SERVICE, DEDICATION, INTEGRITY

SUQUAMISH POLICE DEPARTMENT

18490 Suquamish Way, Suite #105 / P.O. Box 1021
Suquamish WA 98392 OFFICE (360) 598-4334
Mike Lasnier, Chief of Police

LIMITED PRESS RELEASE

April 28, 2011

Dear Josh Farley,

Thank you for your interest in the Suquamish Police Department, and
specifically, our ongoing fitness program. This is a response to your
inquiries.

The Suquamish Police Department’s Policy on Physical Fitness for

police officers was adopted by a resolution of the Suquamish Tribal
Council in 2004. That policy pre-dates the current Police Chief. It
states, in part; “Officers shall maintain a level of physical fitness which
will allow them to perform their duties effectively”. Over the past 4
years, the department has slowly and methodically improved its fitness
program and testing processes in order to implement the policy more
effectively.

You may ask: Why does the Suquamish Police Department

need to have a fitness program?

Answer: Because it’s the right thing to do for the following reasons:

• Fitness Programs are proven to reduce absenteeism, injuries and

disability payments, allow officers to recover from injuries faster,
live longer, and have a longer “career life”. A physical fitness
program with standards is not only a good idea, it is essential to
achieve optimal service to the public. Since Law Enforcement
agencies are managing and expending public funds, it is the duty
of Law Enforcement managers to ensure that the public is
getting the best return on their investment. In the current
 financial environment, every dollar saved might affect the ability
of a local government to maintain key services to their
community.

• Tribal Officers are not part of the State retirement system, and
therefore are unlikely to retire at 53 years of age, as is allowed in
the State System. For this reason it is critical that Tribal Police
Officers train diligently to maintain fitness, as they will likely
need to remain functional into their late 50’s and even 60’s.
Officers in these age ranges who are not physically fit will be at
higher risk for a line of duty death from Heart Attack. At the time
of this release, more officers in the U.S. have died in 2011 from
heart attacks than from non-gun Assaults, Pursuits, or being
struck by cars.

• Why is the fitness program and test mandatory? Research into

the topic has shown that voluntary programs for police have not
had lasting success, even if they have financial incentives. (Ness
and Light, 1992 and Collingwood, 1988a) The Suquamish Police
Department actually had a financial merit increase incentive for
officers who passed the fitness test in 2010.

• There is Federal case law on the books that states it is

“Deliberate Indifference” for a police department to NOT
effectively physically train its officers; Parker vs. District of
Columbia. Here is a quote from that case: “Given Officer Hayes'
physical condition, it is not hard to fathom that his most effective
method for subduing the objects of his pursuits would be the use
of a firearm as opposed to the application of physical force.
Officer Hayes simply was not in adequate physical shape. This
condition posed a foreseeable risk of harm to others. We are
persuaded that a fair-minded jury could have concluded that
Officer Hayes' conduct was the result of deliberate indifference
on the part of the District with respect to the physical training of
its police officers…” That case lead to a finding against the local
government of nearly a half million dollars.

• Last Month nearly 30 Law Enforcement officers, supervisors and

managers from our region attended training taught by a top
expert in the field of Law Enforcement Risk Management and
Liability, Gordon Graham. One of the most pressing flaws in Law
 Enforcement management was identified as Police Departments
failing to have physical testing for their incumbent officers after
initially hiring them. The First Rule of Law Enforcement Risk
Management is : “You must have a rising standard of quality
over time, and it must be well beyond what is required by any
minimum standard.” The Suquamish Police Department is
constantly seeking ways to improve; this is just one of many
areas where we are constantly raising our standards, and
challenging ourselves to do better for the community we serve.

• The State of Washington requires that every police officer or

deputy applicant in the State pass a physical fitness test. It’s the
same test we’re using. The argument for those tests is that
Police training and police work can be physically demanding at
times and therefore only applicants who meet the fitness
standard are suited to perform the more difficult aspects of the
training and job without undue risk of injury due to a lack of
fitness. Those challenges don’t suddenly go away when an
officer graduates from the police academy. Incumbent fitness
training and testing are simply a logical continuation of what we
already expect of our officers and applicants.

