Joint Committee on Police Oversight

Regular Meeting

Burlington, VT · September 7, 2023

Minutes

ORDINANCE and CHARTER CHANGE JOINT COMMITTEE Thursday, September 7, 2023 Bushor Conference Room and Remote via Zoom DRAFT MINUTES Members Present: Councilor Traverse (Ordinance Committee Chair), Gene Bergman (Charter Change Committee Chair), Councilor Carpenter, Councilor Hightower Staff Present: Kim Sturtevant (Acting City Attorney), Jon Murad (Chief of Police), Jordan Redell (Mayor’s Chief of Staff), Shannon Trammell (BPD) Others in Attendance: Jake Schumann, Mike Hoey, Scot Sweeney, Tyler Boronski Meeting called to order at 5:35 PM. 1.0 Agenda Motion to adopt/amend agenda Motion to Adopt Agenda with the agenda item ‘Adjournment’ moved to the end of the agenda. Motion by Councilor Hightower, Seconded by Councilor Carpenter Final Resolution: Motion Passes Yes: Unanimous 2.0 Adopt the Draft Minutes from August 2 and 3. Motion to Adopt Minutes as is. Motion by Councilor Bergman, Seconded by Councilor Carpenter Final Resolution: Motion Passes Yes: Unanimous 3.0 Public Forum No members of the public wished to speak for this agenda item. 4.0 Discussion of Proposed Pathways from Councilors Councilor Bergman wants to have an independent body for higher-level disciplinary incidents. He also wants to do any charter changes first and to have them ready by the end of the calendar year. The language for this independent body would be similar to the Mayor’s memo from December of 2020 and this body should have a budget for staffing. Councilor Carpenter believes there should not be two separate bodies. There should be staff budgeting to alleviate the time strain that the Commission is already dealing with. City Council could restructure the Police Commission if there is a need to improve their independence, but it is already a citizen Commission. Councilor Traverse raised several legal questions for research. What are the concerns around the Police collective bargaining agreement when it comes to auditing or oversight? Page 1 of 2 Jordan Redell (Mayor’s Chief of Staff) stated that the current system allows the Commission to review body worn camera footage for incidents so long as there is a reason. The Commission cannot randomly audit footage without a reason. Chief Murad added that all incident reports are noted in the monthly report given to the Commission and they may pick incidents to review fully. Six months ago, the Commission asked to see all incident reports and the BPOA did not want that to be the practice. Councilor Traverse raised another legal question: If an oversight body were allowed to categorize the severity of incidents, what are the potential issues with the current collective bargaining agreement? If the body changed its mind on the level of an incident and wanted to change its categorization, are there any issues with that? If the Police Commission hears disciplinary appeals, should the collective bargaining agreement allow officers to appeal to arbitration, beyond the Commission? The Committee decided on the following dates for next meetings: 9/25 at 7:00PM 10/3 at 7:00PM 10/28 at 7:00PM 11/1 at 5:30PM 5.0 Adjournment Motion to adjourn. Motion by Councilor Traverse, without objection. Yes: Unanimous The meeting was adjourned at 6:41 PM. Page 2 of 2

Agenda

Joint Committee on Police Oversight Meeting Agenda - Thursday, September 7, 2023, 5:30 PM, Bushor Conference Room 1st Floor, City Hall OR REMOTELY via ZOOM When: Sep 7, 2023 05:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) Topic: Joint Committee on Police Oversight Meeting Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://zoom.us/j/94313746272 Or One tap mobile : +13017158592,,94313746272# US (Washington DC) +13052241968,,94313746272# US Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC) +1 305 224 1968 US +1 309 205 3325 US +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 646 931 3860 US +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 360 209 5623 US +1 386 347 5053 US +1 507 473 4847 US +1 564 217 2000 US +1 669 444 9171 US +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 689 278 1000 US +1 719 359 4580 US +1 253 205 0468 US +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) Webinar ID: 943 1374 6272 International numbers available: https://zoom.us/u/aeXFXT9lO Important documents referenced in the Committee meetings are available here: https://www.burlingtonvt.gov/CityCouncil/Ordinance-and-Charter-Change-Joint-Committee-on-Police- Oversight 1. Agenda Subject 1.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda Meeting September 7, 2023 - Joint Committee on Police Oversight Meeting Agenda - Thursday, September 7, 2023, 5:30 PM, Bushor Conference Room 1st Floor, City Hall OR REMOTELY via ZOOM Category 1. Agenda Department Type Recommended Action 2. Adopt Draft Minutes from August 2/3 Subject 2.1. Adopt Draft Minutes from August 2/3 Meeting September 7, 2023 - Joint Committee on Police Oversight Meeting Agenda - Thursday, September 7, 2023, 5:30 PM, Bushor Conference Room 1st Floor, City Hall OR REMOTELY via ZOOM Category 2. Adopt Draft Minutes from August 2/3 Department Council and Board Type Recommended Action 3. Public Forum Subject 3.1. Verbal Comments Meeting September 7, 2023 - Joint Committee on Police Oversight Meeting Agenda - Thursday, September 7, 2023, 5:30 PM, Bushor Conference Room 1st Floor, City Hall OR REMOTELY via ZOOM Category 3. Public Forum Department Council and Board Type 4. Adjournment Subject 4.1. Motion to adjourn Meeting September 7, 2023 - Joint Committee on Police Oversight Meeting Agenda - Thursday, September 7, 2023, 5:30 PM, Bushor Conference Room 1st Floor, City Hall OR REMOTELY via ZOOM Category 4. Adjournment Department Council and Board Type Recommended Action 5. Discussion of Proposed Pathways from Councilors Subject 5.1. Discussion of Proposed Pathways from Councilors Meeting September 7, 2023 - Joint Committee on Police Oversight Meeting Agenda - Thursday, September 7, 2023, 5:30 PM, Bushor Conference Room 1st Floor, City Hall OR REMOTELY via ZOOM Category 5. Discussion of Proposed Pathways from Councilors Department Council and Board Type Recommended Action