Fairfax County NAACP condemns police chief, claims department is ignoring community concerns

FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. - The Fairfax County NAACP is condemning the Fairfax County police chief, saying has refused to meet with them on specifics concerning a reported dramatic increase in shooting incidents and apparent ongoing disparities in policing Black and Latino people.

The accusations come as Police Chief Kevin Davis is outlining his vision for the department at a county Board of Supervisors presentation.

A spokesperson with the Fairfax County Police Department says the chief meets with the county's NAACP leadership regularly but did not address if a meeting has taken place to discuss those specifics.

The Fairfax County NAACP says Davis is ignoring law enforcement experts and the community working group appointed by the Board of Supervisors to study what they describe as a crisis.

Even so, at Tuesday’s presentation, Davis indicated otherwise.

"In the spring of 2022, the FCPD partnered with the Police Executive Research Forum or in response to recent officer-involved shootings. Around the same time, FCPD leadership was requested to assist with the Police Matrix Working Group’s efforts to condense a public safety matrix created through the Safety and Security Chairman’s office," Davis said. "We are extremely appreciative of the work of both groups and their recommendations toward existing FCPD practices, policies and training." 

Davis says the department is seeking to further reinforce the critical decision-making model throughout the department, emphasize mental health calls for service, plus all members and specialized units are now equipped with body-worn cameras and required to utilize them and more.

READ THE FULL STATEMENT FROM FAIRFAX COUNTY POLICE CHIEF KEVIN DAVIS BELOW: 

"The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) regularly evaluates and enhances all trainings, policies, and practices of the department. We partner with organizations like PERF and other leading industry research institutes to assist us in maintaining the FCPD as a premiere law enforcement agency in this country. Our policies set the standards and expectations for all our officers’ actions and help guide the department’s training curriculum. Since receiving the recommendations from PERF in early May, we have already adopted numerous innovative and forward-thinking practices that align with their suggestions.   

Chief Davis has overseen the creation and implementation of our Co-responder program. Our co-responder program pairs with our Crisis Intervention Team (CIT), a team of highly trained police officers who have the knowledge and skills to appropriately manage interactions with individuals experiencing a mental health crisis. FCPD prioritizes this training, which has resulted in the department having more CIT trained officers than the majority of law enforcement agencies. Additionally, all FCPD officers have completed Integrating Communications Assessment and Tactics (ICAT) training.  

FCPD implemented a foot pursuit policy prior to the 2023 PERF report within General Order 203: Prisoner Care and Custody. We take pride in being one of the few police departments in the nation to have a foot pursuit policy. This policy effectively captures data, which plays a crucial role in enhancing our training methods and improving the way we take criminals into custody. 

 The FCPD has engaged in ongoing mutually respective dialogue and cooperation with both the Civilian Review Panel (CRP) and Independent Police Auditor since the creation of these two entities.There has only been one published disagreement with the FCPD and CRP in its approximately 6-year existence which was worked through and resolved in accordance with the CRP’s bylaws and FCPD’s obligations to work collaboratively with the CRP. This speaks to our commitment to work in alignment with our community groups and demonstrates the effectiveness of our partnership.  

Fairfax County Police Department is also proud to be a part of nationally renowned law enforcement accreditation agencies, such as CALEA, which helps ensure we are supporting continuous improvement and fostering the pursuit of professional excellence as a law enforcement agency. CALEA accreditation ensures the FCPD can be benchmarked favorably relative to the largest law enforcement agencies in the United States located in comparable urban settings. The department also achieved reaccreditation through the Virginia Law Enforcement Professional Standards Commission (VLEPSC) in September of 2018."