Committee to Review Policing Policies

Committee to Review Policing Policies 10/15/2019 Committee to Review Policing Practices Community Room @ BPD Tuesday, October 15th, 2019 Generated by Laura Cheney on October 17th, 2019 Members present: Chief of Staff Jordan Redell, Deputy Chief Jon Murad, Officer Vinny Ross, Sergeant Jesse Namdar, Police Commissioner Randall Harp, Police Commissioner Jabulani Gamache, City Counselor Joan Shannon, Councilor Perri Freeman, Jim Dunn, Melo Grant, Vice-Chair Skyler Nash, Kevin Rodgers, Thomas Nececkas and Carter Neubieser. Late arrival: none Absent: none Staff present: City Attorney Eileen Blackwood, Clerk Laura Cheney Public present: Deputy Chief Jan Wright, Corporal Jamie Morris, Corporal Dave Clements, Ericka Redic, Constance Crisp, Sylvia Knight, Robert K. Wright, Officer Cory Campbell, Corporal Dan Gilligan 1.0 Call to Order Chair Randall Harp called the meeting to order at 5:51 PM 1.01 Agenda – Additions or Modifications • Melo requested a discussion about the Seven Days article “Force Reboot” (October 2nd), and asked that BPOA President Dan Gilligan attend. Motion by Jabu, second by Joan, to approve the agenda. VOTING: Unanimous; motion carried 2.01 Public Forum • Constance Crisp of the PD joined to invite the committee to attend Community Academy 2020. • Ericka Redic addressed the committee with her thoughts following attending City Council and Committee meetings. Page 1 of 4  Committee to Review Policing Policies 10/15/2019 Letter to Committee • Sylvia Knight expressed her appreciation for the committee and its work. 3.01 Approval of Minutes 9/17 & 10/1 Motion by Joan, second by Jim to approve minutes. VOTING: Unanimous; motion carried 3.02 Elect Vice-Chair Motion by Joan, second by Jordan to elect Skyler as Vice-Chair. VOTING: Unanimous; motion carried 4.0 Communication 4.01 Update on Use of Funds • The City Council approved the funding be allocated to more than one consultant or use. 4.02 Update on Data • Jordan noted that we will have additional data in upcoming meetings. BPD Training in ICAT & ERV • DC Murad reported that 40% of officers have had ICAT Training. We are in the process of scheduling additional training. 26% of officers are trained and participating in ERU, with an additional 12 training this year, bringing the total to 38%. • DC Murad confirmed the department aims to have all officers trained in ICAT within a year. • Kevin inquired if there are any resources or funds that would further support this training. • DC Murad noted that funding alone would not accomplish the goal of training in ICAT sooner. The cycle of training, operational needs and staffing impact our training capacity. Melo requested the budget allocated and used for training for the past five years. Page 2 of 4  Committee to Review Policing Policies 10/15/2019 4.03 Discussion of Recommendations on Recruitment & Training • Carter suggested accumulating recommendations as we move forward, while providing updates to the Council as needed. • Kevin inquired about seeking recruitment outlets through the high school and beach and parks staffing. ◦ DC Murad noted we use the Beach & Parks program to foster interest and SRO’s do nurture policing paths at the high school. • Carter noted concern that less than 10% of officers live in Burlington. ◦ Vinny noted the existing need to look out of state to find qualified candidates, and that any additional requirements could further hinder recruitment. • Recruitment Corporal Clements spoke to challenges in recruitment. He relayed that interest in Vermont is low, and out-of-state applicants are much greater. Lateral moves are also most often from out of state. • DC Murad noted that recruitment is the most challenging issue for police departments, both in terms of numbers and demographics. • Chair Harp inquired whether a housing stipend for officers would be an appropriate recommendation. ◦ Melo remarked that market forces are an impediment. Single-family homes are extremely limited. ◦ Joan expressed concern for any living requirements. She noted that funding for any stipends would need to come from elsewhere and suggested focusing on recommendations that would be more productive. ◦ Chair Harp expressed reluctance in constraining recommendations from the committee, noting that it is up to the City Council to determine how to implement them. • Perri asked what the base pay is for an officer. ◦ Corporal Clements noted it is just under $60K • Melo remarked that the committee should raise awareness of issues/concerns, even if they do not lead to a recommendation. She inquired if the department recruits at the local colleges. ◦ Corporal Clements noted that we do job fairs with mixed results. • Skyler noted that face-to-face interactions do help to reduce adversarial relations. • Kevin stated that many people in this community do not want to go on a ride-along or do the community academy because they do not want to be associated with the department. ◦ Chair Harp asked what recommendations he may have in that regard. ◦ Kevin suggested utilizing SRO’s and gaining an understanding of the community’s perceptions of the PD. • Jim asked for empirical evidence that officers living in the community do work differently. It is something we should explore as a recommendation, regardless of budget constraints. • Chair Harp requested that we table further discussion to the next meeting. Motion by Perri, second by Jim to continue the discussion at the next meeting. VOTING: Unanimous; motion carries. 4.04 BPD Presentation on Use of Force • Corporal Clements and Corporal Morris presented on Use of Force Training & Policy. ◦ BPD UOF Presentation ◦ UOF & Tactics Dashborad Explication ◦ UOF Dashboard • Chair Harp requested the presentation be continued at the next meeting. Page 3 of 4  Committee to Review Policing Policies 10/15/2019 4.05 Listening Sessions • Kevin suggested using funds on a consultant who could help to structure questions, interviews, and advise on gathering information from the community. • Chair Harp requested further discussion at the next meeting. 4.06 Next Mtg Agenda Items & Date • Agenda items: ◦ Consultants: what is available to us, next steps, what topics needed to be addressed ◦ Continued discussion of recommendations on training and recruitment ◦ BPD Use of Force presentation continued (first on the agenda) ◦ Seven Days Article & BPOA President Dan Gilligan ◦ Listening sessions • Meeting Date: 10/29 at 5:45 5.01 Adjournment Motion by Joan, second by Skyler to adjourn the meeting. VOTING: Unanimous; motion carried Adjourned at 7:57 pm. Page 4 of 4