HomeMy WebLinkAboutReport of the Mayor's Task Force on Police-Community Relations 1992.2 i 1 Tleaig
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CITY OF ITHACA
COMMUNITY POLICE BOARD
120 EAST CLINTON STREET (607) 272.9973
ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850-5689 EXTENSION 310
COMMISSIONERS
1992
KIRBY EDMONDS HOME: 272-7137 12/31/92
411 Esty Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 OFFICE: 277-3401
MICHAEL J. ELLIS HOME: 273-4438 12/31/93
406 Stewart Avenue, Ithaca, NY 14850 OFFICE: 255-4311
Mail correspondence to address below:
Asst. Dean of Students
Room 538, Willard Straight Hall
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
MARIA POOLE HOME: 277-6566 12/31/94
105 Jay Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 OFFICE: 274-2206
OFFICE: Belle Sherman School
Ithaca, NY 14850
CAROL SELIGMANN HOME: 273-8966 12/31/93
115 Eastwood Terrace, Ithaca, NY 14850 OFFICE: 255-5250
OFFICE: 104 Upson Hall
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
SARA SHENK HOME: 272-4849 12/31/92
816 S. Meadow Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 OFFICE: 257-1551
Common Council Liaison:
JOHN JOHNSON HOME: 272-8442
946 E. State St., Ithaca, NY 14850 OFFICE: 255-7736
HRM/lac:07/17/92
2/MAY-JUNE 1992 :
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BY NORMAN SIEGEL . ,i
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
6.14 Intro 83: A Law to Achieve Police Accountability
Dear New York City Members: and City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, population and unaffiliated with city law an affirmation of a basic right of citizen-
Abuse by police of the powers invested you can help make Intro 83 law,..': enforcement agencies.Eight would be ap- ship in a democratic society,but to curb
in them by the people remains high on the ' Please consider.the'followittg informa- pointed by the mayor,and four each would police misconduct,which is as prevalent as
NYCLU's list of concerns. The`stun-gun = tion.If you support-Intro 83,please write be appointed try the City Council president it has ever been.Without a genuine deter-
torture of suspects in Queens in 1985,the your Councilmember and Speaker Vallone and the comptroller. rent in the form of a CCRB free of Police
1986 beating of Gerard Papa and James to say so,and to request that they,too;sup- •It would require that the investigators Department influence, we fear it will
Rampersant in Brooklyn,and the"police port the bill. : employed by the CCRB likewise be remain.
riot"in'Ibmpkins Square Park the night of �fi ;s * civilians unaffiliated with law enforcement Please consider writing your council-
August 6-7, 1988 in which dozens'were. Intro 83 proposes'to reform the CCRB agencies. member and Speaker Vallone on behalf of
beaten,are but a few examples of a disturb- principally by disqualifying employees of •It would empower the newly constitut- Intro 83.They can be reached at 250 Broad-
ing and widespread phenomenon.'Allega- law enforcement agencies from serving on ed CCRB beyond the current one,to inves- way,New York, New York 10007. If you
tions of police misconduct numbererd moreit.Under existing law,half of the positions tigate complaints against not only the police receive any written response,please send
than 28,000 between 1985 and 1990,andon the'12-member Board and all otthose department,but against Transit Authority, us a copy.
despite the existence of the Civilian.Com- on its staff are.occupied by Police Depart- Housing Authority,Sanitation,and Health Thank you for being an NYCLU
plaint Review Board(CCRB),which Mrs---- mentemployees.Sir members of}lie cur- and Hospitals Corporation police. member.
ti ates and recommends action upon such- •It would further em ower the CCRB Regards
g po rent Board are civilians unaffiliated with the p Norman Siegel
el
allegations,police misconduct persists.In police department;appointed by the mayor to issue subpoenas and to requisition from g
1990 alone,New York City paid victims of But the remainder arehigh-ranking civilian law enforcement agencies copies of all
police misconduct a record high of more employees;of the police department,ap-, reports pertaining to alleged acts of P.S.:NYLCU members outside New York
than$13 million. he nmj lobe-Asfor' misconduct.. City who are interested in working on a
pam W Po k. •
„•. The CCRB has failed to discourage + # TJs ,. , t ', mprise ...Finally..it,would assign the CCRB. similar campaign to create all civilian corn-
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dice misconduct.We attribute that fail 4 �,� ,, 'a'; yes_, dutiesof aafgrming and educating citizens plain review should contact meat 132 West
to the fact that as it stands,thes,CCJ'B. . ,, z, t i t ,4 ;filo,. of tbeait,ight l to encounters with members 43rd St., New York• N.Y. 10036. (212)
r..police,lesaeFl» AiU accott,(ttab w , +e , ons ; , ;ettforpemtptagepsies .. # 382-0557. We need to create all-civilian
publ1 1brtheifactit = iv- + ✓ 'c; ,. toversightof lawcomplaint review boards throughout New
's reformed tire.CCR cool ' t, ""i' '"f'yffi ",`+`7 , y-,,y..,.,,�-., ' les assurgept,,not gm77 v,as, York State.
tial asadeterfenrtopolice; tar .,ex.. t e c�,,
a bill,now known as littro.83•thatT ¢ Dep e»t..emp kanvmugate- and Letter to the Editor
reform the CCRB r' ?e, epoi3 depart
Intro 83 baits broad '�''� ii i '"
_ ,, mix t a. , SMI[
'� �' Jeffries: Censured For
~�• the Latina Rfght�,PtoJect,; s' Ven
tat'Legal Defeosean f)efen4r °.'" L.' r'77''''''''°'' . .b d bi Incompetence,etenc Not Speech
• Asian-American Legal Defense and Edges *ee"•ps4tts dectslona ust... id bi- p
don Fund,and the Guardians Association ased in'favor of'the5Ptolice'.Department.
• which represents black NYPD officers.Ar Such unfairness is unacceptable to us. To the Editor: enroll in a black studies course taught by
this point,however,it has been endorsed Intro 83 would make the following Norman Siegel ("Academic Freedom: someone who believed, as Professor
by only 18 of the City Council's 51 mem- changes: •'` The Jeffries Controversy;'Sept.1991)says Jeffries does,that a cabal of rich Jews and
hers; an additional eight are-required to...--':-•It Would reconstitute the CCRB of 16 CUNY officials should not take action the Mafia was at least partly responsible for
enact it.By writing your councilmember persons representative of the city's diverse against Professor Leonard Jeffries for his the position of blacks in America?
off-campus antisemitic speech;Mr.Siegel If a teacher of twentieth-century history
quotes Justice Louis Brandeis on freedom made an off-campus speech echoing the
AN.Y. CIVIL LIBERTIES of speech to support his position. 1 agree claims of the neo-nazis that the Holocaust
with Justice Brandeis,but I dont think the is a myth,he would have demonstrated that
(ISSN 0746-0201) quotation is relevant. he was not competent to teach his course.
is published four times a year(March,June, September, and No one has suggested that Professor Academic freedom protects bipi fled speech
i December)by the New York Civil Liberties Union, Jeffries be prevented from making other under some circumstances,but it does not
132 West 43 St., New York, N.Y. 1003.6 speeches in the same vein,or be put in jail protect academic incompetence.
(212)382-0557 or fined for his remarks.But his speech has
shown him to be incompetent to teach in
Kathleen Peratis, President;Judith Reed, Vice President;
ITHACA JOURNAL - WEDNESDAY, MAY 6, 1992
Residents n "j' - apypwho hadarticipated in vademonstrations Saturday on The
Ithaca Commons, at the Southside
forpolice relations' -, center and at the police station,
brought up many of the same is-
sues.
But Saturday Nichols said while
ray� �`"
• L.A. police criticized, 7A . _ �� `„ , there has been an instance of inter-
;,'IA/hat.snext . nal disciplinary action against an
By JENNIFER COMBS `" \ '� Ithaca police officer for use of ex-
S
Special to The Journal ��ia Coaliti0rt Ofi cfty r'e& ell Sk
pec �� � cessive force, there has been no
strew up a terltatnt $eva � case of internal
A diverse coalition of about 80 a,� �� discipline for an ac
`'point agenda 0 presg�11
citizens mapped out an agenda ` . �`� „ ,„. `�' tion determined to be racially moti-
Tuesday night to stem alleged in- ,IVtayOr Ben)amin NTcho�s,�;`v vated.
stances of police misconduct and I Coda It includes��N �; And McEwen said Saturday,
foster better relations between Itha- �>�<::; ?�'_''��''��'�'�'�a�'' ``�t �, �. since I've been police chief, there
tib: t Wlfti,�o�`��\ �`\� , �� ��
cans — especially African Ameri )SenSitiVltytrairltng *. .-',,*,,,:.:L,.�a has been no evidence of police bru-
cans — and the Ithaca Police De- :a I'amtlirlXO OItCa 1Ntt tality in Ithaca." McEwen became
partment. ` iinQri 1SStleS;`� chief in October 1988.
The meeting, held at the South- Before the Tuesday night agenda
���� was arrived at, there was much dis-
side Community Center on Plain I►Regularly auditing 9 iGarS
Street, was in response to Satur "�`� cussion and several personal ac-
�k'tha Dave a tte rd 0 •a IC
day's protests against the county's �A�� „ � ,,��""•�;��� ti counts.
i;jrUtallt}lt ,��It .� Ithacan
jury selection process and the not \.,�,. , ��� \�.4,, \ i� Kenny Grant — a mem
guilty verdict in the_:.LosAngeles ►Increa'S 111E WerfO (1e* ber of Stand Proud, a local support
police brutality trial, which pushed ` Community Police rza group for black males between the
the issue of local police conduct to y�., r,�� ages of 13 and 26—gave the crowd
the forefront for many at the gath >Amending t( e Civilian corn„ an account of alleged harassment
ering. "We need to find a way to plaint process against evil.y k by Ithaca police. He said he was
strengthen the relationship between ��i` ` �� stopped bya local officer and
Altering the county;s lurX,�y=
ques-
the police department and the Afri- �� ., tioned about a leather coat in his
can American community," said „$election procpss,x� � \k
�� ,* � � :kz4, ,,,,,\�, ��At possession,even though it belonged
the organizer of the meeting, Amy Ci attng a 1'YientOr program to him.
