Police Ombuds

Ombuds Authority

On October 6, 2008 the Office of Police Ombuds was established to provide independent civilian oversight for Spokane Police Department conduct-related matters. The Police Ombuds's duty is to ensure that investigations are timely, thorough and objective.

On May 20, 2013, the Spokane City Council unanimously supported and approved the non-binding resolution #2013-0033 (PDF 4.7 MB), authored by Council members Salvatori and Allen. This resolution lays out the City Council's vision of how the Office of Police Ombuds will operate in the future after the overwhelming support by voters for Proposition 1 passed in February, 2013.

Mission

The Office of Police Ombuds exists to promote public confidence in the professionalism and accountability of the members of the Spokane Police Department by providing independent review of police actions, thoughtful policy recommendations and ongoing community outreach.

Guiding Principles

The Office of Police Ombuds will strive to:

• Provide equal, fair and impartial access to the services of the Office of Police Ombuds without regard to age, race, gender, creed, color, nationality, sexual orientation, or socio-economic standing.
• Ensure that all individuals will be treated with courtesy, dignity and respect regardless of their attitude or demeanor.
• Deliver service in a timely, thorough and objective manner.

The Ombuds believes:

• In the empowerment of all people to solve problems and receive service.
• Individuals must be responsible and accountable for their personal and professional actions and behavior.

Code of Ethics

The Office of Police Ombuds subscribes to and has adopted the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement Code of Ethics (PDF 34 KB).

History of the Public Sector Ombuds

For as long as government has existed, guaranteeing citizens fair and equitable treatment under the law has been an issue and various protections have been utilized over the years. In modern times the public sector Ombuds, where instituted, has been a successful and valuable guarantor of citizens' rights. By impartial and independent investigation of citizens' complaints, it has provided an informal and accessible avenue of redress.

The first public sector ombuds (OM-budz-man, -buhdz-, -boodz-) was appointed by the Parliament of Sweden of 1809. The Swedish Constitution divided and balanced power between the king and Parliament with the king having executive powers and Parliament retaining legislative power. The ombuds, who was appointed by and responsible to Parliament, was to protect individual rights against the excesses of the bureaucracy.

This first ombuds office, since its creation, has been the model for the public sector ombuds, and set the definition that is still accepted today: a public official appointed by the legislature to receive and investigate citizen complaints against administrative acts of government. These acts may or may not include the administrative acts of the judiciary or the legislature, depending upon the statute.

The ombuds concept spread through Europe and to this continent with the first offices being established in the United States in the mid 60's. This was a time in the United States when exposure of government secrecy and scandal, and when movements such as civil rights and good government created a political atmosphere more favorable to openness, and to establishing recourse for the aggrieved.

Hawaii established the first public sector office in 1967. Since then a number of states, counties and municipalities have followed suit by establishing offices of general jurisdiction.

The ombuds movement in the United States has also been characterized by offices that represent a departure from the Swedish model. These variations would include offices with general jurisdiction but appointment by a governor or mayor, legislative offices with special jurisdiction such as corrections, and single agency ombuds with statutory authority.

The Spokane City Council proclaimed October 5th 2020 as Ombuds Day in Spokane, Washington.