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Commissioners raise concerns about Blue Lives Matter flag and Punisher logos at SPD in-service
Summary
Commissioners reported seeing a Blue Lives Matter flag in the front of an SPD training room and at least one officer wearing a Punisher emblem; several commissioners said the symbols raise trust and credibility concerns and plan to raise them with police leadership.
Several Spokane OPOC commissioners raised concerns on March 18 about symbols they saw at a Spokane Police Department in-service: a Blue Lives Matter flag displayed at the front of a training room and at least one officer wearing a Punisher emblem.
Commissioner Amy McCollum said she was pleased to see the department incorporate recent oversight recommendations into training but noted the display. "The very front of the classroom is a Blue Lives Matter flag," McCollum said. "It kind of bothered me ... it strikes me as a little bit, you know, us versus them rather than serving and protecting the community." She added that an officer wearing a Punisher emblem, a comic-book vigilante motif, was also troubling because of the emblem's association with extrajudicial violence.
Other commissioners said they were torn about whether to press the issue formally. Commissioner Luke Jasmine described how membership size and group dynamics shaped his view on priorities for the commission but voiced support for raising substantive concerns with the department. Detective Duncan, representing police field leadership during the meeting, acknowledged the flag's contentious history and said perceptions differ among people.
Commissioners said they plan to raise the symbolism concerns with Chief Hall and at other SPD forums; one commissioner also said they intend to use ride-along and in-service opportunities to better understand training and departmental culture.