• Fitness programs for police allow officers to deal with emergency

situations, deal with the stress of the job, and have better odds
of controlling violent or resistive subjects without having to
resort to higher levels of force.

• Fitness programs lead to officers being more self-confident, and

less likely to over-react or under-react to a volatile situation.

• Research conducted by Law Enforcement experts including

Bruce Siddle has shown that as the heart rate increases beyond
a certain level, the ability to perceive what is going on around us,
think clearly, and perform fine motor skills decreases. A fit
officer starts with a lower resting heart rate, it takes far more
effort and stress for the heart rate to rise to the “danger zone”
where decision making is impaired, and as a result of being fit
they recover back to a functional level much faster. A fit cop is a
better cop, not just because they are fitter. They are better
because they maintain the ability to perceive what is going on,
make an appropriate decision, and carry out an action plan.
 • Officers who appear fit are less likely to be challenged by
violators, or have violators flee from them, or attack them.

• 100% of the officers of the Suquamish Police Department agreed

that an ongoing fitness program was a good idea, and an
important part of their success in their job. That was a vote
taken at a department meeting in August, 2010.

What did the department do to ensure that the officers would

be successful in remaining fit?

• We used a slow, methodical approach, and introduced the

updated program in stages, over several years. We started by
paying the officers to work out, on-duty, for several years.

• 2007 & 2008, created a workout and training room, and

authorized officers to work out one hour per shift while on duty.

• 2009, created a department goal approved by Tribal Council

Liaisons and the Tribal Executive Office for each officer to be
mandated to work out one hour per shift to maintain fitness.

• 2010, Implemented the goal to start fitness testing; also a

department goal approved by Council Liaisons and the Tribal
Executive Office. This testing was announced to the officers at a
department meeting in November of 2009.

• The officers have 2 different workout rooms on the Tribal

Government campus that are each equipped differently, and
both free of charge 24 hours a day, so they don’t have to go
anywhere to get a good workout. One room has traditional
weight machines, treadmills, dumbells, and other machines, as
well as kettlebells. The other is the Police training room which is
set up for Defensive Tactics training and also has Kettlebells,
Clubells, dumbells, pull up bars, striking bags and throwing
dummies, TRX systems, Medicine Balls, Concept 2 Rowers, rings,
parrellettes, wrestling mats, and a computer with a sound
system so that officers who have to work out alone can follow
along with a DVD or computer based exercise program.
• If an employee purchases a gym membership, the Tribe will
reimburse them for a substantial percentage of the expense, as
long as they actually use the facility regularly.

• The department has shower facilities and a locker room for

officers to use, as well as an additional shower in the police
training room.

• The department has purchased wrestling shoes and running/

workout shoes for any officer who has asked for them, to ensure
success and prevent injuries.

• In May and June of 2010, the department hired trainers from the
Poulsbo Athletic Club to conduct fitness assessments for all of
our staff. These assessments included measurements, body
composition, flexibility, cardiovascular assessments, and dietary
information such as exactly how many calories they needed daily
to maintain their current weight, and how many calories they’d
need to reduce to lose weight. Each employee was given expert
advice based on their outcome.

• The department has trained three employees as peer fitness

coordinators and instructors, to assist officers in developing
training programs. Those instructors have been certified in
several different training systems.

• The officers had free access to daily classes taught by

professional fitness instructors in the department training room.
These classes included Kickboxing, Aerobics, Strength Training
and TRX group classes.

• The department has encouraged officers to attend the wellness

and weight loss classes put on by qualified nurses and nutritional
experts employed by the Tribe over the past several years. The
Tribe offers these classes to all employees, and they are held
during work hours. All class material is also available to every
employee online.

• Officers are given access to proven successful workout programs

purchased by the department. They are also given access to
programs and workouts specifically designed by State experts to
help them prepare for the specific test the department is using.
 • The department brought in a running coach with nearly 20 years
of successful experience in track and cross country, to conduct a
running clinic here in our training room. The coach taught us
various drills, analyzed and corrected each individuals running
style, and made recommendations for each person for a running
program and workouts.

Question: How was the fitness test chosen?