Lewis, the community resources \ g p m" w"W
co-
development coordinator at the uitin Olide t0 wOrk WlthI,,. Despite the proposals that the co-
p black youths ��\�•. alition put together, some at the
Southside Community Center. u"� meeting were skeptical of their
Tuesday night's gathering in- Addressing alIeged raciat$ long-term viability.
eluded blacks and whites, gays and ." . "I' I've
inequalities m the sehool I m afraid. I ve seen these(kind
lesbians. t ' �� of groups),"" said Art Watkins.SyseTS � ``The seven-point agenda, agreed ga.. "Agendas
are not hard to make up,
upon by most of the people at the but presenting them to an attentive
meeting, will be presented to Ithaca ear is."
Mayor Ben Nichols today, Lewis plaint process against police, mak- Watkins said these issues have al-
said. ing it easier for citizens to file ways been key issues in Ithaca's
Both Nichols and Ithaca Police charges. black community.
Chief Harlin R. McEwen have said • Altering the county's jury se- Southside resident George Ha-
they know of no instances of racial- lection process, good agreed.
ly motivated police brutality on the • Creating a mentor program re- "People in this community need
city force. quiring police to work with black to do more work and more consis-
So far, the tentative agenda calls youths; tently," said Hagood, organizer of
for the following: • Addressing the alleged racial the Southside Neighborhood Asso-
• Sensitivity training for all offi- inequalities that are present in the ciation.
cers and sheriff's deputies to famil- school systems; and However, others seemed opti-
iarize them with minority issues; A diverse coalition people mistic about the future of the grass-
• Regular auditing of officers ranging from young men wearing roots coalition.
who have a record of police brutali- baseball caps with X's on them to "A very exciting beginning,"
ty; middle-aged professionals who ap- said Ruth Yarrow,a Northside resi-
• Restructuring of the Commu- peared to have just gotten off work dent. "We have a real cross-section
nity Police Board — a citizens re- — showed up and pledged to form of the community here who are
view board—to increase its power; a grass-roots organization to make deepedly concerned about racism in
• Amending the civilian corn- sure their demands are met. the community."
I7TREIVED
c ! T1 .CI-4IEF'S OFFICE
MAY -,,611992
10
!J f
ITHACA POLICE DEPT;
May 6, 1992
Dear Mayor Nichols,
On Tuesday May 5th at 7:30pm a public meeting' was held at Southside
Community Center. Over a hundred community residents attended in which
issues were discussed regarding police relations in Ithaca. The following
is a list of what we consider to be concrete solutions to improve police
and community relations in Ithaca, NY:
1 . Acknowledge "double standard",(racism) in police behavior.
2. Provide sensitivity training for a I I officers.
3. Establish a mentor program between cops and kids.
4. Order racially abusive officers to perform community service in
Southside.
5. Change the rules that govern the Police Review Board.
6. Change the jury selection process.
Sincerely,
Amy Lewis
City of Ithaca
GCP MinuteManager
HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE:
* 18.1 - Creation of Community Relations Task Force
By Alderperson Johnson: Seconded by Alderperson Efroymson
WHEREAS, there has been considerable public discussion of ways to improve police and
minority community relations in the City of Ithaca, and
WHEREAS, the Mayor, the Police Chief, and members of the Community Police Board and
Human Services Committee have taken part in public discussions of steps to be taken to improve
relations between Ithaca's Police and the minority community, and
WHEREAS, some recommendations have been made and work groups have been formed to
proceed with some of these recommendations, now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Mayor appoint a broad-based community task force to pursue solutions
to the identified problems and to recommend to Council by September 1, 1992 additional steps to
be taken for long-term improvement of relations between Police and the minority community.
Police Chief McEwen addressed Council regarding the resolution. Discussion followed
regarding the language of this resolution.
Amending Resolution
By Alderperson Booth: Seconded by Alderperson Efroymson
RESOLVED, That the words "the identified" be stricken from the last paragraph of the
resolution, and the words "involving the Police Department and the minority community" be
added after the word "problems."
Carried Unanimously
Main Motion as Amended
A vote on the Main Motion as Amended resulted as follows:
Carried Unanimously
1
MINUTES
June 15 , 1992
The meeting began at 7 : 20pm with introductions and personal
purposes of attendance . We discussed the purpose of our group-
to work with the police , but at the same time set guidelines-
and we were informed that we must complete a list of recommend-
ations in to the Human Services Committee by the week of August
17 . We agreed that the police force will be represented at
one of our meetings , but also that we should wait until we
have ourselves organized so we do not appear to be attacking
the officer ( s) . The consensus was reached that we should also
have the youth of the Ithaca Community represented . These rep-
resentations will give us a better idea of what is really going
on and will aid us in making our recommendations . The suggest-
ion was made that the Community Police Board should let the
community know what the bord ' s function is and how the commun-
ity can gain access to their services . The process of filing
a complaint against the police can be intimidating, so it
was suggested that there be an advocate to go through the
process with the victim or a mini-training to prepare them
for the process . We hope to have a few youth in our next meeting
to tell of their experiences with the police .
The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday , June 24 at 7pm .
It will be held at the Greater Ithaca Activities Center ( GIAC)
318 North Albany Street , in conference room #2 .
June 30, 1992"
Highlights of Police Chief Harlin- McEwen's Presentation
(What follows is a mix of paraphrase and quotation)
1) Some professional background and its relevance to police
training.
While Police Chief in the village of Cayuga Heights, Chief McEwen
was appointed Chairman of the Municipal Police Training Council by
the Governor. He became the Chief of Police in Ithaca in October of
1988. Before that, for 3 yrs, he had been the Deputy Commissioner
of the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services. His
primary responsibility was police training for all police officers
in the state of New York (over 60,000 police officers) . All of this
experience contributes to the current emphasis he places on
training.
2) Problems Chief McEwen faced upon his appointment as Police Chief
in Ithaca
4
1 . Public criticism of the police force. The police had been
accused of being corrupt, insensitive, poorly trained. The Chief
hired an outside investigator. "Much of it had been happening
quite some time before I came--most were off the force or gone. It
was residual . . . but there were some very clear deficiencies
(training. ) " "The Investigator pretty much put to rest that there
was any existing corruption. "
2 . Labor contract negotiations. "I learned about some of the
problems between the police union and the community, part of that
had to do with the community police board. "
y T'
3. Budget negotiations. "The first thing-I looked at was training. %
z
$8,000 was way too little. 1% of the budget should be going to
training. In this case, with a budget of over 3, 000, 000--it should
•
have been at least 30, 000. " The council then allocated 23, 000 for
training in the 1989 budget. "And that has remained. . .until 1991.
Because of the severe financial problems the city was facing, it
was reduced to 20, 000. If the financial situation continues to
worsen, we' ll have to keep cutting and we' ll end up where we were.
We need to keep the money up and keep the force moving forward. "
Considering the public image of the force
After allegations of corruption were put to rest, the force was
"internally at peace. " McEwen now had to "build the image. "
"Vital to the competency of the force is that it be able to deal
with serious violent crime, and my assessment was they were not
properly trained. " McEwen eventually appointed a new head of the
investigative division, and since then "that division has turned
around so that Ithaca is looked upon as one of the best
investigative units in the state. "
Changing the overall attitude on the force
1 . In order to train administrative people a Northwestern
University Traffic Institute Management training team was brought
in (cost $5, 856. ) This involved the whole staff of sergeants--
through the deputy chief. It was a "big stepping stone in changing
their thinking to modern police management--informed them of
certain minimum things they need to do everyday. "
2. Ithaca Police Department subscribed to the Law Enforcement
Television Network (LETN) , which includes a regular news broadcast
that deals with police incidents nationwide (costs a little over
$5, 000 a year--taken out of training budget) . They watch "to learn
how to do things or how not to do things. " The Rodney King video
has been used as an example of how not to do things in training
discussions. The chief considers the training network to be
"probably the best, most cost-effective program that we can
have. . . " The chief and a training lieutenant pick out ( from a
brochure) what they consider to be the most important topics for
the officers to see. These taped programs become required programs
and part of the permanent training library. "We have a list and
supervisors have to make sure that everyone sees the tape,
discusses it with a supervisor and signs that they' ve seen it. "
Basic Training
The minimum basic training course in New York state has a standard
curriculum of 440 hours. There are regional requirements as well--
local police departments decide on additional training. In almost
all cases this brings the time committment up to over 600 hours--
about 6 months of full-time training. In the Ithaca department, two
of the newest officers, both from minority groups, are soon to
complete their basic training. While the Chief worked for the
state, a company in Texas was hired at a very large cost to do a
statewide police training needs assessment (the results of which
were used to improve basic training programs) based on a state-wide
survey ( from east to west, north to south, large cities, small
communities) of what police officers did--this was then matched up ti
with what they should be trained to do.
The following are approximations. The chief is willing to share
figures with anyone who is interested in the nitty gritty of
finances. Basic training has been divided into ten categories (see
chart)
1989 1990 1991
1 )management and supervision 8349 2373 3993
2)dispatchers and communications 631 540
3)training (people to be trainers) 2358 1597 2385
4)traffic related matters 2187 1069 - 90
5)diving and emergency response team 140 1118 1924
6) investigations 1856 1043 933
7)crisis intervention 695 779
8)drugs and narcotics 903 979 150
9)the basic school 782 2319
10)miscellaneous 2476 9797* 7217
*(total includes $5, 856 for LETN network and for sending a captain
and sergeant to Hewlett Packard computer school to learn how to run
main frame computer. In 1991, total also includes $5, 856 for LETN. )
Budget and Potential Programs
Right now (summer 1992 ) , the Chief has already mapped out what he ' s
4
y going to do for the year. Allocation of training money for
programs initiated by any of the recently-formed committees have to
begin after the first of the year.
Bob Holt, director of the safety division at Ithaca College, is
interested in a program in Tennessee that is supposed to be help
police officers deal with multi-cultural problems. The Knoxville
Police Department is evaluating the program to see if it should
come to Ithaca. Ithaca College is interested in bringing the
program here--paying people to come here and train people at Ithaca
College and the Ithaca Police Department .
