Councilmember M. Lorena González (Position 9, Citywide), as Chair of the Gender Equity, Safe Communities, New Americans and Education committee, together with her City Council colleagues, voted 7-to-1 today to approve the appointment of Lisa A. Judge as the City of Seattle’s first Inspector General for Public Safety (IG) during its regularly scheduled Full Council meeting.
Ms. Judge was nominated by the members of the Office of Inspector General Search Committee, co-chaired by Councilmember González and Isaac Ruiz, co-chair of the Community Police Commission, after a 10-month, nationwide search process. Her nomination was first considered during the Gender Equity, Safe Communities, New Americans and Education committee on April 25.
Judge will receive the oath of office on Monday, May 14. She will begin her new position the same day.
“The Office of Inspector General is a critical part of our three-part police accountability system that will be responsive to systemic issues that may compromise the City’s ongoing police reform efforts. Ms. Judge’s inclusive definition of community will be anchored in her commitment to prioritize communities who are most at risk of and most disproportionately impacted by unlawful policing practices,” said Councilmember González. “I’m encouraged by Ms. Judge’s commitment to procedural justice, which comes from her prior work with police officers. She knows we must hold officers who violate the laws, procedures, policies and civil rights of our residents accountable, while acknowledging the good work officers do to comply with reform efforts and keep us all safe.”
Inspired by the 2012 federal Consent Decree in United States of America v. City of Seattle, 12 Civ. 1282 (JLR), the Office of Inspector General for Public Safety was created by the full Council and representatives from the Office of the Mayor in May of 2017 as part of the City’s reformed civilian, police accountability framework.
Judge brings more than two decades of service as the Legal Advisor to the Tucson Police Department to her work in Seattle. The focus of her work has been on innovations in interactions with people suffering with people in crisis, and overseeing officers prioritizing treatment over incarceration. For more information on Mrs. Judge’s background, refer to the April 30 confirmation packet.