Overland Park explains why police chief suspended officers’ ID requirement at protest
As Overland Park police arrested four protesters Friday evening during an event calling for an end to police violence and racism, the protest’s organizer noticed officers were not wearing identification badges. He was concerned.
According to the Overland Park Police Department’s policy, officers are required to wear name plates and badge numbers as part of their uniform, said city spokeswoman Meg Ralph. They are also required in most cases to provide their department issued identification, division and supervisor’s name if asked.
But ahead of Friday’s protest, Police Chief Frank Donchez temporarily suspended those requirements for any officers responding to the protest, Ralph said. The officers were still required to identify themselves as being with the Overland Park Police Department.
“This option was temporarily allowed in order to protect police officers from recent local “doxxing” concerns,” city officials said in a statement Monday, which linked to a recent article by The Star announcing Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas’s introduction of legislation the day prior that would criminalize “doxxing” of police officers and elected officials.
Ralph said the decision was made not only because of national and regional concerns of doxxing, or the public release of personal information such as home addresses, but also because some Overland Park officers “recently experienced circumstances of being targeted because of their service.”
“In one case last week, an officer was followed home,” Ralph said in an emailed response Tuesday, adding that the chief’s order was for Friday’s protest only, but that Donchez has discretion to issue another if he believes it’s necessary.
According to Lucas’ legislation, it would be illegal for someone to “willfully or maliciously” publish personally identifying information to “intimidate, abuse, threaten, harass, stalk (or) frighten” a public official or encourage another to do so and when the publication places that official, immediate family or intimate partner in danger.
Personally identifying information includes a Social Security number, birthday, home address, email address, phone number, financial information, health or insurance information or school or employment location.
The Kansas City Police Department has said on Twitter that multiple officers had been doxxed. Sgt. Jake Becchina, a spokesman for the department, recently said there were similar incidents around protests in June and one following protests last week.
“We certainly recognize the backlash and risk of ‘doxing’ and identity thefts type issues,” Capt. David Jackson, a spokesman with Kansas City police, said Tuesday. “We require wearing name tags and continue to evaluate best practices associated with the concerns.”
Lucas has stated that his legislation would not make officers unidentifiable.
“Nothing says you can’t identify officers (or all other public employees) by name, badge, etc. they absolutely can be identified. Just not their home address or family info,” Lucas wrote on Twitter on Thursday in response to someone who accused the mayor of protecting officers “from ever being identified.”
Patrick Wotruba, the organizer of Friday’s Overland Park protest and a leader of the Miller Dream Organization, said his organization has no intentions of publishing officers’ addresses online.
Instead, Wotruba, 42, wants officers to be held accountable. He said having access to an officer’s name and badge number can serve this purpose.
“Any time we’re approached by officers and they’re trying to violate our constitutional rights, we need their name and badge numbers to give to our attorneys,” he said.
There is power in anonymity that can lead to abuse of power, said attorney Stacy Shaw, who said she arrested while wearing a black vest with the word “attorney” written across her back. She was among three people charged as the result of walking in the street when a sidewalk was available, City of Overland Park spokesman Sean Reilly said at the time.
“Overland Park has put themselves on the wrong side of history and it just erodes public trust in the Overland Park Police Department,” Shaw said. “It unnecessarily creates a lack of transparency in policing ... If they can’t be identified, they can’t be held accountable for their misdeeds.”
She said while police have guns and tasers for protection, protesters have the officers’ identity for protection. In an instance of police abuse, an individual can use the officer’s name and badge number to file a complaint or a lawsuit, for example.
Concerns around police identification have made national headlines recently as protests against police brutality and racism continue across the country in the wake of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s killing of George Floyd after kneeling on his neck in May.
Last month in Seattle, Police Chief Carmen Best issued a directive that all officers must display their badge number following concerns of officers covering their badges during protests.
In New York, Mayor Bill de Blasio recently called it “absolutely inappropriate” for officers to cover up a name or badge number. In Chicago, Mayor Lori Lightfoot called for the firing of officers who hid their badge numbers.
Wotruba fears a continued practice of officers leaving their identification at home could be “devastating.”
He believes the decision by federal agents not to wear nametags while making arrests in cities like Washington, D.C. and Portland, combined with President Donald Trump’s rhetoric against protesters has emboldened his local police department.
“We will continue to protest here in Johnson County. The only thing they did was make our movement stronger because we’ve gained so many more followers and so much more support,” he said. “We won’t be deterred by their actions at all.”
The Star’s Allison Kite contributed reporting.
This story was originally published July 28, 2020 at 12:59 PM.