• We selected the basic, entry level test requirement used by the

Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission
academy. The test is job related, and scientifically validated. It
is predictive of a person’s ability to successfully engage in police
training without undue risk of injury. This test is the standard
used for hiring by nearly every Law Enforcement agency in the
State of Washington.
https://fortress.wa.gov/cjtc/www/images/docs/classes/blea/PAT_
Website_Info.pdf

• Here is some scientific research from “Police Chief” magazine

and the International Association of Chiefs of Police that
validates the same testing events we use and further establishes
that they are an “industry standard” used by police agencies
from across the nation:
http://policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?
fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=251&issue_id=32004

• This test isn’t designed for experienced, trained police officers.

It’s designed to be taken by a civilian with no police training who
would like to begin training to be a police officer. If they can’t
pass the test then they would be at an unduly high risk of being
hurt while engaged in police training. Since our officers are
required to attend similar and more intensive police training and
are also engaged in the full rigors of police work on the streets,
then it follows that an officer who can’t pass this test is at unduly
high risk for injury during training and while on the street. Its
common sense; those that don’t move their bodies regularly, and
are carrying lots of extra weight, are far more likely to be injured
when they suddenly start to move in high stress situations.
 • All Officers were mandated to work out one hour per shift for 1.5
years before they were asked to take the test. It was reasonable
to assume that anyone paid to work out an hour a workday for
well over a year could certainly meet the minimum standards of
a civilian applicant.

• The test is based on a job specific “single standard” so it does

not discriminate based on age or gender. Everyone who is doing
the job has to meet the same standard.

• The F.B.I. and approximately 50% of other police agencies across

the nation use the same test events we are using; 1.5 mile run,
300 meter sprint, pushups and sit-ups. Those events are the
common industry standard across the nation.

• The choice of what fitness test to use in the future was put to the
officers themselves, in August of 2010. 13 of the 15
commissioned officers voted to keep the Washington State test
we are using.

What happens if an officer fails the fitness test?

The Tribe does not publicly discuss personnel issues. However, the
Tribe has a positive discipline process in place for all employees. The
Department Policy States “Any officer who fails to meet the minimum
physical fitness standards required to perform his or her duties
effectively shall have a reasonable time determined by the Chief of
Police, not to exceed 6 months, to meet the standards”.

In a hypothetical situation, first and foremost, the Tribe would give all
employees a fair and reasonable opportunity to prepare for the test; in
the current example, 1.5 years of paid, required, on-duty workout time
in facilities provided by the employer, and with more support provided
to employees than any police agency in Washington State. After 1.5
years to prepare, if an employee failed the first test, they would be
placed on a corrective action plan and given a period of time to
prepare for the next test. If they failed the test months later, they
would be put on a probationary period, and given another time period
of several months to prepare for the Third test. Only if an employee
failed their third test in a row would the Tribe consider terminating
employment. By that point the officer would have been paid an hour a
workday for over 2 years to prepare to meet the minimum standards.

How tough is this test?

The test has both minimum levels of performance, and a scoring

system. The scoring system allows a person who has strengths in one
area to use those strengths to make up for other areas where they
might have weaknesses. However, each event does have a minimum
level of performance; if you fall below that point on the individual
event, then you will automatically fail that event.

The 300 Meter Sprint is designed to test the anaerobic energy systems.
The Pushup tests upper body strength, the situp tests core strength,
and the 1.5 mile run tests aerobic fitness.

The “Absolute Minimums” or “Automatic Fails” are:

• 300 Meter Run 71 seconds

• Push-Ups 21 (no time limit)

• Sit-Ups 30 (1 minute time limit)

• 1.5 Mile Run 14:31 minutes

If you can only do 20 pushups or less, you fail the test. If you can only
do 29 sit-ups in a minute or less, you fail the test. If you run the 300m
slower than 71 seconds, you fail. If you run the 1.5 mile slower than
14:31, you fail. The “absolute minimums” aren’t the “Passing” level of
performance; they mark the edge of where an “automatic failure” is.

The scoring system for the test is located on the Washington State
Criminal Justice Training Commission website, which is linked above. It
is not enough to do the absolute minimum in every area. There is a
detailed Score sheet, and officers must attain an overall score of 160
to pass. If an officer is weak in one area, but strong in another, the
strengths and weaknesses might cancel each other out, and still lead
to a passing score.

Again, thank you for your interest in our Department.