Washington State law effectively protects police officers from being prosecuted for using deadly force, no matter the situation.

It’s a law that needs to be changed, but Initiative 940 isn’t the answer.

The initiative took a strange road to get before voters. A group called De-Escalate Washington gathered enough signatures to place it on November’s ballot. The initiative would get rid of the part of the law requiring proof that an officer acted with malice to be held criminally liable in using deadly force, a nearly impossible standard to prove in court.

I-940 would also require police to receive de-escalation and mental health training and to provide first aid.

De-Escalate Washington then worked with police organizations and state lawmakers to create a compromise that made everyone happy; it removed a “subjective good faith test” and added clarifications. Lawmakers passed a bill that amended the ballot measure to take into account the compromise.

The state Supreme Court, however, ruled that lawmakers cannot amend the initiative, so the original version appears on the ballot.

The backdrop for the initiative is an outcry against a series of questionable police shooting across the nation in recent years, many of which involved people of color.

Yes, the majority of police officers are good people, it’s a dangerous jobs and situations involving the use of force can be complex and incredibly stressful. But that doesn’t mean they should have a get-out-of-jail-free card when it comes to shooting people.

Whether or not I-940 passes, lawmakers should move quickly during the next session to adopt the compromise bill.