Bill would let state investigators review older deadly-force incidents, OII says
February 23, 2026 | Legislative Sessions, Washington
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The Law and Justice Committee heard testimony on engrossed substitute House Bill 2508, which expands the Office of Independent Investigations’ ability to review past incidents involving use of force and clarifies evidence-access and notification rules.
Maya Ita, staff counsel, said the bill removes the existing temporal limit and would allow OII to investigate deadly-force incidents regardless of when they occurred and to investigate non-deadly-force incidents that resulted in death if there is reason to believe the force caused or contributed to the death. The bill also clarifies that independent investigative teams may assist at OII’s request but their authority and duration of involvement would be limited.
Representative Deborah Entenmann (47th LD), the prime sponsor, told the committee the look-back authority is not a 'fishing trip' and reiterated that OII may only reopen prior cases where new information justifies review. “It is not a fishing trip where we can just go and look for anything,” she said.
Annette Taylor, legislative director for OII, supported the measure and said it additionally adds fire, rescue and EMS to the list of responding agencies that must provide records while protecting confidential health information. Jessica Berliner, senior legal and policy advisor for OII, said the bill aligns OII’s jurisdiction with other entities, clarifies notification timing (agencies must notify OII once there is a good reason to believe force may have caused or contributed to a death) and codifies limited public-records exemptions for certain prior-investigation reviews.
Committee members asked whether look-back authority applies to incidents before OII’s 07/01/2022 start date; staff confirmed the bill removes that date restriction, allowing review of older incidents when new information is present. An updated fiscal note had been requested but was not yet available.
Chair Dhingra closed the public hearing after testimony and questions.
Maya Ita, staff counsel, said the bill removes the existing temporal limit and would allow OII to investigate deadly-force incidents regardless of when they occurred and to investigate non-deadly-force incidents that resulted in death if there is reason to believe the force caused or contributed to the death. The bill also clarifies that independent investigative teams may assist at OII’s request but their authority and duration of involvement would be limited.
Representative Deborah Entenmann (47th LD), the prime sponsor, told the committee the look-back authority is not a 'fishing trip' and reiterated that OII may only reopen prior cases where new information justifies review. “It is not a fishing trip where we can just go and look for anything,” she said.
Annette Taylor, legislative director for OII, supported the measure and said it additionally adds fire, rescue and EMS to the list of responding agencies that must provide records while protecting confidential health information. Jessica Berliner, senior legal and policy advisor for OII, said the bill aligns OII’s jurisdiction with other entities, clarifies notification timing (agencies must notify OII once there is a good reason to believe force may have caused or contributed to a death) and codifies limited public-records exemptions for certain prior-investigation reviews.
Committee members asked whether look-back authority applies to incidents before OII’s 07/01/2022 start date; staff confirmed the bill removes that date restriction, allowing review of older incidents when new information is present. An updated fiscal note had been requested but was not yet available.
Chair Dhingra closed the public hearing after testimony and questions.
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