SEA,TTLE POLICE DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM

DATE:

TO

Chain of Command
LINIT CO2OX

F'ROM:

Mike Fields
Human Resources Director

SUBJECT:

Proposed Discipline/ Cynthia lVhitlatch/ OPA 15-0117

Iuly 24,2015

Attached are the Cover Letter and Proposed DAR for Officer Whitlatch. The Cover Letter and
Proposed DAR need to be given to Officer Whitlatch via her chain of command' Elecfonic
copies have been or will be provided to all recipients copied on the cover letter.

in the appropriate place below, then complete the bottom
section. On the day of service, scan the completed, signed receipt and send it to
SPD EmploymentCóunsel@seattle.gov. Within 7 days of service, return the original signed
receipt to the SPD Legal Unit (JC-05-01).
Please have Officer Whitlatch sign

My signature below indicates that I have received the Cover Letter and Proposed DAR regarding

oPA

15-0117

Cynthia rWhitlatch, #6229

Date

After providing Officer Whitlatch with the documents, please complete the information
below as appropriate.
Date

Served by:

Name/Rank þrint)
Comments

(if

needed):

-

-

Signature:

On the tlay of senicer scan the completed, sÍgned receipt and
send it to SPD EmploymentCounsel@seattle.gov
Original receipt should be retumed within 7 days to SPD Legal Unit (JC-05-01)

 Police Department
PROPOSED

DISCIPLINARY ACTION REPORT
RANIVTIÏLE

Officer

NAME

Cvnthia Whitlatch

FILE NUMBER

OPA Case 15-4fi7
SERIAL NUMBER

UNIT

6229

c020x

ALLEGATION(S) LIKELY TO BE SUSTAINED:

Violation of Seattle Police Department Policy & Procedure Manual Sections:

o
o
o
r
.

Voluntary Contact and Terry Stops: Terry Stopsare Seizures and Must be Based on
Reasonable Suspicion in Order to be Lawful 6.220 (1) lssued 1130/,2014
Standards & Duties: Exercise of Discretion 5.001 (Vll) (A) issued 811512012
Use of Force Core Principles: When Time, Circumstances, and Safety Permit, Officerc
Will Take Steps to Gain Compliance and De-Escalate Conflict without Using Physical
Force 8.000 (2) lssued 011120,14
Using Force - Use-of-Forcê: When Authorized 8.100 (1) issued 11112014
Bias-Free Policing - Employees Will Not Engage in Bias-Based Policing 5.140 (2) issued
1t30t2014

SPECIFICATION

This proposed discipline is based on your interaction with an individual on July 9,2014 which began while you
were on-duty, driving a patrol ear near the East Precinct. In your second OPA interview, you reported that as
you were driving nr* uitop sign, you saw a blur of motion out of the comer of your eye and heard a sound you
lnterpreted as mètal on metáI, and then (after driving past the individual) saw him moving a golf club held
patailel to the ground with a look on his face that you described as "angry, you know, funowed bro\ry." You
then drove around the block and contacted the individual, making what you admit was a Terry stop. Yau
immediately ordered him to drop his'golf club, told him the golf club was a weapon, and told him that he was
not permitted to leave. Under Dèpartment policy, a Tewy stop must be based on a reasonable suspicion that an
individual has been or is about to be engaged in criminal activity. Based on your statement to OPA, you did not
have a reasonable suspicion as required by Department policy for the stop.
Further, once you stopped the individual, your behavior towards him was aggressive and unnecessarily
escalated the interaction. Thetr were opportunities to assess different tactics and take a softer approach to
resolve the incident, This is particularly true once you had observed the individualls lack of threatening
demeanor. You repeatedly chose the most aggressive options, accusing the individual of swinging his club at
you,
and threatening him with arrest. During ihis confrontation, you were holding your nightstick in your hand,
-further
o'apply reason'
escalatinþ the interaction and signaling it as dangerous. Department policy requires you to
professional expãrtise and judgment" in rnaking law enforcement decisions, It also requires that you de-escalate
*h.n.u.r porrible in ordei to minimize the.possibility of having to use physical force. You failed to do either'
There was no point where you reassessed your combative direction with the individual, even after you were out
of the field. Yóu instead pushed forward with his arrest, causing him to be booked into jail, and later lobbied the
City Attorney's Offrce to fottow through with a prosecution. The unreasonableness of your actions is
triglüghted by their contrast with that of another officer, who arrived after you'd confronted the individual, and
rpãt to him, and immediately obtained the golf club and compliance from the individual. Officers are required
" members of the public considerately and respeotfully, and not behave, as you did, in an aggressive and
to treat
unreasonable fashion.

