Wallen says the shuttle and valet service will “start as soon as necessary,” which may not be the instant construction begins next week.
“We’ll have fencing up that will guide traffic all over the place,” he said. “It’ll be a little congested, but I think it’ll be okay.”
Potential parking and traffic issues were part of why the project initially struggled to win over some community members, who argued it was incompatible with the surrounding, mostly lower-lying buildings.
That debate helped inform the county’s roughly four-year-long overhaul of its plan for downtown McLean.
“I think we learned some good lessons along the way, and hopefully, the next project that comes forward will move much smoother,” said Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust, who represents McLean.
The residential building “will be a fantastic example” of what a revitalized downtown could look like, Foust says, telling FFXnow that the planned parking garage “is the way to go” compared to the “ugly” surface lots currently prevalent for commercial properties.
“This project will contribute to helping us achieve our vision for downtown McLean, which is more vibrancy, more pedestrian, ground-level activity, more people actually living in downtown McLean,” Foust said. “On top of that, it’s going to be a beautiful addition to the visual of downtown McLean.”
(Updated at 12:10 p.m.) Fairfax County’s police helicopters have a new base of operations.
The emergency choppers and their crews will now be housed at the Fairfax County Police Department’s new David M. Rohrer Aviation Center, which was welcomed with a grand opening celebration yesterday (Wednesday).
Located at 4604 West Ox Road, the two-story, 23,000-square-foot facility replaces a smaller heliport that was built on the same site in 1984 but no longer met the helicopter division’s staffing and equipment needs.
Known by the call sign “Fairfax 1,” the division includes two helicopters and flight officers, pilots, paramedics and maintenance crews.
They were performing over 150 helicopter missions per month and more than 80 medical evacuations per year out of the now-demolished, 9,500-square-foot heliport, the FCPD reported when pitching the project for bond funding in 2015.
“Similar to a firehouse, staff remains on-site throughout their shift, but locker space, helicopter equipment space, storage areas and training space is insufficient to meet current operational needs,” the department said. “The helicopter hangers are not large enough to house the county’s two twin-engine helicopters, and the sloped landing pad causes safety issues especially during winter months.”
The project received $13 million from that public safety bond referendum, though the county ultimately approved $14.1 million, according to the current capital improvements program.
In addition to a landing pad for the helicopters, the new aviation center has a two-bay hanger, parking for 25 vehicles, and upgraded locker, storage and training spaces.
At my request, the Board honored Chief Davis’ request to name the heliport after Chief Rohrer in recognition of his 41 years of outstanding service to the County.
The operational needs of our flight officers, pilots, paramedics and maintenance crews have grown significantly. pic.twitter.com/LS0D1Kynrx
— Supervisor Pat Herrity (@PatHerrity) March 22, 2023
The facility is named after former deputy county executive for public safety David Rohrer, who retired last year after a 41-year career that he started as a patrol officer. The name was requested by Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis and Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity, whose district includes the heliport site.
“The operational needs of our flight officers, pilots, paramedics and maintenance crews have grown significantly,” Herrity said after participating in the grand opening. “This new facility will provide lifesaving medical treatment and crimefighting services to our citizens.”
Speakers at the ceremony included Herrity, Davis, Rohrer, Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay, County Executive Bryan Hill and Department of Public Works and Environmental Services Director Chris Herrington.
At the time of the opening ceremony, helicopter crews hadn’t officially moved in yet, but the FCPD anticipates they’ll be able to operate out of the aviation center starting at 8 a.m. Saturday (March 25).
“That depends if everything gets moved over in time,” the police department said.