Chief McEwan encourages people to approach him if they have any
ideas or have heard of programs that might be helpful--he likes to
keeps track of what ' s going on in the country.
The racial tension in Ithaca greatly concerns him. Last September
he attended a conference in Arlington Virginia, called "Unfinished
Business: Racial Issues Facing Policing. " The conference
confirmed some of his thinking and offered more information on
which to build.
Proactive Policing or "Modern Police Thinking"
An increasingly popular term is "community-oriented policing. "
Other current terms are "neighborhood-oriented policing" "problem-
oriented policing. "
"community-oriented policing: " the complete re-organization of the
police force. This is costly and has been done with only limited
success.
"neighborhood-oriented policing: " identifying a particular
5
neighborhood or area and putting officers in that neighborhood.
"problem-oriented policing: " identifying a problem and going after
it in order to solve it.
Proaction is meant to balance--hopefully replace--reaction.
Reaction is what police traditionally do. "You call the police for
noise in your neighborhood, accident on the corner, assault or
rape--all are things that police come to after the fact, do what
they can to minimize the prob, fix it, stop it. " Modern policing
is concerned with crime prevention "put your resources on the front
end of the system. If you can keep it from happening, then you
don' t have the. . .problems. " "But you can' t just stop reactive
policing. When people call , they need you. So you have to hopefully
try to gradually find a way to change the way you' re doing your
business while you continue to do the things you have to do in the
reactive mode. "
Turning proactive is expensive, and it is essential to have very
dedicated people--people who are interested and motivated. With
proaction in mind, the Chief assigned two officers to a full-time
crime prevention unit. These officers are involved in teaching
people in schools, senior citizens, and business people how to keep
themselves from having break-ins, how to keep thefts down, protect
their money, avoid forgeries. The more people are trained how to
prevent crime, the less police have to react . Proactive measures
are met with a great deal of resistance within the police union.
They feel that the people chosen to do these things are being given
special treatment. This situation occurs all over the country.
(Schenectedy is having a difficult time with this currently. )
6
Another proactive measure is the bicycle patrol , which allows
officers to move more fluidly among people--and to talk with them;
the idea got a boost when 2 officers who are bycicle enthusiasts
got involved. Equipment has cost a little over $1, 000 .
Neighborhood-oriented policing in Ithaca: successes
Implemented in November and the Police Union took Chief McEwan to
task. The Union controls the Officers' schedules--officers work
when their contracts tell them to. This means the chief doesn' t
have the control he' d like to have and he is thinking of ways to
get this changed so that he has the flexibility he needs to tailor
patrols to the needs of various neighborhoods. There is some
dialogue going on about this.
The Chief put Officer Kathy Gillern on a particular beat that
needed special attention. She walks whenever she can throughout
that area, talking to people and learning about problems. At one
point, senior citizens at Titus Towers were complaining of muggings
and they asked for a meeting. Kathy met with them and was shown the
adjacent playground--in the winter, the lights are turned off at
night, leaving the area dark and vulnerable to thieves. Kathy and
the police chief called the city electrician, who turned the lights
back on. Another story: an eighty-year old woman on Kathy' s beat
became incompetent; Kathy worked with the Department of Social
Services for almost a month and got the woman into a nursing home.
"People say well that isn' t really police business. Well , yes it
is. " Kathy' s job is not a given--if the Chief is short an officer,
she fills the slot. Because he prioritized in this way, the union
-'7
went along with it. The bicycles are not a given either--officers
only work on them if the Chief has enough officers to cover the
normal beat. The union is not against the concept, but worried
about staffing. Kathy had been put on a specific schedule that was
in conflict with what she was supposed to be working. Seniority
becomes an issue--unless the Chief can prove someone has special
skills. To effectively handle racial issues and neighborhood
policing--officers have to get to know the people. Mentoring
programs are important, but it takes a lot of time, big
committment. The chief has materials for those interested in
learning more about mentoring programs. He has a write-up of what
they did in Houston--some of which didn' t work very well , but the
concepts are sound. Kathy and the Chief read all of this and then
discussed what they wanted to do and could afford to do; the Chief
feels they' re pretty up to date on what ' s going on. Lee Brown,
Police Commissioner of NYC is trying to start some types of
community policing in NYC--where it is almost impossible to do
this; but they' re having some limited success in some areas.
Cornell Course on Racism
The chief found conflict between the minority community and the
police when he first came to Ithaca, and it is always lurking,
though sometimes it ' s worse than others. Beverly Martin informed
the chief of a Cornell course taught by Jim Turner and Don Barr
called "Racism and American Society. " The course exposes people to
what racism is and how it affects all of us, and it explores in a
broad way what racism is all about . It was designed for teachers
8
• and. staff of the Ithaca City school district and the school
district agreed to allow the Ithaca Police Department to send some
police officers at their expense. This has gone on for 3 years
(relatively expensive because it involves overtime) . The course is
the beginning of a slow process--one other way of trying to get the
officers to understand what racism is all about--but it ' s also
contagious. The course has been publicized all over the country.
Other proactive measure: sending a lieutenant to the FBI Academy
for 3 months of an intensive management training program, and the
L.A. (putting aside current problems) program called "Dare, " which
recognized the need for police to get involved in schools. The
program has spread throughout the country and into foreign
countries. It is a seventeen week program--an hour a week.
Officers spend time with the children at recess and at lunch.
Children are taught what drugs, alcohol , and tobacco do to the body
and are given the tools to resist peer pressure and to build good
self esteem. At this point, every fifth grade student in the
Ithaca city school district for the past three years has been
through this program, and the sense is that it ' s working. The Chief
ends his presentation by assuring his listeners that he and the
police department are actively working on changing and improving,
and that he is willing to do more.
Questions following the presentation
Chris asks what the criteria are for choosing officers for special
assignments. The Chief answers that Kathy was chosen because of her
background--a single parent of a racially mixed child. The bike
patrol officers volunteered and were really interested. The crime
prevention officers were chosen by the Chief because of their
special personalities.
Ed asks about the hiring process. He describes an unpleasant
incident involving an officer who had been called to his home
because his son had set off some small firecrackers. When Ed
questioned the officer, suggesting that the offense was very small
for all the attention it had received, the officer responded "I
could have the Department of Social Services take your kids away. "
Ed felt prohibited from asking questions. Ed says to the chief
that he thinks the highest criteria for hiring a police officer
would be an ability to be human with people--to interact.
The Chief agrees--says he looks for people who are outgoing and
friendly, but he also admits that he doesn' t always make the right
choices. He doesn't deny that there are people who act that way
(referring to the incident that Ed described) on the force, but, as
far as he can tell , that ' s not the norm. Their (the problematic
officers) way of doing business is not something he feels he can
discipline out of them, and, he adds, in the Police business, it ' s
not easy to get rid of these people.
Chris points out the difficulty of enforcing rules that you don' t
make and the chief affirms this; Chris remarks on the difficulty
the officers must have remaining human as they' re enforcing these
rules.
Neil : How do officers respond to training? Do they initiate
requests for the training?
Chief answers that they do, but they don' t always want what he
feels is most important--they want swat training, the diving team.
Stress-reduction is brought up. The chief hasn' t gotten to stress-
reduction programs yet, though there are some in different parts of
the country. Alcoholism is common among officers, as are
difficulties at home. There is a program in Florida now for police
officers who have alcohol problems. To admit that you' re having
trouble is not accepted in the ranks.
Ed asks if having sought psychological help can be held against
officers, and the chief ponders this, then suggests that they can
always plead the fifth. ( It is brought up that Kirby had spoken on
the issue the previous week. )
Neil mentions a case in which a security guard' s record of
psychological counseling had come out in connection with an
allegation.
Laura asks if the Law Enforcement Television Network allows any
interaction, and the chief says there isn' t any interaction now,
but they are getting ready to do testing, which will ascertain if
the officers are listening. He offers to share brochures that give
10
a sense of the depth of the training and invites anyone to come
watch the LETV programs.
Discussion turns to training and interaction concerning domestic
violence.
Laura asks if they work with the Task Force for Battered Women?
The chief says yes. They have assisted him in implementing a new
procedure. The Chief developed a whole new training program for
police officers in this state, which is now the standard; he did
this with the governor' s Task Force on Domestic Violence.
Laura asks how open officers were to getting training from
civilians and the chief says Veronica Franco was superb. The
officers accepted her and Joan Farbman very well .
The Chief brings up the gay community--it believes the police
department has a great need to learn more. The Chief asserts that
part of the problem is not knowing how to deal with police ( "it ' s
a special group" ).. The problem has to do with how macho the group
is--most of them don' t agree personally with gay lifestyles, so
it ' s difficult; the Chief continues: but they have a responsibility
to treat them fairly and protect them. There is someone from
Boston who has a knack for getting officers comfortable with
hearing about the gay perspective, but he charges a high fee to
come to Ithaca.
Laura knows of someone who does that kind of training.
Chief continues: those in the gay community don' t all think the
same. Queer Nation has a distinct way of doing business. Act Up is
another group. Each of them has its own agenda, its own thoughts--
which can make things difficult.
Chris: Claudia Brenmer a good spokesperson. She and two officers
became great allies. They'd be a good team.
Neil asks the chief to think out loud about where we can get the
union involved.
Chief cites an example of lack of interest: the city has an
affirmative action committee to look at how to better balance the
work force, and when the mayor and Chief asked for a volunteer to
be a member of the committee, no one responded.
Ron Gilliam called chief about August 22nd--a community day to get
police involved. There is discussion about how bad a choice this
was for the police--moving in day for Ithaca College freshmen is
among the problems.
More of the Chief on the Union: Union leadership controls contract
negotiating. Small percentage of officers go to union meetings, so
a small number runs it and the rest live with what happens. In
1988, the patrol force was rotated once a week--there were 5 days
of days and 5 days of nights, which meant that people didn' t get to
know their patrols--there was disinterest and no investment. So the
Chief got the union to agree to change it to a three week rotation.
Laura: What might work with officers? What do they see as valuable
to them (vs. the "what 's wrong with you" approach or the "touchy
feely language" that doesn't work because of macho stufff . ) How do
we make this all palatable?
