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At last night's meeting, the Metro Council voted on the inaugural members of our new Civilian Review Board. This board will make recommendations that could have a profound effect on the lives of families throughout our community. I was the lone member of this council to oppose the creation of this board, because I was concerned with how the board would be structured, potentially in a very biased way against our police officers. That fear has unfortunately become a reality.
Public safety is the foremost responsibility of our city government. Anyone tasked with influencing that function must be ready to accept and understand that just like the officers who serve this community – their decisions will lead to either a better community or larger divisions. For this reason, I took the vote on the Civilian Review and Accountability Board very seriously.
Several members of the Metro Council have voiced our shared concern with two candidates for this board. We have had many conversations over the past week to gain understanding and seek out common ground. I am sure there will be many more difficult conversations to come as we tackle these critical issues.
When this ordinance was passed, it purposefully excluded many members of the public. Specifically, it excluded family members of any law enforcement personnel. Arguably tens of thousands of citizens within our community were excluded because of an assumption of potential bias in favor of LMPD.
The second Whereas within the CRAB Ordinance calls for an “objective and independent” board. We have every reason to be concerned over the objectivity of the two appointments being questioned. They haven’t just made statements of political or philosophical disagreement. They have expressed their bias against police with multiple public statements made over the course of the past year. The role of this body is oversight, and the members of this Council who are opposed to these two appointments believe, that despite the many wonderful things these two appointees may do through their volunteer work, their bias violates the intention of the Whereas clause which established this board.
While I disagree with the outcome (15-10) of these votes, I will continue to pursue what I believe is the best direction for this city.
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