Family of Man Killed by Police Sees Footage — Ahead of a public release at 1 p.m. today (Thursday), the “family of Timothy McCree Johnson, an unarmed Black man fatally shot by Fairfax County police outside Tysons Corner Center last month, watched body-camera footage of his killing. Their lawyer asserted afterward that the video showed Johnson had posed no threat to law enforcement.” [The Washington Post]
McLean Woman Convicted of Killing Daughters — A Fairfax County jury convicted 37-year-old Veronica Youngblood yesterday (Wednesday) “of killing her two daughters — Sharon Castro, 15, and Brooklynn Youngblood, 5 — on Aug. 5, 2018. The mother admitted to officials that she fatally shot her children, but she pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.” [The Washington Post]
Three Displaced by Chantilly House Fire — “On Tuesday, March 21, at 5:45 p.m., units were dispatched for a reported house fire in the 13800 block of Leighfield Street…The cause of the fire was improperly discarded smoking materials. Three occupants were displaced because of the fire…Damages as a result of the fire were approximately $185,000.” [FCFRD]
Virginia Hires New State Superintendent — “Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin has hired a Tennessee education official to serve as Virginia’s chief schools officer after the previous employee in the role resigned for reasons the administration has declined to explain. Tennessee Chief Academic Officer Lisa Coons will take over the role…effective April 17” [Associated Press/WTOP]
Get Free Tequila at Banditos Grand Opening — Banditos Tacos & Tequila will have free tequila and mezcal tastings from 3-5 p.m. on Saturday (March 25) as part of the official grand opening for its Fairfax restaurant. The event will also feature giveaways and music from DJ Gottit at 2 p.m. and from the band Bravenoise at 9 p.m. [Banditos Tacos]
Centreville Students Give Away Prom Dresses — “Marketing students from Centreville High School and the Fair Oaks Classroom on the Mall program will open their Prom Dress Shop on Friday, March 24, at Centreville High School in Clifton. Since 2006, the dress shop has helped hundreds of financially challenged students attend prom in style each spring by providing dresses and accessories at no cost to students.” [FCPS]
Madison HS Girls Win Fourth Basketball State Title — “With an ‘and-one’ layup in overtime, the Madison Warhawks Girls Basketball Team defeated the Manchester Lancers (49-46) last week, making this their fourth consecutive state title. This was Madison’s ninth state final appearance — now the most in the history of Class 6 and the former Group AAA.” [FCPS]
Metro Adds Mental Health Crisis Line to Signs — “A new three-digit lifeline number is now available to help individuals experiencing a life-threatening crisis. In Metro station entrances, platforms and top garage levels, customers will see enhanced signs with the new Suicide and Crisis Lifeline number, 988.” [WMATA]
It’s Thursday — Scattered showers possible before noon. High of 74 and low of 48. Sunrise at 7:08 am and sunset at 7:23 pm. [Weather.gov]
The Town of Vienna wants to bring more color to Maple Avenue and Church Street with a landscaping refresh, but new greenery won’t be in the ground until August at the earliest.
Department of Parks and Recreation staff approached the Vienna Town Council on Monday (March 20) to request $600,000 for a landscaping contractor that will help design and install new planters along the town’s main commercial streets.
However, uncertainty over how exactly those funds will be spent led the council to postpone a vote until its next meeting of April 10.
“Many of us have questions we’d like to get answers to,” Mayor Linda Colbert said.
Staff had hoped to get design options for the improvements this April and choose a final one in May so that the project could finish by the end of July, according to a request for proposals issued Jan. 12.
The town was seeking a vendor to design and install 81 landscape planters on both sides of Maple Avenue between East Street and 213 Maple Ave. West, along with 46 planters on both sides of Church Street between Mill Street NE and Lawyers Road NW.
The existing landscaping, including planters, brick sidewalks, streetlamps and bus shelters, was installed on both streets approximately 20 years ago, according to the town.
“The landscape plants have matured over the years and the uniformity of the design has waned,” the RFP said. “The trees are the predominant feature of the landscape planters while the shrub and herbaceous perennial layer is inconsistent and often absent.”
In addition to the actual plants, the requested funding would cover soil remediation, root pruning, the public engagement process, traffic control and sidewalk closings, and any needed removals of vegetation other than trees, which will be taken care of by town staff, Parks and Recreation Director Leslie Herman said.
The Tysons-based firm LSG Landscape Architecture, which previously assisted Vienna with a study of the Maple Avenue streetscape, was selected as the contract recipient.
Councilmember Chuck Anderson balked at the lack of details on the price of individual plants and other expenses, questioning why staff was seeking $600,000 right now when, so far, LSG has only provided a cost estimate of about $83,000 for the design portion of the project.