Chief: officers need to feel it' s important to them. (And they' ll
do training programs at least three times--Rape Crisis came in on
three different shifts, for example)
Chris: Programs that have been piloted--can we get at what is
specifically valuable about the programs? People like Cathy and
those on the bike beat. Is it part of their job to take notes for
others? ( internal training is organic)
Neil : ideal to have community and police involved in "Alternatives
To Violence. "
Laura: can' t get good at dealing with conflict without doing it
(vs. watching) . For racism training, need envirnonment where they
feel safe to say things.
Chief: this kind of training does take place, but it takes time;
Chief mentions the ethical awareness workship.
It is decided that there will be meetings both with and without the
Chief .
Anyone who wants to spend some time accompanying an officer on his
or her beat (times when an observer would see the most conflict
would be between 10PM and 2AM, Friday and Saturday, though Sunday
evenings are also often difficult. ) should contact Chief McEwan.
Ed suggests that watching the video of the Chief ' s presentation be
required for anyone who wants to join the committee.
•
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Police-Community Task Force
STEERING COMMITTEE
Name Address City Phone (home/work)
Alvin Nelson 502 S. Albany St. Ithaca 273-8259 / 277-4500
Coordinator
Harlin McEwen 07707-9933 (defy a. gkt-
Police Chief
Mayor Ben Nichols 273-6523 / 274-6501
Clayton Ham i 1 ton 257-8464 / 272-7217
Amy Lewis 305 S. Plain St. Ithaca 753-0073 / 273-4190
Richard Williams 318 N. Albany St. Ithaca 659-4276 / 272-3622
Irene Stein 207 Ithaca Rd. Ithaca 272-3167 / 277-0148
Sara Shenk 816 S. Meadow St. Ithaca 272-4849 / 257- 1551
Gerald Dumay 3i1 i S. Racit.. Jt. 02F7- 74)24
Jose Montanez 318 N. Albany St. Ithaca / 272-3622
John Johnson 946 E. State St. Ithaca 272-8442 / 255-7736
Police-Community Task Force
Subcommittee: COMMUNITY POLICE BOARD
Name Address City Phone (home/work)
Richard Williams 318 N. Albany St. Ithaca 659-4276 / 272-3622
Sara Shenk 816 S. Meadow St. Ithaca 272-4849 / 257-1551
Cynthia Telfair 533 West Green St. Ithaca 272-6743 / 273-4190
John Johnson 946 E. State St. Ithaca 272-8442 / 255-7736
Marilyn Ray 96 Besemer Rd. Ithaca 539-7474 / 539-7778
Alfredo Rossi 409 Lake St. C-21 Ithaca 277-3855 / 277-3855
Alvin Nelson 502 S. Albany St. Ithaca 273-8259 / 277-4500
. Gregg A. Thomas 215 N. Cayuga St. Ithaca 564-7096 / 273-3666
Lillie Tucker 318 S. Plain St. Ithaca 277-1832
Birthe K. Darden 144 Midline Rd. Sltrvl Spr, NY
• 14881 539-6829
Lee Carter 306 S. Plain St. Ithaca 272-8371
Vi Scott 310 Center St. Ithaca
Police-Community Task Force
Subcommittee: SENSITIVITY TRAINING
Name Address City Phone (home/work)
Clayton Hamilton 257-6523 / 272-7217
Ed & Camilla Lisbe 302 Lake Ave. Ithaca 272-1884
Sally Sumner 555 Warren Rd. Ithaca 257-1551
Marie Johnson 501 N. Tioga St. /47 Ithaca 272-8024
Kirby Edmonds PO Box 321 Ithaca
14851 272-7137
Shauna Guidici 136 Hudson St. Ithaca 277-0541
Ellen Grimm 109 Cook St. Ithaca 273-2679
Neil H. Golder 203 College Ave. Ithaca 273-8025
Kenny Grant 214 N. Corn St. Ithaca 272-0989
Kris Miller 203 Scofield Rd. Groton, NY
13073 533-8807 / 277-3401
Emma Johnson 2250 N. Triphammer Rd. 43D
Ithaca 257-5760
Barry Langerlan 10 Judd Falls Rd. Suite 55
Ithaca 272-8689
Adz. Ygt 1-0/ �'!. ��oa `' o?f,2-80.211
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Police-Community Task Force
Subcommittee: POLICE INVOLVEMENT (MENTORING)
Name Address City Phone (home/work)
Amy Lewis 305 S. Plain St. Ithaca 753-0073 / 273-4190
Jacquie Bailor 301 S. Green St. Ithaca 272-0346
Darrell Barrett 644 Troy Rd. Ithaca 277-7424 / 273-8364
Marlon Byrd 321 Center St. Ithaca / 272-3245
Nick Celia 717 Court St. Ithaca / 277-2469
Frances Eastman 302 S. Plain St. Ithaca 272-6765
John Efroymson 435 N. Geneva St. Ithaca 272-1034 / 274-3242
Ron Gilliam 328 W. Seneca St. Ithaca 272-4426 / 277-4580
Belinda Hughes 606 N. Tioga St. Ithaca 277-5071 / 274-1692
Alicia Jones 126 Brook Way Ithaca 257-3392 / 347-4131
•
Sandy Larkin 1 James L. Gibbs Dr. Ithaca 277-3187 / 273-8364
Vern Smith 108 Sapsucker Woods Rd.
Ithaca 257-6325 / 272-3622
David Speller 122 Brookway Ithaca 257-3392 / 273-8629
Pete Tyler 1240 Trumansburg Rd.
Ithaca / 272-3245
Arthur Watkins 800 S. Plain St. Ithaca 272-2063 / 272-2433
Drew
Duffy
PBA Office Ithaca / 273-7757
Randy
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Police-Community Task Force
Subcommittee: JURY SELECTION
Name Address City Phone (home/work)
Irene Stein 207 Ithaca Rd. Ithaca 272-3167 / 277-0148
Marilyn Ray 96 Besemer Rd. Ithaca 539-7474 / 539-7778
Nick Celia 717 Court St. Ithaca / 277-2469
3-x-0-S:--P+a i n-5-t.
ee,a4u:,,, ?)a4c en- 539- 6829 7.2?3 -06/7
ge>„. /.2-7-a-Moo
0 RECEIVED
ED ',� i 1952 z
POLICE ABUSE:
THE NEED FOR CIVILIAN INVESTIGATION
AND OVERSIGHT
NEW YORK CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
June 1990
Executive Director
Norman Siegel
Police Abuse Report Prosect Coordinator
Martin Gottlieb
Project Video Coordinator
Jeff Clapp
Project Principal Researcher
Leslie Gevirtz
Project Consultants
Mary Talbot
Maxine Smith
C.M. Hardt
Janet Graham
Andrea Kannapell
6
E
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Introduction 1
• Chapter 2 : From Lindsay to Now 11
Chapter 3 : Measuring Failure 20
Chapter 4 : Tompkins Square Park Experience 39
The Night 43
Non-Complainants 51
The Investigations 56
The Hearing 66
Conclusions 68
Chapter 5: The Example of Other Cities 70
Reforms Elsewhere 72
Brutality vs. Corruption 80
Chapter 6: Recommendations 83
Appendices
Notes A-1
New York City Charter, §440 -- Civilian complaints
against members of the police department B-1
Letter, dated February 8 , 1990, from Martin Gottlieb
to Deputy Commissioner Sandra Marsh C-1
Letter, dated February 26, 1990, from Deputy Commissioner
Sandra M. Marsh to Martin Gottlieb D-1
•
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t) •
` i i
•
CHAPTER 6: RECOMMENDATIONS
i IA
r;
An effective Civilian Complaint Review Board must be
independent, powerful, and worthy of public trust. It should be
r
able to investigate charges of police abuse as exhaustively as
the Police Department is expected to investigate criminal acts of Tis ,
all kinds and to treat police brutality as seriously as the
` department treats police corruption. :
While the police commissioner should maintain broad 4 ..
lir
authority in determining discipline, the CCRB should be expected
to comment on and criticize police policy and action and, in f i
extraordinary circumstances, to overrule the police commissioner. -5, "~
To that end, we believe the CCRB should:
(1) be established outside the Police Department and made -iL 4t
up of 12 civilians who are representative of the city's :x.., '.,
.1..
population. The mayor should appoint three members and designate i- i',
one as the chair; the president of the City Council and the A4 .
Comptroller should both appoint two representatives each; the " `
City Council majority leader should appoint two members and the '- ->
City Council minority leader should appoint one member. The
4f 7
remaining two members of the CCRB should be the New York City 1
criminal justice coordinator and the chair of the City's
Commission on Human Rights. This would make the CCRB responsive "'
to both elected officials and the public. Chairing the CCRB ,'
should be a full-time job with pay comparable to that of otherz':�`
A
- 83 - 1 .
m
city agency heads. The chair should be assisted by a full-time
general counsel to lead the staff of investigators;
(2) have investigators who are civilians with no
allegiances to the Police Department. Its investigators should
E. be professionals, paid on a higher scale and be able to compete
for career track promotions. This would help to attract and
retain an experienced and talented staff;
(3) have expanded jurisdiction that includes police or
peace officers employed by any city or quasi-city agency. This
should include, but not be limited to, the city's Police
Department, Transit Authority Police, Housing Authority Police,
fr
Sanitation Police, and Health and Hospitals Corporation Police;
(4) operate with the understanding that great power over
= s discipline remains with the police commissioner and his counter-
parts
at the other law enforcement agencies in the city, but
that, in exceptional cases, it could overrule them, and impose
1:, sanctions on officers. A suggested way of implementing this is
detailed below;
a ,. (5) be given the power to issue subpoenas and requisition
_:4 copies of reports related to the alleged acts of misconduct from
--,-- law enforcement agencies. These tools are necessary to develop
74g a; effective investigations of acts allegedly involving personnel
, ;3 from law enforcement agencies;
(6) hold regular public meetings and engage in education
, � ;.:.. and media campaigns to spread awareness of its existence and the
rightsof citizens in encounters with the
�:�- 4- police. The CCRB
Vs - 84 -
4
should (A) hold open, public meetings in each borough twice a
year; (B) publish monthly reports in the City Record as well as
y i
in the department orders of each law enforcement agency
containing the results of all cases in which sanctions were
approved; and (C) issue quarterly reports on the total number of
complaints filed in each borough and recent dispositions. The
report should include the number of cases recommended for
sanctions by a CCRB panel, an appropriate law enforcement agency
head, the full CCRB and how many complaints were dismissed;
(7) have the authority to investigate, hold hearings, and
issue reports on patterns and practices of police abuse. Beyond
disciplining individual cases of police brutality and abuse of
power, the CCRB would track systemic patterns of abuses and hold
departments and commissioners accountable for their actions or
inactions;
•(8) maintain procedural safeguards to protect the rights of
civilians and police officers. This would encourage both to have �.
more faith in the proceedings. Detailed operating procedures for
••�Y
the CCRB and its investigators should include a provision
excluding from an officer's personnel file at the Police
Department or other law enforcement agency information about a
case against him or her that was not substantiated.
