Arizona lessons left unlearned

Months after the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), many lawmakers are not contacting their local law enforcement agencies about public events in their districts.

Lawmakers were directed to contact local law enforcement about events and to immediately assign an office liaison to coordinate member activities with local police in the wake of the Giffords shooting, which left six people dead, including a congressional aide and a federal judge.

{mosads}U.S. Capitol Police at the time said it was impossible to provide an officer for every member. 

The House Administration Committee has sent out at least four “Dear Colleague” letters since the shooting, reminding lawmakers to establish a law enforcement coordinator, or LEC, in their office.

Separately, the House and Senate sergeants at arms have issued security guides to members telling them that “it is essential that each district office establish communication with local law enforcement.”

Yet many police and sheriff departments say they still don’t hear about events lawmakers plan for their districts, according to interviews with more than a dozen local law enforcement departments. 

While many congressional offices may have established an LEC, there remains a low level of communication between them and local law enforcement officials, the interviews suggest.

The Lake Placid, Fla., police department, for example, said it received no word from Rep. Collin Peterson’s (D-Minn.) office about a turkey hunt fundraiser on March 24.  

The Fluvanna County sheriff’s office and the Buckingham County sheriff’s office both told The Hill that Rep. Robert Hurt’s (R-Va.) office had not contacted them in advance of two public events held in their areas during last month’s district workweek. 

A spokeswoman for Hurt said that his “district director serves as our law enforcement coordinator, and we are in touch with local law enforcement when we host public events in the district.” When asked about contacting the local sheriffs’ offices, the spokeswoman said that an official from the Buckingham County sheriff’s office was present at the event last month.

The chief of the Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, police department told The Hill that he hadn’t heard anything about a local reception Rep. Tim Ryan’s (D-Ohio) office held on March 24. A spokesman for Ryan said, “Local authorities are notified of Congressman Ryan’s appearances, and our office follows the protocol set by the sergeant at arms regarding these events.” The office did not respond when asked about the police department’s comment on last month’s event.

The head of the Birmingham police department’s tactical unit said that Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) had not alerted it to any recent events in the area. A spokesman for Bachus did not return requests for comment. 

Police departments in Bethel, Maine, and Newark, N.J., said they were unaware of events scheduled in their districts by Reps. Mike Michaud (D-Maine) and Donald Payne (D-N.J.), respectively. Spokesmen for the two offices did not respond to requests for comment.

The lack of communication is not entirely widespread, as several police and sheriff’s departments said they have had good contact from lawmakers in their jurisdiction.

Rep. Vern Buchanan’s (R-Fla.) office regularly contacts the local Sarasota police department. And the Suffolk County police department said that Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) has notified it about an event he had scheduled in the area last month.

A spokeswoman for Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) told The Hill that he is in regular contact with numerous law enforcement officials throughout his district.

“Our district office — specifically our LEC — always contacts local law enforcement when Rep. Schweikert hosts a public event such as a speaking engagement or ‘Congress in Our Community’ listening session,” said Rachel Semmel. “We are in constant contact with local police departments to ensure they have all the details of our events in plenty of time to staff them.”

But some confusion still exists over whom to call.  Many of the local departments did not know who would be in charge of communicating with lawmakers if they did call, suggesting such communications can remain a lower priority.

Several staff members said that because local law enforcement agencies often share jurisdiction, lawmakers may be contacting a police department but not the sheriff’s office, or vice versa.

The Philadelphia police department told The Hill that lawmakers should contact the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and not them, about events in the Philadelphia area. 

The House Administration Committee in the next few weeks will launch a training program on communicating with local law enforcement. The House sergeant at arms and U.S. Capitol Police will also be involved. 

The chairman of the committee, Rep. Dan Lungren (R-Calif.), immediately contacted the Sacramento sheriff’s department after Giffords’s shooting and asked it to develop a coordination plan with members in the area. 

Several weeks later, the department held a training seminar with staff from the offices of California Reps. Tom McClintock (R), Doris Matsui (D), Mike Thompson (D), Wally Herger (R) and Lungren.

The program trains congressional staff how to identify potentially threatening phone calls or emails and establish a designated line of communication for members to report suspicious behavior. A department liaison was created to keep open communication lines with the members, and department officials provide members with physical security advice on how to improve office safety, according to Sgt. Matthew Reali, who heads up the Sacramento County sheriff’s threat-assessment division.

Reali said he would like to see the program implemented nationwide with every local police and sheriff’s department: “We have these services available, but our resources are limited, so we’re hoping that maybe in the future we might be able to get some funding.”

Clarification: Rep. Peterson’s office has assigned a law enforcement coordinator. After this story was published, Peterson’s office said it had initially provided incorrect information on this point. This story has been revised to reflect the new information.

Clarification/update: After this story was posted, Rep. Michaud’s office contacted The Hill with additional information. Michaud did not attend a previously scheduled March 18 event in Bethel and was not in that city that day. Michaud’s office also said the congressman has assigned a law enforcement coordinator.