WASHINGTON - Governor right to sign bill discouraging profiling of bikers

OFF THE WIRE
Security for Gov. Chris Gregoire was called into question last month when she signed a bill into law to combat profiling of motorcyclists by law enforcement officers.

What caused the dustup was that a biker who shot and killed a Portland, Ore., police officer decades ago posed along with other motorcyclists alongside the governor at the bill-signing ceremony.

Robert Christopher was convicted of killing officer David Crowther during a drug raid in 1979, but he was released from prison after less than two years because of police misconduct in his case. He was among a group of bikers who stood near Gregoire on April 13 as she signed Senate Bill 5242 into law.

The governor was nonplused by the hubbub, saying, “Those folks who showed up last week, I didn’t know them; I’d never met them before; I didn’t know anything about their backgrounds. They came in here just like anybody else would. I don’t screen people; it’s a free process here for people to come in and observe if they choose.”

The governor said she has no plans to change the procedures used for bill-signings, where members of the public routinely show up for a bill that is of particular importance to them.

Good for the governor, but the security controversy overshadowed the underlying bill, which passed the House and Senate on unanimous votes.

It’s disconcerting to think that law enforcement officers might profile people simply because they ride a motorcycle or wear motorcycle-related paraphernalia. Any kind of law enforcement profiling is troubling. It’s clear that a correction was needed and SB 5242 is the Legislature’s response.

Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, is an avid biker and sponsored the bill at the behest ofWhat caused the dustup was that a biker who shot and killed a Portland, Ore., police officer decades ago posed along with other motorcyclists alongside the governor at the bill-signing ceremony.

Robert Christopher was convicted of killing officer David Crowther during a drug raid in 1979, but he was released from prison after less than two years because of police misconduct in his case. He was among a group of bikers who stood near Gregoire on April 13 as she signed Senate Bill 5242 into law.

The governor was nonplused by the hubbub, saying, “Those folks who showed up last week, I didn’t know them; I’d never met them before; I didn’t know anything about their backgrounds. They came in here just like anybody else would. I don’t screen people; it’s a free process here for people to come in and observe if they choose.”

The governor said she has no plans to change the procedures used for bill-signings, where members of the public routinely show up for a bill that is of particular importance to them.

What caused the dustup was that a biker who shot and killed a Portland, Ore., police officer decades ago posed along with other motorcyclists alongside the governor at the bill-signing ceremony.

Robert Christopher was convicted of killing officer David Crowther during a drug raid in 1979, but he was released from prison after less than two years because of police misconduct in his case. He was among a group of bikers who stood near Gregoire on April 13 as she signed Senate Bill 5242 into law.

The governor was nonplused by the hubbub, saying, “Those folks who showed up last week, I didn’t know them; I’d never met them before; I didn’t know anything about their backgrounds. They came in here just like anybody else would. I don’t screen people; it’s a free process here for people to come in and observe if they choose.”

The governor said she has no plans to change the procedures used for bill-signings, where members of the public routinely show up for a bill that is of particular importance to them.

Good for the governor, but the security controversy overshadowed the underlying bill, which passed the House and Senate on unanimous votes.

It’s disconcerting to think that law enforcement officers might profile people simply because they ride a motorcycle or wear motorcycle-related paraphernalia. Any kind of law enforcement profiling is troubling. It’s clear that a correction was needed and SB 5242 is the Legislature’s response.

Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, is an avid biker and sponsored the bill at the behest of

Read more: http://www.theolympian.com/2011/05/16/1652643/governor-right-to-sign-bill-discouraging.html#ixzz1MVwix69i