Here is a how a new procedure could work.
All complaints against law enforcement officers should be
referred to the CCRB. They could be made in writing or to a 24-
hour telephone hotline that would be publicized extensively.
- 85 -
t . -,
r'
ij T _
N!y-Ley"'a
r4w.
f,, . Complaints should then be assigned to investigative teams. Their
findings of fact and recommendations for action should go to a
-•. r: panel of three CCRB members.
The panel would consider the investigators ' report and make
its own recommendation to the full board.
j a; The full board, considering the panel ' s and investigatory
-=i .
` i_ team' s reports, would make recommendations to the police
' y` commissioner or appropriate law enforcement agency head or to the
district attorney.
The panel and board could also reject the staff's findings
and dismiss the complaint before it is forwarded to the police
commissioner or other law enforcement agency head.
Law enforcement agency commissioners could either accept or
reject the CCRB' s recommendations. Previous police commissioners
have frequently disregarded the board' s recommendations, and
officers involved in brutality or abuse cases have received the
equivalent of a slap on the wrist. To convince both the
- commissioners and the public that police brutality will be taken
seriously, we recommend that the CCRB have the power to override
the rejection of its recommendations by a commissioner in extreme
situations.
When a commissioner discards the CCRB recommendations, the
matter should be returned to the board for review. The full 12-
member CCRB, would need a 2/3 vote, to sustain its original
disciplinary recommendation over the commissioner' s or other law
enforcement agency head's veto. If the override is effected, the
- 86 -
case would go to an administrative law judge for a formal
hearing. If the 2/3 vote is not obtained, the decision of the
police commissioner or other law enforcement agency head would
become effective.
Of course, if a commissioner accepts the CCRB
recommendations, the officer also should be entitled to a hearing
�.Y
before an administrative law judge and to be represented by
The ac/rui,.iistrative law judge Should be empowered to hear
evidence, make formal findings and recommend sanctions to the
appropriate law enforcement agency head. The administrative law
judge should apply a "clear and convincing" standard of proof.
If the findings of the administrative law judge are ignored
by the head of a law enforcement agency, the case could be
reconsidered by the entire CCRB. If 3/4 of the CCRB's members
vote to restore the sanctions, the agency head would be overruled
• and the sanctions imposed.
The sanctions could include fine, reprimand, suspension and
dismissal.
If the case against an officer is dismissed or the officer
exonerated, the complaint should be expunged from his employment
•
file at the Police Department or other law enforcement agency.
Finally, we recommend that citizens engaging in
demonstrations, picketing or other public activities, bring
videotape cameras to those events and activities. More than
anything else, it was the presence of such cameras in the crowds
- 87
S N
.;;. of citizens . at Tompkins Square Park that forced city officials to
•
acknowledge publicly the police misconduct, and has raised anew
the issue of effectively monitoring the police in New York City.
_ NEW YORK CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
a June 1990
'•1
N.B. The NYCLU gratefully acknowledges the efforts of the
following persons in connection with the preparation of this
report: Donna Lieberman, Esq. , Arthur Eisenberg, Esq. , Eve Cary,
Esq. , Fran Bisagna, Steven L. Glauberman, Esq. , Earl Ward, Esq. ,
Carmen Santiago, Georgette Todd, Tom Tyburski, Jim Drobnick,
•
Massimo De Rossi, William Futornick, Amy Held, Kathleen Kermian,
Geoffrey Simon, S. Wyeth McAdam, Sarah Margolies, Clayton
Patterson and Paul Garrin.
- 88 -
Minutes of the Jury Selection Subcommittee
July 2 , 1992
Present : Ben Darden, Chuck Guttman, Jim Kerrigan, Irene Stein
Excused: Nick Celia, Marilyn Ray
1 . Chuck Guttman furnished the committee with a summary of the
laws which govern the selection of jurors (see attached) . He
enclosed a copy of Article 16 of the Judicial Law which covered
this material .
2 . Jim Kerrigan furnished the committee with a description of the
existing jury selection procedures in Tompkins County (see
attached) .
3 . Ben Darden discussed with the committee some of the problems
relating to policies and procedural change in the long run .
4 . Marilyn Ray circulated her report in which she stated that
she would be receiving a report from the Judiciary Committee of
the Bar Association . She also raised in her. material (see
attached) the- notion of stratifying the jury selection lists so
that one stratum might be a minority neighborhood.
The committee discussed all this material . Chuck Guttman and Jim
Kerrigan will circulate before the next meeting their ideas about
what can be done in the short run to make the jury pools more
representative; Ben Darden will circulate his ideas about long—
range changes that should be considered. The next meeting will
be Friday, 12 : 15 at the Asiatic Restaurant , W. State Street .
L k' / 7
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
•
Minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on July 6, 1992 (4:15 -5:30 pm)
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols,Police Chief Harlin
McEwen,Rick Williams, Sara Shenk, Drew Martin, Irene Stein, Clay
Hamilton,Amy Lewis,John Johnson, Gerald Dumay, Cliff Ducey (visitor
from PBA)
Absent: Jose Montanez
1. Minutes from the 6/29/92 meeting were read by Renaye Southworth. Changes and
clarifications were noted. Revised copies will be available to members at the 7/20/92
meeting.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
2. Minutes from the Police Involvement Subcommittee were read by Amy Lewis.
a. Amy noted that Chief McEwen will not attend the next subcommittee meeting
on July 6.
b. Amy clarified the PEER program (Police Efforts to Enhance Relationships),
chaired by Belinda Hughes,and said that there is a similar program called the
"Junior Police Force". No specific dates have been set for this program.
3. Minutes from the Jury Selection Subcommittee were read by Irene Stein.
a. Irene discussed the process of jury selection in Tompkins County.
b. Questions and clarifications were made.
c. Irene confirmed that the Jury Commissioner is bound by law,but that she can
make discresionary decisions about jury selection.
4. Minutes from the Sensitivity Training Subcommittee were read by Clay Hamilton.
a. Drew Martin and Cliff Ducey were introduced.
b. Clay noted that the Police Chiefs presentation to the subcommittee is on
videotape.
c. Chief McEwen's presentation will also be documented in the minutes of the
subcommittee meeting. These will be distributed as soon as they are finished.
5. The Community Police Board Subcommittee,chaired by Rick Williams,did not meet in
the past week.
a. Chief McEwen stated that he is willing to speak at a subcommittee meeting upon
invitation.
6. Funding for Police-Community programs at Southside were discussed (such as
funding grants from Ben &Jerry's Foundation, PBA,etc.).
NEW BUSINESS
1. Mayor Nichols handed out drafts of the missions, structure, and membership of the
Task Force.
a. Clay suggested an addition of the PBA as one of the organizations the task force
proposes its findings.
b. Questions,clarifications,and additions were made.
c. It was decided that the Task Force will be called the "Police-Community
Relations Task Force."
Vote carried,name approved.
2. Amy introduced the Police-Community "Field Day"plan.
a. The purpose of the program is to encourage positive relations between children
and the law enforcement community.
b. The "Field Day"will also be a chance to promote the mentor program which is
not necessarily limited to police officers.
• c. It was decided that any further questions or clarifications would be handled after
the subcommittee has had a chance to discuss the plan further. The topic will be
continued at that time.
3. The PBA expressed that a new member would be added to each the Police
Involvement,Sensitivity Training,and the Community Police Board Subcommittees.
Meeting adjourned at 5:30 pm.
e.,e-fe sO
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT TASK FORCE SUBCOMMITTEE
JULY 6, 1992 MINUTES
ATTENDING: A. Lewis; R. Gilliam; F. Eastman; N. Celia; J.
Ephramson;K. Gillern; H. McEwen; R. Haus
We discussed the upcoming Field Days event on August 22, 1992
It will be open to all City of Ithaca youth ages 7-14
We determined how to operate the event and set up committees:
Sponsorship Vern and Amy
Food Mrs. Eastman
Transportation Randy Haus
Activities Ron G. and Nick C.
Supplies and Prizes
Advertising B. Hughes
Permission Slips Amy L.
Permits R. Gilliam
Reservations Amy
Set up and Clean Up K. Gillern
We will be soliciting from businesses and PBA for funds and
supplies.
The next meeting will be July 20, 1992.
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Ithaca Community Police Board Committee
Name Address City Home tel. Work tel.
Sara Shenk 816 S. Meadow St. Ithaca 272-4849 257-1551
Richard Williams 318 North Albany St.—GIAC Ithaca 659-4276 272-3622
Cynthia Telfair 533 West Green Street Ithaca 272-6743 273-4190
John Johnson 946 East State Street Ithaca 272-8442 255-7736
Marilyn Ray 96 Besemer Road Ithaca 239-7474 539-7778
Alfredo Rossi 409 Lake Street—C-21 Ithaca 277-3855 277-3855
Alvin Nelson 502 South Albany Street Ithaca 273-8259 277-4500
Gregg A.Thomas 215 N. Cayuga Street Ithaca 564-7096 273-3666
Neighborhood Legal Services
Lillie Tucker 318 South Plain Street Ithaca 277-1832
Birthe K. Darden 144 Midline Road Sltrvl Spr NY 14881 539-6829
Lee Carter [306 South Plain Street] Ithaca 272-8371
Vi Scott 310 Center Street Ithaca
Draft BN 7/6/92
Police-Community Relations Task Force •
Mission
The purposes of the Police-Community Relations(PCR) Task Force are:
1. To provide an organized forum for discussion of the present state of relations between the
police and the residents of the City of Ithaca with particular emphasis on relations with the
African-American and other minority groups.
