Full Notification

Dear Fremont Community,

My thoughts, prayers, and condolences are with the Nichols family and the Memphis community.  I am deeply troubled by the actions of the officers involved in Tyre Nichols’ death.  I do not have all the facts of this incident; however, based on what is captured on video and details provided by Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis, I am compelled to speak up and speak out against these actions and behavior.  I firmly believe the officers’ actions were inconsistent with the core values of law enforcement and did not align with our duty to serve our community professionally, lawfully, and with dignity and respect.

Words cannot express my disappointment in what appears to be a disregard for life and inhumane treatment of others.  In a moment, a family has lost a loved one; a community is fractured; the excellent work happening every day at more than 18,000 law enforcement agencies across the U.S. is undermined.  I denounce and condemn these actions and expect law enforcement personnel to feel the same. 

Fremont Police Department profoundly values the sanctity of life and strives to earn our community’s trust daily.  We are expected to perform our duties with respect, fairness, and dignity. I believe we have one of the most professional, competent, and capable police departments in the nation. We trust our personnel to deliver service consistent with community expectations and aligned with law and policy. 

With ongoing support from our Fremont Community, our people, policies, training, and equipment are among the best. We continue to work toward being even better, having an ongoing objective to be an exemplary law enforcement agency for our entire Country.  We will continue to grow, evolve, and improve wherever and whenever necessary to earn and sustain the trust of our community.  I remain committed to identifying paths for improvement by hiring, appointing, and promoting competent and qualified staff who are committed and dedicated to serving our community.  We continue to seek ways to enhance service and ensure we operate within established law enforcement best practices.

In 2020, we engaged with our community and listened to calls for change. As a result, adjustments to policy, expectations, operational protocols, and accountability procedures were made.  Our use of force policy received significant updates and changes.  I want our community to know that officers are trained to de-escalate, utilize proper arrest control techniques, maintain a duty to intercede when unnecessary force is applied, provide medical care to suspects and consider alternative force options.  We approach all situations with an understanding that the goal is to diffuse rather than use unnecessary force.  In addition, FPD has enhanced community perspectives (cultural diversity) training to support fair and unbiased policing.  For more information on FPD’s policies, please visit our Transparency Portal: https://fremontpolice.gov/Transparency. 

We enjoy a great relationship with our community in the City of Fremont.  As Sir Robert Peel stated, “the police are the public, and the public are the police.”  This means that we work toward our public safety objectives with community input, cooperation, and consent.  Dedication, Integrity, Professionalism, and Community Partnership are our core values, and you should expect nothing less.  Fremont Police will serve our community with dignity and respect.  We remain committed to transparency and accountability.

This incident is a tragedy and a negative mark on the law enforcement profession. I know this situation does not represent law enforcement professionals who serve appropriately and honorably.  I continue to be proud of the work of our FPD team and our community.

Respectfully,
Chief Sean Washington