By Erica C. Barnett

Seattle Police Department sergeant Christopher Gregorio sent a department-wide email Monday morning inviting officers and their spouses who have been involved in an Officer Involved Shooting and/or officers who have been injured in the line of duty” to sign up for a free retreat hosted by the Billy Graham Law Enforcement Ministry.

The ministry is part of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, which is now headed by Graham’s son Franklin, a close ally and vocal supporter of Donald Trump who—like his father—has a history of bigoted comments about LGBTQ people, believes that the Bible commands women to obey their husbands, and believes women who have abortions are committing “murder” for the sake of their own “pleasure” and convenience.”

The email, which was cc’d to SPD Chaplain Charlie Scoma, said the invitation had been approved by Lieutenant Gregory Fliegel from SPD’s Employee Support Services.

In 2021, then-police chief Adrian Diaz rescinded an internal invitation to a dinner hosted by the same organization, saying the email had “raised concerns that the SPD may not be committed to the equity of our community’s LGBTQ members.”

According to its website, the Billy Graham Law Enforcement Ministry’s next law enforcement appreciation retreat will be held next March at a Marriott near Dulles Airport, outside Washington, D.C. In addition to free admission, officers’ rooms will be paid for by the ministry, along with their meals. At the cheapest available rate for those dates, the lodging alone is likely worth at least $550.

PubliCola is supported entirely by readers like you.
CLICK BELOW to become a one-time or monthly contributor.

Support PubliCola

Videos from this year’s retreat show speakers discussing how to share the gospel of Jesus with nonbelieving coworkers, joking about how to sustain a healthy marriage (see screen shot above), and complaining about the media.

During one panel, three men and one woman responded to a male officer’s question about how he could take back his role as head of his family by saying he needed to let his wife know that God made him the “leader” of her and their children. “It’s your role to be the head of the household, and it’s the wife’s role to be the mother to those kids,” a retired Houston police officer said.

SPD’s communications office told PubliCola on Tuesday that the event “is a well-intentioned opportunity for officers. It is not endorsed by the Department or the Chief of Police,” Shon Barnes. ”

“There are many conferences available from multiple organizations throughout the country that officers can consider attending on their own time,” the SPD spokesperson added, in response to a question about the legality of accepting gifts with financial value from a religious group.

Gregorio, the sergeant who sent the email, may sound familiar to PubliCola readers: He’s one of the officers who killed Terry Caver, a 57-year-old Black man who suffered from mental illness, on a Queen Anne sidewalk in 2020. Gregorio received a 20-day suspension for the shooting, on the grounds that he violated SPD’s policy on deescalation by driving right up to Caver, who appeared to be in crisis, and almost immediately shooting him. Since then, he has been promoted to sergeant.

Mayor Bruce Harrell’s office would not answer our questions about SPD’s invitation to the Billy Graham retreat, saying they would “defer” all questions to SPD.

PubliCola has also reached out to City Councilmember Bob Kettle, who chairs the public safety committee, and will update this post if we hear back from him.