2. To propose to the Mayor, the Chief of Police dad any other appropriate body constructive
measures which will enable the police and the community to work together to improve their
relations and to provide effective,fair,and sensitive law enforcement.
3. To help institute programs to improve police-community relations as soon as possible.
. To recommend to the Mayor and Common Council by September 15, 1992 any measures to be
(A'
adopted by the Council which in the judgment of the Task Force will help accomplish its above
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Structure
The work of the PCR Task Force will be organized in four committees, which will be coordinated
by a Steering Committee, under the leadership of Coordinator Alvin Nelson. The four committees
are:
1. Committee on police involvement in the community.
2. Committee on sensitivity training for police and community members.
3. Committee on the Community Police Board.
4. Committee on the broadening of jury selection.
Membership on the committees is open to all interested members of the community and the Police
Force who are willing to participate in their work. Unless new members are approved by any
Committee,its final roster will be established by July 15, 1992.
The members of the Steering Committee are:
Alvin Nelson, Coordinator
Amy Lewis,Chair Committee on police involvement in the community
Clayton Hamilton,Chair Committee on sensitivity training
Rick Williams, Chair Committee on the Community Police Board.
Irene Stein,Chair Committee on the broadening of jury selection
Sara Shenk, Chair Community Police Board
John Johnson, Chair Human Services Committee of Common Council (or designee)
Gerald Dumay, student
xxx, Student
Drew Martin,President, Police Benevolent Association (or designee) L ? —11 1
Chief Harlin McEwen,Ex-Officio(or designee)
Mayor Ben Nichols, Ex-Officio
The secretarial and clerical staff for the Task Force is Renaye Southworth.
Police Board Committee Meeting
7/7/92
Minutes from the Police Board Committee, held on July 7th 1992
(7:00pm - 8:30pm) .
Present: Rafael Collado, Alfredo Rossi, Gregg Thomas, Lillie
Tucker, Richard Williams
Introductions were made.
Timm Alfredo Rossi and Rick Williams discussed their meeting with
Chief McEwen and Sara Schenk.
Rick discussed his meeting with the Mayor.
The the upcoming visit by Chief McEwen was discussed.
' A list of objectives were discussed in detail.
Increasing community confidence in the Police Board
Increasing accessibility to the Police Board
(Increased Reporting) Annual summary of Police Board
investigations.
Discuss with each Police Board member their feelings,
perceptions, and ideas about the, police board.
The agenda for the next two meetings was discussed and agreed upon.
It was confirmed that our next meeting would be Tuesday, July 14,
1992.
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
Minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on July 13, 1992 (4:15 -5:40).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols, Chief Harlin McEwen, Gerald
Dumay, Clay Hamilton,John Johnson, Amy Lewis, Jose Montanez,Irene Stein,
Richard Williams
Absent: PBA Representative(due to unforeseen circumstances)
1. The secretary's untimely departure was announced by Alvin Nelson and
discussed by the committee.
2. Rick Williams agreed to take the minutes.
3. Conversation continued concerning the hiring of another secretary.
4. Jose Montanez was introduced to the Steering Committee.
5. Rick Williams read the minutes from the Police Board Committee.
6. Clay Hamilton reported the Sensitivity Committee did not meet last week.
a. Clay stated he would bring the transcript of the Chief McEwen
presentation to the Steering Committee.
b. Irene raised the status of minority elderly on the Sensitivity
Committee agenda.
Issue noted by Clay Hamilton.
7. Irene Stein stated that the Jury Selection Committee did not meet last week.
8. Amy Lewis discussed:
a. How could the Ithaca Police Department(IPD) get more involved
with Cops and Kids?
b. The working relationship of the police officers on her committee,
the committee itself,and Chief McEwen.
c. The possibility of the PEER program (Police Efforts to Enhance
Relations) and the possible work that could be done through it.
9. Amy made a recommendation that the Steering Committee explore how the IPU
can get more involved with the Vets, Cops,and Kids program.
a. Chief McEwen discussed his concerns about the accounting of the
program.
b. The Steering Committee discussed the relationship between IPD
and the Veterans organization.
c. Mayor Nichols stated that another subject would be to look at the
whole way police officers can be involved with the work of the
task force.
d. Discussion tabled until our next meeting.
10. Chief McEwen discussed with the task force the correct procedures to go on a
'ride-a-long' with the IPD.
Minutes submitted by Richard Williams.
Police - Community Relations Training Committee
Minutes of meeting 7.14.92 Unapproved
Review of minutes from last meeting.
Clarification of what and who minutes are for.
With corrections, approved.
As follow-up to Chief's presentation on training, committee
requested two kinds of information from the Chief. (1) What his .flits
vision is for addressing issues which have been raised thusfar and
(2) , what additional information he has regarding piloted programs
in other cities. Clayton will seek to get this info.
Committee clarified its purpose as - - exploring the possibility
of using training to improve police and community relations whether
in-house for officers, in sessions for the community, and/or in
sessions for the police and community together. We want it to be
understood that our goal in relation to the police is to be helpful
to them in improving relationships between the police and various
communities.
Training was later described as a process which engages people in
questions/ issues in an organized way. It was also suggested that
information gathering be viewed as part of the training process.
Committee is interested in input from officers about their issues
and concerns vis a vis training. Began to generate a list of
questions for officers to help instruct our work.
They are loosely, as follows:
1. How useful have existing trainings on isms, cultural
diversity, etc. been to you in your work with the community?
(Courses, TV sessions, other) What has been useful? What hasn't
been? In the short term, long term? Is there any/adequate follow-
up?
2. How do you get information about the effectiveness of training
back to the department? Does it get incorporated in ways that are
useful to you? What would make this evaluation system work better?
3. Are there obstacles in the system that make it hard to use
what you learn in trainings? (For example, policies or practices?
Other?) How could this be situation be improved?
4. What do you perceive as the major problem(s) between the
police and diverse groups within the Ithaca community? For
example, people of color, women, gay, lesbian & bisexual people,
young people, elders. What things have helped you interact with
these various communities in your training? What information,
skills and/or resources would help you better interact with these
and/ or other groups?
5. How do you feel about the current process for selecting
training topics, including LENT programs?
6. Do you have opportunities to discuss what you learn from
trainings with fellow officers? If so, do you believe that they
are adequate?
7. Are there situations which you deal with where your job would
be made easier by additional training in:
conflict resolution
listening
mediation
other
8. Are there other questions we should be asking officers in
order to guide our thinking about improving police and community
relations?
Committee went on to discuss methods for gathering this information
as well as ideas for additional questions. Brainstormed thoughts
and suggestions included:
Ask PBA representatives' assistance to formulate and
phrase questions.
Ask officers to focus responses on areas within the
committee's purpose.
Include card with survey/interview/other which asks if
individual is interested in being in thinktank on this.
Ask officers/ PBA how we can best get this info from
them.
Ask officers how they feel about civilians riding on
shift with them.
Ask officers what ideas they have about what information
skills & resources need to be available out in x
communities.
Throughout, emphasis was placed on using open-ended,
positive tone and acknowledging that situations faced by
officers are often complex and stressful.
Committee focussed discussion on what the community might be
needing from us in terms of ( 1) training forthem and (2)
accountability to them regarding our process and progress.
Thoughts/ strategies discussed included:
Sessions for communities on " how to use the police" and
"knowing your rights" . A booklet might be part of this.
Police officers might lead some of these trainings, such
as one on "knowing your rights for young people" creating
opportunities for interaction between groups in addition
to information-sharing.
Development of sessions for liason people between the
police and various communities. To be effective, this
would have to be a role that is respected to support
dialogue, not one that threatens one loyalty to a
community.
Potential methods for gathering information from the
community included a call-in on channel 13 & radio. For
these to be effective in further instructing our work,
clear guidelines for talking with people might be needed.
Some discussion focussed on what exactly the committee would
present to the Common Council and Steering Committee by the Sept.
target date. Consensus seemed to be on proposing a process or
program over a specific training session. The rationale is to
create a well-informed proposal with a strong chance of long-term
success. This approach might be, or be perceived to be, in
conflict with the need for timeliness -- in (1) being accountable
to the community which created it and/or (2) , in meeting city
budget deadlines. (Neil agreed to inform committee about calendar
for budget deadlines. ) Committee's proposal needs to address each
of these in some way.
(Scribe: I'm not sure that the above paragraph does justice to
that discussion as a summary. At the least, I think that a few
important points have been omitted. Maybe about short and long
term goals?)
POLICE BOARD COMMITTEE
GIAC; ITHACA, NY; 14850
Minutes from the Police Board Committee on July 14, 1992 (7:00pm -
8:45pm)
Present: Mayor Ben Nichols, Alfredo Rossi, Chief Harland McEwen,
Carol Peterson, John Marchum, Marilyn Ray, Gregg Thomas, Richard
Williams
Introductions were made.
Chief McEwen made a presentation on the history of the Police Board
that included handouts of articles as well as the oral
presentation.
The next meeting was agreed upon (Tuesday; July 21, 1992) . The
meeting was dismissed.
Minutes submitted by Richard Williams
July 14, 1992
Police-Community Relations Task Force
Mission
The purposes of the Police-Community Relations(PCR) Task Force are:
1. To provide an organized forum for discussion of the present state of relations between the
police and the residents of the City of Ithaca with particular emphasis on relations with the
African-American and other minority groups.
2. To propose to the Mayor, the Police Benevolent Association,the Chief of Police and any other
appropriate body constructive measures which will enable the police and the community to
work together to improve their relations and to provide effective, fair,and sensitive law
enforcement.
3. To help institute programs to improve police-community relations as soon as possible.
4. To propose measures to broaden the jury selection pool.
5. To recommend to the Mayor and Common Council by September 15, 1992 any measures to be
adopted by the Council which in the judgment of the Task Force will help accomplish its above
goals.
