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  • From: MSAR Maintainer <msar@ibiblio.org>
  • To: MSAR Riders <MSAR-riders@lists.ibiblio.org>
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  • Subject: [MSAR] Sheriff's posse legal issues, Washington state
  • Date: Wed, 7 Jan 2004 11:26:57 -0500

The house of representatives of Washington state passed a
bill in 2001 to restrict legal use of the term "sheriff's
posse"; does anyone here know if the bill also passed in
the state senate?

Una

The text below is verbatim from
http://www.leg.wa.gov/pub/billinfo/2001-02/House/1550-1574/1560-s_hbr_03152001.txt

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

HOUSE BILL REPORT
SHB 1560





As Passed House:
March 13, 2001

Title: An act relating to restricting the use of the terms sheriff and
sheriff's posse.

Brief Description: Restricting the use of the terms sheriff and sheriff's
posse.

Sponsors: By House Committee on Criminal Justice & Corrections (originally
sponsored by
Representatives Lambert, Lovick, Ballasiotes, O'Brien, Mulliken, Sump and
Schindler).

Brief History:
Committee Activity:
Criminal Justice & Corrections: 2/7/01, 2/26/01 [DPS].
Floor Activity:
Passed House: 3/13/01, 91-3.

Brief Summary of Substitute Bill

� Prohibits any person, organization, association or entity from using the
words
"sheriff" or "sheriff's posse" without prior permission from the county
sheriff's department or the Washington Association of Sheriff's and Police
Chiefs (WASPC).


HOUSE COMMITTEE ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE & CORRECTIONS

Majority Report: The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the
substitute bill do
pass. Signed by 7 members: Representatives Ballasiotes, Republican Co-Chair;
O'Brien,
Democratic Co-Chair; Ahern, Republican Vice Chair; Lovick, Democratic Vice
Chair;
Kagi, Kirby and Morell.

Minority Report: Do not pass. Signed by 1 member: Representative Cairnes.

Staff: Yvonne Walker (786-7841).

Background:

A sheriff is defined as the chief executive officer and conservator of peace
of a county.
The general duties of a sheriff include:
� arresting and committing to jail or prison persons who break specific
laws;
� defending the county against those who endanger the public peace or
safety;
� executing the process and orders of the courts of justice;
� executing warrants;
� attending the sessions of the courts of record held within the county,
and obeying
their lawful orders or directions; and
� keeping and preserving the peace in their respective counties.

Washington does not have a law that prohibits a person or organization from
using the
word "sheriff" or "sheriff's posse" however, it does have a criminal
impersonation law.

A person is guilty of criminal impersonation in the first degree if the
person assumes a
false identity and does an act in his or her assumed character with intent to
defraud
another or for any other unlawful purpose; or pretends to be a representative
of some
person or organization or a public servant and does an act in his or her
pretended
capacity with intent to defraud another or for any other unlawful purpose.
Criminal
impersonation in the first degree is a gross misdemeanor.

A person is guilty of criminal impersonation in the second degree if the
person claims to
be a law enforcement officer or creates an impression that he or she is a law
enforcement
officer; and under circumstances not amounting to criminal impersonation in
the first
degree, does an act with intent to convey the impression that he or she is
acting in an
official capacity and a reasonable person would believe the person is a law
enforcement
officer. Criminal impersonation in the second degree is a misdemeanor.



Summary of Bill:

It is prohibited for a person, for an illegal or wrongful purpose, or an
association or
organization to assume or use the designation "sheriff" or any other title,
designation,
words, letters, abbreviation, sign, or card intending to indicate that he or
she is in fact a
county sheriff or deputy sheriff or associated with a county sheriff. Only
persons,
associations, or organizations which are a county sheriff, deputy sheriff,
associated with a
county sheriff, or authorized by the WASPC may use the designation "sheriff."
In
addition, the Washington Council of Police and Sheriffs (WACOPS) and the
Council of
Metropolitan Police and Sheriffs (COMPAS) may use the designation "sheriff."

In addition, it is prohibited for any person, in an illegal or wrongful
purpose, or any
group, entity, or association to use the term "sheriff's posse" or in any
other way
represent themselves as a "sheriff's posse" on any document, publication,
brochure,
pamphlet, sign, poster, or other written material or placard, including on a
computer
network website, bulletin board, or chat room. Only a person, group, entity,
or
association that has the signed written consent from the county sheriff to
use the term or
represent themselves as a sheriff's posse may use the term "sheriff's posse."



Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Not Requested.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is
passed.

Testimony For: This bill restricts the use of the terms "sheriff" or
"sheriff posse."
Furthermore, the bill helps to protect the county sheriffs and their
departments around the
state from being associated with organizations whose activities are illegal,
fraudulent, or
reflects poorly on some county in anyway.

The public, especially elderly persons, are often tricked into giving funds
to sheriff posse
organizations and other similar ones that are not associated with a sheriff
or local law
enforcement agency in any way. As a result all 39 sheriffs in the state
voted to disowned
and disassociate themselves with the Washington State Sheriff's Posse
Association.

Testimony Against: None.

Testified: Representative Lambert, prime sponsor; Brenda Banford, WACO; Dale
Brandland, Whatcom County Sheriff; and John McCroskey, Lewis County Sheriff.




  • [MSAR] Sheriff's posse legal issues, Washington state, MSAR Maintainer, 01/07/2004

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