SMART Investigations

Snohomish County Multiple Agency Response Team (SMART)

The Snohomish County Multiple Agency Response Team (SMART) is a team of investigators, evidence technicians, records specialists, and public information officers from various Snohomish County law enforcement agencies and Washington State Patrol who respond to and investigate police use of force incidents. In addition, per Washington State Administrative Code (WAC 139.12.030) regarding requirements for Independent Investigation Teams (IIT), two civilian Community Member Representatives are also assigned to each incident response. The goals of the team are:

• To promote public trust by conducting professional and consistent multi-jurisdictional investigations of major incidents, primarily law enforcement involved fatalities and serious injury incidents.
• To maximize the availability and sharing of the latest technological equipment and techniques.
• To consolidate and share the skills of the most experienced supervisors and investigators.
• To conduct thorough investigations in as timely a fashion as is feasible under the circumstances.

Team Activation

The team is activated when a Chief of Police or the Sheriff requests a consultation from the SMART Commander, who then determines (based on previously established protocol) whether SMART will investigate the incident. When an investigation is complete, it is forwarded to the Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney for review and to determine if criminal laws were broken. The team operates on established policy and procedures which can be reviewed by the public.

Board of Directors 

The Board of Directors of SMART shall consist of six (6) members appointed by the Snohomish County Sheriff and Police Chief’s Association (“SCSPCA”) as follows:

• The Snohomish County Sheriff (or representative)
• The Everett Police Chief (or representative)
• The Snohomish County Commander of the Washington State Patrol (or representative)
• A Chief of Police (or representative) from municipalities from North County (Arlington, Lake Stevens, or Marysville)
• A Chief of Police (or representative) from municipalities from Southeast County (Monroe, Mill Creek, Bothell)
• A Chief of Police (or representative) from municipalities from Southwest County (Brier, Edmonds, Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace, or Mukilteo)

Representatives of the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office and the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office are included on the Board as non-voting advisors. For voting purposes, three (3) Board Members shall constitute a quorum. Each voting member shall serve a two (2) year term. The terms shall be staggered to provide continuity of membership. Board members may be selected to serve additional two (2) year terms without limitation.

SMART Investigators

SMART investigators are selected for their training and expertise in criminal investigations, basic homicide investigations, crime scene investigations, the Reid Technique of Interviewing and Interrogation, officer-involved shooting investigations, and in-custody death investigations. The team meets regularly to train and debrief on active investigations. A  /documentcenter/view/112211  /DocumentCenter/View/93842  /documentcenter/view/106175  /documentcenter/view/107526 roster of active team members is available to the public.

SMART Community Member Representatives

SMART has five non-law enforcement community representatives assigned to the team. All five billets for SMART community members are currently filled. Per Washington State Administrative Code (WAC 139.12) regarding requirements for Independent Investigation Teams (IIT), two civilian community member representatives are assigned to each incident response.   /DocumentCenter/View/70748 

Media Relations, News Releases & Public Records Requests

SMART Public Information Officers (PIOs):

• Courtney O’Keefe, Communications Director, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, or call 425-249-6263
• Officer Nathan Fabia, Mukilteo Police Department, or call 425-328-6512
• Officer Ora Hamel, Everett Police Department, 425-257-7444
• Bridgette Larsen, Public Information Officer, City of Marysville, 425-530-5663

SMART Public Records Requests:

• Brent Flagg, Everett Police Department Public Disclosure Unit, 425-257-8471
• Jessica Payne, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office Public Disclosure Unit, 425-388-3863

Everett Police Department’s Public Records Manager is the first point of contact for public records requests. However, if unavailable, requests will be redirected to the Snohomish County Public Records Manager.