Structure
The work of the PCR Task Force will be organized in four committees,which will be coordinated
by a Steering Committee,under the leadership of Coordinator Alvin Nelson. The four committees
are:
1. Committee on police involvement in the community.
2. Committee on sensitivity training for police and community members.
3. Committee on the Community Police Board.
4. Committee on the broadening of jury selection.
Membership on the committees is open to all interested members of the community and the Police
Force who are willing to participate in their work. Unless new members are approved by any
Committee,its final roster will be established by July 29, 1992.
The members of the Steering Committee are:
Alvin Nelson, Coordinator
Amy Lewis,Chair,Committee on police involvement in the community
Clayton Hamilton, Chair,Committee on sensitivity training
Rick Williams, Chair, Committee on the Community Police Board.
Irene Stein,Chair,Committee on the broadening of jury selection
Sara Shenk, Chair, Community Police Board
John Johnson, Chair,Human Services Committee of Common Council (or designee)
Gerald Dumay, student,TC3
Jose Montanez, student, ACS
Drew Martin,President, Police Benevolent Association (or designee)
Chief Harlin McEwen,Ex-Officio (or designee)
Mayor Ben Nichols,Ex-Officio
The secretarial and clerical staff for the Task Force is Melinda Johnson.
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL, ITHACA,NY 14850
Approved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on July 20, 1992 (4:25 -
5:55 pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols,Chief Harlin McEwen,Clay
Hamilton,Amy Lewis,Rick Williams,Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,Gerald Dumay,Drew
Martin
Absent: Jose Montanez,John Johnson
1. Melinda Johnson,the new secretary for the Task Force was introduced.
2. Minutes from the 7/13/92 meeting were read by Rick Williams.
a. Corrections and clarifications were made.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
3. Minutes from the 7/6/92 meeting were read by Melinda Johnson.
a. Corrections and clarifications were made.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
4. Corrections and additions were made on the Task Force and subcommittee contact list.
5. Clay Hamilton read the minutes from the Sensitivity Training Committee.
a. Clay noted that the last page of the minutes from Chief McEwen's presentation
needs to be amended. The revised copy will be available at the next meeting.
b. Clay proposed that Chief McEwen think of some programs, specifically related
to police-community relations training,that he would like to implement if the
budget allowed. Chief McEwen suggested that the Sensitivity Training
Committee speak with the PBA and the Chief separately to find out what they
think the problems are,how to address them,and what they would do to solve
them.
6. Irene Stein said that two key members of the Jury Selection Committee were unable to
attend the last meeting.
a. Irene sent a letter to the League of Women Voters to suggest the topic of Jury
Pool Selection for its 1993 local and state agendas.
7. Amy Lewis read the minutes from the Police/Community Involvement Committee.
a. A sign-up sheet is available at the IPD for the "Field Day" event.
b. Drew Martin said that the PBA had voted on giving a donation to the event,and
that many of its members have expressed an interest in participating.
8. Rick Williams read the minutes of the Community Police Board Committee.
a. Chief McEwen expressed his concern about the committee's information on
investigation processes. Rick said that the committee would be finding out
more information on that issue.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Alvin Nelson read a written correspondence from the Human Rights Commission
explaining its invitation to update the Commission on the Task Force's findings.
a. A mission statement was sent in response to the letter.
b. The Commission is willing to aid in any assistance the committees may need.
2. Amy reintroduced the Police/Community Involvement Committee's recommendation to
the Steering Committee.
a. The recommendation was that the Steering Committee facilitate the process to
bring together the problems in the Veterans,Cops,and Kids program. After
this is done,the Steering Committee would report its findings to Mayor
Nichols.
b. The motion to discuss this topic was withdrawn.
3. Gerald Dumay addressed the"revolving door"effect present in the County Jail.
a. Chief McEwen noted that there exists a committee called the "Criminal Justice
Advisory/Alternatives to Incarceration Board" where they explore ways to solve
the problem.
b. Many other organizations exist(such as OAR) in response to the situation.
Meeting adjourned at 5:55 pm.
PCRTF SUBCOMMITTEE MEETING
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
MINUTES FROM JULY 20, 1992
PRESENT: A. LEWIS; S. LARKIN; F. EASTMAN; A. WATKINS; J. EFROYMSON
WE MADE A DECISION TO SEPARATE THE FIELD DAYS PLANNING FROM
THE TASK FORCE MEETING BECAUSE OF EXTENSIVE TIME NEEDED TO
PLAN THE FIELD DAYS.
S. LARKIN WILL BE WRITING AND MAILING REQUESTS FOR DONATIONS
FOR FOOD. J. EFROYMSON WILL BE SOLICITING IN PERSON FROM THE
FARMER'S MARKET AND OTHER AREA VENDORS. F. EASTMAN WILL BE
COORDINATING A LIST OF NEEDED FOOD AND BEVERAGES.
WE WILL BE ASKING FOR INVOLVEMENT FROM THE SHERIFF AND STATE
POLICE AND WILL BE GETTING VOLUNTEER SHEETS TO THEM.
WE ARE HAVING PROBLEMS SECURING THE CASS PARK PAVILION AND
WOULD LIKE MAYOR NICHOLS TO INTERVENE.
WE WILL BE EXAMINING DIFFERENT MODELS FOR OUR MENTORING
PROGRAM.
NEXT MEETING IS JULY 27, 1992
TASK FORCE ON POLICE - COMMUNITY RELATIONS
SUB-COMMITTLE ON COMMUNITY POLICE BOARD
Notes from meeting held 7/21/92
•
Present:John Marcham, Alfredo Rossi, Sara Snenk, Lillie Tucker. and Marilyn
Ray (note-taker).
1.John presented some thoughts for consideration by the sub-committee (copy
attached) . He also discussed the limitations of current journalistic
understandings and reporting on issues related to the Police Board and
suggested education of the local members of the press.
2.Sara reported that not everyone on the Police Board had been available to
attend the meeting as planned. Most of the Police Board will be available
for a meeting next Wednesday. Therefore, we decided to
•
CHANGE NEXT WEEK'S MEETING FROM TUESDAY TO WEDNESDAY/a4 / / 491": _ )
3.We brOlintorme0 ome of i9leaq mght l d to our recommendations:
* Develop Advocacy leaders differett areas of the city to act
as
liaisons to the Police Board
* Have the Police Board train advocates
* Police Board hold some sort of community meetings to hear grievances
at are not coming though the formal channels
* Police Board to be required to make an_.Annual.-Report to the Community
eate By-laws for the Police Board that include 3 unexcused absences
by a member would result in being ousted from the Board
* Request the Mayor's screening for Police Board appointees include a
description of and commitment to spend the time required for active
participation
* Police Board to expand the explanation to the complainant regarding
the Board's findings and action taken, especially when the complaint
is unfounded
* Request the Police Board to find some way to survey the community
gregarding / / �f
IiiC
ar
4 We decided to
, ASK RICK TO GO THROUGH HIS NOTES AND MAKE A LIST FOR THE SUB-
COMMITTEE OF ALL THE OTHER IDEAS WE HAVE ALREADY GENERATED
5.We decided to
HAVE A LONGER MEETING NEXT WEEK. THE FIRST HOUR WILL BE WITH THE
POLICE BOARD AND SHOULD FOCUS CLOSELY ON THEIR WORK, PROCEDURES.
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES. THE REMAINDER OF THE MEETING WILL FOCUS
ON NARROWING DOWN OUR RECOMMENDATIONS AND DECIDING WHAT ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION WE NEED AND HOW TO GET IT
6.Sara reported that the PBA is planning to appoint an officer to the committee.
In light of previous discussions regarding our work and committee membership.
we agreed to reconsider this issue.
4, e/ s a 7 )4pief'kviheel
c:4,2) 4 64r"Ay 6 jeer 40 'OP 1.) rn /(-if/ 74:1A �' (' Orl
� lvt� ey 4 SOW' "Ilw<<'Ir P
To: Committee on the Community Police Board of
the Police-Community Relations Task Force
From: John Marcham July 21, 1992
A couple of early thoughts by a new member
1. What are the "other community groups" mentioned in the task
force mission statement? How are we reaching them?
2 . With an Aug. 17 deadline for task force recommendations, when
will our committee's recommendations need to be done? and when
will the four committees meet together?
3 . After reading all the stuff from the chief, I think our task
force might recommend a new complaint form and explanation, with
the explanation drawn largely from the "Police Board Notes, "
which are much clearer than the official explanation. And I 'd be
glad to take a crack at simpler words for the form itself.
Also, the summary of a year's complaints is not adequate to
give anyone understanding or confidence in what the board really
does. I 'd be glad to explore what more info could be added to
the report of each complaint.
4 . Some people expect us to recommend "strengthening" the Police
Board. One way is by legislation, which would mean state and
city laws, which I seriously doubt could be accomplished.
Certainly not quickly. Should we discuss that question?
More likely to be achieved would be a strengthening of the
board as a working group by giving it more staff, providing for
quick questioning and removal of members who can't do the work,
and holding the mayor responsible for the board's performance.
Can we discuss this?
5. Is our committee or one of the other committees of the task
force going to explore what other agencies in the neighborhoods
and community cap,. assist the Community Police Board in discussing
police-community problems? "An ounce of prevention is worth a
pound of cure. " How do we get at festering gripes before they
break out in serious complaints?
As an example, the board does not seem able to do more than
investigate complaints. Have any groups (churches, GIAC,
Southside Center, neighborhood associations) been approached or
come forward to talk about the problems which our task force was
formed to address?
6. Long run: What role did the Common Council or individual
aldermen and women or the mayor play in raising questions and
seeking solutions regarding community-police relatins? To some
extent the creation of our task force can be seen as evidence of
a failure of existing machinery. Our deadline is so short that
we' ll be lucky to identify more than a few quick fixes, but we
could fix responsibility on existing organizations rather than
try to invent any new wheels.
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL, ITHACA,NY 14850
Approved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on July 27, 1992 (4:30-5:30
pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols, Chief Harlin McEwen,Clay
Hamilton, Amy Lewis, Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,Gerald Dumay,Drew Martin,John
Johnson, Cliff Ducey (visitor from PBA),John Marcham (in place of Rick Williams)
Absent: Jose Montanez
1. Irene Stein told the Steering Committee about the previous Jury Selection
Subcommittee meeting.
a. Questions and clarifications were addressed.
