If you or a friend were a voter in these past midterm elections, it is possible that you’ve heard of the recently passing Initiative 940. Initiative 940 proposed a reform to the police system. It required that all police officers receive periodic violence de-escalation training, mental health checks, and render first aid ito save lives. It would also change how criminal liability would work for a police officer using deadly force.

Proponents of this initiative believed that it would help solve the problem with police brutality. This initiative proposed a “good faith test,” which would decide whether a police officer is convicted of a crime or not. The good faith test would judge whether an officer’s use of deadly force justifies through warrant of a “reasonable officer,” who must agree that the use of deadly force was necessary to prevent death or serious harm to the officer or another individual.

However, opponents of this initiative stated this measure would allow officers who are just doing their job to be prosecuted more easily. They claim de-escalation, mental health, and first aid courses already covered in police training, and an initiative requiring them would be a waste of time and money. Other opponents worry that if an officer is in a position where deadly force is necessary, they might be hesitant about being prosecuted. When in a deadly situation, it is unsafe for them to be considering anything but the safety of the people in the situation. If they are preoccupied with the fear of criminal charges, casualties may ensue. Whether or not this initiative will help improve the problem of police brutality, or whether it will hinder police officers in doing their job is unknown; however, it has passed, and it will be interesting to see the outcome of this initiative.