 You also used de minimus force against the individual when you held his left hand on the hood of the car while
you searched his pockets. BecausJ you lacked authority under Department policy to detain him, your use of
even de rninimus forc" was not compliant with Department Manual Section 8.100(1), which limits use of force
to that necessary to achieve a law enforcement purpose'
Further, your actions towards the individual violated Department Manual Section 5.140(2), which states that
"Employees shall not make decisions or take actions that are influenced by bias, prejudice or discriminatory
intent." Your decision to conduct aTeruy stop was based on uffeasonable assumptions about the individual that
were influenced by bias, Additionally, sev.rál of your actions were taken based on bias, including the angry and
confrontational manner in which you approached the individual, ignoring his confusion about your accusation
that he swung the club at you, uná youi ãecision to arrest and pursue charges against him, despite altemative
options. Whil, you did not ur. slurs or otherwise explicitly raise racial issues during the encounter, your actions
and statements (related to this incident and in the recent past) indicate that you interpret events in yqur
worþlace to be situations where white police officers, and you specifically, are not being treated fairly or

respectfully by members of the public, particularly African Americans, and this cont¡ibuted directly to your
polìce work uls-à-vis this individual. During your interviews with OPA, you indicated that your perception of
ih" ,u"., sex, and age of others influenced how you interacted with and reacted to events regarding this
individual and, moie generally, events in the workplace. You discussed your view that the individual's age and
sex contributed to his;eaction towards you as a female officer, and stated that you would not be investigated
were you not white. Without prompting, you described how you viewed the resolution of his charges as an
of racial bias becausã "guess *ho" - a black judge and black chief were not, in your view, supporting
"**rnp6
whitJofficers. Your perceptions of racr and other protected categories appear to be so deeply seated that they
impacted the aggressive manner in which you treated this man, whose actions did not warrant such treatment.

The violation of Section 5.140(2) is serious enough that, on its own, the allegation would warrant the
recommended discipline. It is also notable that you have been previously disciplined and counseled for
unprofessional conduct. This includes a verbal reprimand in2002 when you engaged in rude and unprofessional
conduct during a traffic stop, and a written reprimand in 1998 when you got into a loud and angry confrontation
over a p.rronil dispute rrg*ding $1.04, ideniified yourself as a police officer, and yelled and used inappropriate
language in a retaiistore. Vou wire also counseled in February 2014 regarding the Department's expectations of
The day prior to your confrontation with the individual, you received training on Biased Free Policing
should
"o,irt.Jy,
and Voiuntary Contact uid Ttrry Stops, yet did not utilize that training or your years of experience that
"
have taught you that your behavior on July 9,2014 was unacceptable.

Your behavior toward and the decisions you made about the individual are deeply damaging to the
Department's confidence in your ability to effectively function as a police officer. Your behavior was a
violation of public trust and a fundamental violation of your role as a public servant.
PROPOSED DisciPline

Termination

DATE ISSUED

July.24,2015

 City of Seattle
Seattle Pol ice Department

July 24,2015

Officer Whitlatch, # 6229
(Hand-deliv.ered)
i

RE

À

OPA Case #15-0117

Dear Officer Whitlatch

Please be aclvised that the following allegations arising from OPA 15-0117 are

likely to be

sustained;

Violation of SPD Policy & Procedure ll,lanual Sections:

.
.
.
.
¡

Voluntary Contact and Terry Stops; Terry Stops are Seizures and Must
be Baseú on Reasonable Suspicion in Order to be Lawful 6.220 lll
lssued ll30l2014
Standarde & Duties: Exercise of Ðiscretion 5.001 (Vll) (A) issued
u15/,2412
Use of Force Core Principles: When Time, Circumstances, and Safety
permit, Officers WillTake Steps to Gain Compliance and De-Escalate
Gonfliõt without Using Physical Force 8.000 {2} lssued 011120114
Using Force - Use-of-Force: When Authorized 8.100 (1) issued 11112014
Bias-Free Policing - Employees Will Not Engage in Bias-Based Policing
5.140 (2) issued U3Aâ014

of the allegation and proposed discipline is set forth in the enclosed proposed
Disciplinäry Action Reportì A copy oi tlre investigative file will be provided to the Seattle Police

A

clescription

Officers Guild upon request.

prior to a final disciplinary decision, you will be allowed an opportunþ to meet with Chief of Police
Kathleen O'Toole oi her ðesignee. We have scheduled your meeting for Friday, Aug¡s! 21,2015, at
g:45 a,m. in the Offìce of ttrJChief of Police, 8'h Floor, Police Headquarters,610 5'n Avenue' You
may bring a representative with you if you wish.

seattle Police Department, 610 Fiûh Avenue, Po Box 34986, Seattto,
An equat employment opportunity, affrmative action employer

W

A 98124-4986

in advance.
Accommodaiioris for people Wlttr áisa¡itities provided upcn request. Call (206) 233-7203 at least two weeks

 City of Seattle
Seattle Police Department

'Ihe meeting with the Chief is your opportunity to present information as to why the recommended
disciplinary action should not take place. If you choose not to avail yourself of the opportunity to
meeiwith'the Chief or wish to provide a written statement in lieu of a meeting, please advise the
Chief s office at 684-5577.
Sincerely

tVinsÐeüs,

S¡qr

Mike Fields
Human Resources Director
Enclosures

Cc

Kathleen M. O'Toole, Chief of Police
Carmen Best, Deputy Chief
Steve Wilske, Assistant Chief

Paul McDonagh, Captain
Pierce Murphy, Director of OPA
Ron Smith, SPOG President

Seattlo Polioe Department, 610 Fifth Avenue, PO Box 34986, Seattle, WA 98124'4986
An equal employmont opportunity, affirmative action emplcyer,
Aooommodaiions for peôple with disabilities provided upcri request, Call (206) 233-7203 at least t\to weeks in advance'