Pasco Police Chief statement on George Floyd death

PASCO, Wash.-- Pasco Police Chief Ken Roske released a letter to the public Tuesday, addressing community concerns about police brutality.

In the letter to residents, Chief Roske called the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis a tragic event, and said he was deeply concerned by video of the man who died in police custody more than a week ago.

Roske said the Pasco Police Department has taken great strides to include the community in its efforts to improve the agency's policies and training to ensure a culture of dignity, respect, and transparency.

The letter reiterates the sentiments of Pasco City Council members who addressed the recent protests in Pasco in the aftermath of Floyd's death.

In February 2015, the city of Pasco faced backlash following the officer-involved shooting death of Mexican national Antonio Zombrano-Montes.

None of the officers involved in that incident faced any charges for shooting and killing Zombrano-Montes, who was seen on video throwing a rock at officers before he was shot. 

However, the incident led to a surge of changes in the department, including the adoption of body-worn cameras, a focus on community policing, increased emphasis on use-of-force training, and the adoption of several less-than-lethal tools to encourage compliance, such as Tasers and The Deuce.

The U.S. Justice Department also recommended that the Pasco Police Department focus on hiring more Latino officers to help reflect the city's high Latino population.

"I know that this situation sparked up a lot of feelings from what's happened here in the past," said Pasco Mayor Saul Martinez at Monday night's city council meeting. "But we learned from what happened here in the past, and (we have an) accredited police department, and all the training that was done, all that stuff has paid off. The relationship we have with our committees and communities, and our police department and our staff is something to be proud of."