“I understand that the design’s not done, but we lack any leverage over pricing, so for the remaining $520,000, in theory, they could come up with whatever they wanted at whatever price,” Anderson said. “…This does not sound like to me to be sound contracting practices, particularly for a contract that’s this big. I think we need more certainty.”
According to Herman, the town believes having one firm design and install the project would be more efficient than doing separate RFPs, but after talking to LSG, staff decided they could get a more accurate estimate for the cost of implementation after the design is chosen.
Though initially skeptical, other council members ultimately agreed with Anderson that more financial information is needed after staff seemed unable to explain how they arrived at $600,000 as their proposed funding cap.
Despite her lingering questions, Colbert lauded the project’s overall goal of bringing more life and color to Vienna’s streets year-round.
“We’ve had residents come to us, email, come to our meetings and speak, businesses have talked to me about expecting Maple Avenue and Church Street to be greatly improved,” Colbert said. “It will help our businesses, and it will define our town better, I think, as people drive into town.”
Fairfax County’s independent police auditor has published its annual report, showing an increase in police shootings but a decrease in use-of-force complaints last year.
The county’s Board of Supervisors established the Office of the Independent Police Auditor (OIPA) in 2016 to increase trust between residents and the police department “by providing accountability, fairness, and transparency in the complaint system and investigative process,” the report stated.
The auditor, Richard Schott, reviews all investigations of death or serious injury cases conducted by the Fairfax County Police Department’s internal affairs bureau as well as use-of-force investigations that are the subject of a public complaint.
According to the report released on March 14, the office monitored or reviewed 22 police investigations in 2022, covering incidents from 2019 to 2022. Automatic monitoring kicked in for 12 investigations: 10 officer-involved shootings, and two cases involving a death or serious injury. Nine investigations were for use-of-force allegations.
“The types of force used by FCPD officers in these allegations were varied and included two takedowns, two uses of force to cuff, one brandished firearm, one strike, and one assault,” the report reads.
In 2022, the office closed or published reports on eight incidents from 2019 to 2022. Five cases involved using force, two were police shootings, and one involved a patrol dog bite.
Although the auditor found that all eight investigations met the standards of “being complete, thorough, accurate, objective, and impartial,” he made three recommendations:
- Requiring a warning before releasing a patrol service dog.
- Adding non-criminal factors when considering whether force was objectively reasonable during a non-criminal situation.
- Training on the proper conduct of searches incident to a lawful arrest.
The police department implemented all three recommendations, according to the report.
In 2022, the office started reviewing investigations into 13 incidents. Twelve of the reviews remain open, continuing into this year.
As shown by police data, last year saw an uptick in shootings by officers, a trend that has drawn scrutiny particularly after a fatal shooting at Tysons Corner Center on Feb. 22.
From 2017 to 2021, the OIPA reviewed eight officer-involved shootings, including two of domesticated animals. However, in 2022, the FCPD had seven police shootings, with the victim in one being a dog.
The office received just one use-of-force complaint from the public in 2022 — the fewest ever — compared to a high of 12 in 2018.
In 2020, the office commissioned the University of Texas at San Antonio to conduct a police use-of-force study. It found that officers use force too often and more than should be expected against both Black and white civilians.
Based on the study’s findings, the county’s Use of Force Community Advisory Committee made its own recommendations to the police department. They include collecting more specific data on use-of-force incidents and clarifying in policy when force may be used.
Schott supported most of the committee’s recommendations, but disagreed with some suggested revisions to the FCPD’s use of force policy that would set a higher standard for when force can be used.
The committee recommended requiring that force be “necessary and proportional” to the circumstances, arguing that the existing “objective reasonableness” standard “has proved unfairly deferential to officers” by focusing on the moment force is used rather than the events leading up to its use.
Schott said in a memo last May that the policy should not “be overly restrictive,” stating that an officer’s conduct preceding a use of force should be considered but the “two analyses should remain separate and distinct.”
The FCPD chose not to incorporate a recommendation of replacing the term “less-lethal” with “non-deadly” force throughout the policy. That change was first recommended in 2017.
In a statement to FFXnow, FCPD Lt. James Curry said the term “less-lethal” is defined as any level of force not designed to cause death or serious injury.
“FCPD believes it best reflects the intent of the level of force and is consistent with many other agencies’ policy across the country,” Curry said.
