Citizen Police Advisory Committee

CITIZEN POLICE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES July 21 , 2015 7:00 p.m. The Citizen Police Advisory Committee met in regular session on Tuesday, July 21, 2015, at 6:00 p.m. in the Executive Conference Room at City Hall, 800 Municipal Drive, Farmington, New Mexico, 87401. Members Present: Deb Dumont, Chairman; Patricia Simpson; David Bratcher; Lisa Martin; Steve Grey Members Absent: Chuck Culpepper City Personnel Present: Lt. Casey Malone, Internal Affairs Sgt. Baric Crum, Internal Affairs Sgt. Matt Veith, Internal Affairs Kim Parrish, Administrative Assistant I. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Chairman Deb Dumont at 6:03 p.m., and there being a quorum of members present, the following proceedings were duly had and taken. II. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS Steve Grey moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the May 19, 2015 as presented. Patricia Simpson seconded the motion. Motion carried. III. CHIEF’S REPORT Lt. Casey Malone stated that Chief Hebbe was out of town for a CALEA Conference in which the Farmington Police Department was getting its 7th award for accreditation. Lt. Malone and Sgt. Matt Veith talked about the department’s Use of Force policy. They stated that the number of “use of force” investigations has increased, so they have been making a big push for more training on how to respond to aggression. Sgt. Veith discussed the different types of “use of force”, and said their officers have been practicing different techniques to deescalate situations. They are teaching officers to wait for backup, and to slow down and try other techniques before going straight to force, which seems to be having success. Lt. Malone stated that they have been updating their use of force policy, and have sent it off to another agency for review as well. Most of the changes to the policy so far are defining exactly what “force” is, which could also affect the numbers that we see in the monthly IA reports. IV. INTERNAL AFFAIRS REPORT Lt. Malone reported that there has been an increase of Internal Affairs Investigations compared to last year, again due in part to a younger agency and the department being more transparent and accessible. Sgt. Veith stated  that the top two types of complaints have been regarding courtesy and unsatisfactory performance for the months of May and June. Cameras have helped to capture many of the incidents and are always made available to the public upon request. V. NEW/OLD BUSINESS a. MEMBERS – None. b. CITIZEN INPUT – None. VI. CLOSED MEETING Steve Grey made a motion to go into closed session, seconded by Patricia Simpson to do an IA case review. All voted in favor; motion carried. Following the closed meeting, during which meeting the matters discussed were limited only to those specified in the motion for closure, a motion was made by Patricia Simpson to open the meeting for further business. Steve Grey seconded the motion; motion carried. VII. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the Committee, and, upon motion duly made and seconded, the meeting was adjourned. ____________________________ ______________________________ Deb Dumont, Chairman Kimberly Parrish, Secretary