2. Corrections and clarifications were made on the minutes from the 7/20/92 Steering
Committee meeting.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
3. Related announcements and comments were made.
a. Mayor Nichols announced that the Public Works waived the fee to reserve Cass
Park for the "Field Day" event.
b. Mayor Nichols spoke to Randy Haus regarding busing to and from the event.
It was suggested that the Task Force donate funds for the busing.
c. Chief McEwen suggested free vouchers for the city buses instead of providing a
separate bus schedule exclusively for the event.
d. Chief McEwen suggested that as a lottery prize for the"Field Day," some of the
children may be able to ride to Cass Park in a police car.
Idea was noted by Amy Lewis.
e. Amy clarified that the Southside Festival is on 8/15/92,and that the "Field Day"
event is on 8/22/92.
4. Amy Lewis read the minutes for the Police/Community Involvement Subcommittee.
a. Amy clarified that the Subcommittee is soliciting supplies rather than money for
the event.
b. Sara Shenk suggested placing a police car at Cass Park for the children to look
inside.
Chief McEwen stated that there would be some cars assigned at the "Field
Day."
5. Clay Hamilton read the minutes for the Sensitivity Training Subcommittee.
a. Chief McEwen gave Clay an article on Sensitivity Training.
6. John Marcham read the minutes for the Community Police Board Subcommittee.
a. Questions about the Police Review Board's efficiency were raised.
b. Amy noted that the Police Review Board's duty is to be an advocate of the
system rather than the individual.
c. Mayor Nichols noted a possible need for a place in the budget to hire an
"investigator" to be an official advocate for individuals in need of one.
d. Amy suggested assigning someone to be an "investigator"rather than paying
someone.
e. Gerald Dumay expressed an interest in being on the Police Review Board when
there is a vacancy.
f. It was agreed that the discussion should be continued at a later time.
7. Al Nelson clarified that recommendations of the subcommittees should be presented to
the Steering Committee by 9/15/92.
8. It was clarified that recommendations made by the subcommittees of the Task Force
must be supported by the Steering Committee before they can be made
recommendations from the entire Task Force. Complete reports by the subcommittees
will be made available to the public.
Meeting adjourned at 5:30 pm.
PCRTF SUBCOMMITTEE MEETING
MINUTES FROM JULY 27, 1992
PRESENT: A. LEWIS; R. HAUS; S. LARKIN; R. GILLIAM;J. EFROYMSON
The minutes from July 20, 1992 were read and passed
We tabled the discussion of mentor programs until the following week in order to have
time to contact program coordinators of other mentor programs in the Ithaca area.
We continued our discussion of Field Day events:
R. Haus will be dropping off sign up sheets to other law enforcement agencies. He also
will continue to organize transportation to the event.
S. Larkin will be sending written requests for food and supplies for the event.
A. Lewis will contact Kiwanis re: a barbeque pit for the cookout---
For Mentoring Program Discussion:
1. Learning Web is interested in doing work in the Southside area
-we will invite Sally Schwartzbach (L.W.) to 8/3 meeting...
2. We will also need input from other agencies (D. Barrett- ACE
program; J. Merwyn - Youth Bureau)
3. We need to do.a needs assessment for this community to target youth most in need
of this type of program.
Misc. Information...
a. Ride Along Program- (Explorer Program)- A. Lewis will contact Sgt. Harrington
ro: history on this program.
Next Meeting is August 3, 1992 at 7:00 pm at Southside
Community Center.
Police - Community Relations Training Committee
Continuation of minutes from 7/20/92 Meeting
Agreed to additional question for officers:
*Do you have any special skills or information to share with fellow
officers or the community to improve police/community relations?
Agreed that the first question should be:
*Are you skeptical of this process? (Needs clarification. Do we mean
skeptical about filling out the questionaire or the our committees'
objectives?)
In closing, Barry recommended that any suggestions around training
issues should be long-term, institutionalized, and part of IPD's regular
training process. He strongly believes that the community also needs a
learning process.
Lastly, Barry wanted the committee to understand that police officers
have no recourse if they are falsely accused of misconduct or are accused
and exonerated.
r
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL, ITHACA,NY 14850
Approved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on August 3, 1992 (4:30-
5:30 pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols, Clay Hamilton, Amy Lewis,
Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,Rick Williams, Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez, Drew Martin,
John Johnson
Absent: Chief Harlin McEwen(due to unforeseen circumstances)
1. Minutes from the 7/27/92 meeting were reviewed.
a. Corrections were made.
Vote carried,minutes approved.
2. Sara Shenk read the minutes from the Community-Police Board subcommittee.
a. Rick Williams added that he has been absent for the past few meetings,and that
he doesn't agree with all of the statements presented in the minutes(he was not
specific on this point). However,he is particularly concerned with the
subcommittee's views on the independent investigator issue.
b. Irene Stein suggested that maybe the independent investigator should be an
option for those desiring one. She also stated that she objects to the use of a
professional investigator if there is a problem with the perception of the
establishment vs.citizenry,but that a community advocate is a good idea.
c. Sara Shenk stated that she doesn't think that a private investigator would
improve community confidence in the investigations and actions of the
Community-Police Board. The investigations don't suffer from inadequate
attendance of the meetings because they are conducted outside of the monthly
meetings in a timely fashion. The situation that suffers is the community liaison
function of the Board.
d. John Johnson brought up the question of whether or not the community would
have any more confidence in an independent investigator than they do in the
Community-Police Board.
e. Drew Martin expressed the Police Chiefs strong opposition to an independent
investigator. He also added that the PBA is comfortable with the existing
investigations,but continues to be uncomfortable with the feed-back.
f. Amy Lewis suggested training the Community-Police Board commissioners in
investigations.
g. Amy also suggested that community organizations submit names to the Mayor
to be considered for a Community-Police Board position. Sara suggested a
formalized letter be sent out to agencies when there is an opening on the Review
Board explaining the nature of the position and if that agency has any
recommendations.
h. Mayor Nichols recognized that one of the problems with the Community-Police
Board has been consistency and responsibility in attendance of the members.
i. Irene said that the problem isn't that the Board members aren't capable of doing
the work,the problem is the reputation of the Community-Police Board as
being ineffective or people assume that nothing happens in response to their
complaints. If this is a fact,are these reasons that we can respond to? Sara
stated that the Board is taking measures(such as the community advocate
proposal,and the idea of Board members being included in individual,informal
investigations) to address credibility and action within the Community-Police
Board.
j. Clay Hamilton recognized that there are two separate functions being addressed:
(1)The role of the Community-Police Board is to objectively find truth in an
accusation,and(2) an advocate has a bias by the nature of its definition. Which
brings up the question of whether or not the Board should work both halves
simultaneously.
k. Mayor Nichols suggested a"Youth Council"be established to serve as a direct
connection to the Board. This would be in response to the feelings of
inadequate representation and lack of credibility coming from the younger
section of the community.
1. Irene stated that one of the initial problems,specifically that the Community-
Police Board is not independent,needs to be addressed by the subcommittee.
3. Clay Hamilton read the minutes from the newly named"Training Committee for the
Police-Community Relations Task Force."
Vote carried,name approved.
a. Clay noted the helpfulness of the PBA's input at the last subcommittee meeting.
b. Mayor Nichols asked about the willingness for the police officers to welcome
any training. Clay clarified that the training would be conducted in a proactive
manner rather than a reactive labelling,in terms of what is the objective and
how is it structured.
4. Amy Lewis read the minutes from the Police/Community Involvement subcommittee.
a. Amy requested assistance from individuals on the Steering Committee for the
"Field Day" event.
b. Mayor Nichols noted that the mentoring program should be specifically tied to
police involvement for budgetary reasons.
5. Irene Stein stated that the Jury Selection subcommittee did not meet.
6. Drew Martin suggested that more detail be included in the minutes of the Steering
Committee.
Suggestion was noted by the secretary.
7. Conversation continued on the Community-Police Board subject.
a. Drew explained the difference in the two complaints addressed to the Board: (1)
An officer did something wrong,and(2) an officer did something that the
individual didn't like.
b. Sara stated that the Community-Police Board's investigations are in part for the
benefit of the officer to collect information on his/her behavior,and if
necessary, the officer will have some disciplinary action taken against him/her.
The Board does make the recommendation that some sort of action take place,if
appropriate,but does not necessarily specify the action.
c. Al noted the issue of the disciplinary action taken towards the officer be made
public.
d. John suggested that in addition to a letter telling the individual who made the
complaint that some action was taken against the officer,a personal conference
is also effective. However, the confidentiality issue does create a difficult
situation.
' s
Meeting of Jury Selection Subcommittee
Minutes of Meeting of August 5 , 1992
Present : Ben Darden, Chuck Guttman, Irene Stein
Excused: Marilyn Ray
1 . Jim Kerrigan has resigned from the Committee .
2 . The Committee finalized its recommendations . They will
consist of :
a . Adding to the lists of names used for jury
' selection, the names of NYSEG customers , Headstart and public
school systems parents and Public assistance/Food Stamp clients .
If any of the latter lists , are not legally available to the
public , making them available for this purpose will be addressed
below.
b . Whenever names are drawn from the total list (s) , the
list should be divided into two strata : one which will include
the names of all residents of streets in the election districts
which will compose the Second Ward of the City of Ithaca as of
the effective redistricting date, January 1 , 1993; the other, to
include all other county residents . Names should be drawn from
each stratum in proportion to its peracentage of total county
population . This will ensure that minorities -are consistently ,
chosen in proportion to their percentage of County population .
x 3 . The procedures in relation to the jury questionnaire should
be changed so that all those who do not return the questionnaire
will be automatically placed on the jury list , and this should be
made clear on the questionnaire .
4 . Our State Legislators should be contacted to submit
legislation which will make these procedures mandatory across the
State . To the extent that any of the lists of names in 1 a . are
not public information, legislation should permit their being
made available for the purposes of jury selection .
Chuck will prepare a rough draft of the recommendations for the
final report ; Irene will write a paragraph on the sampling
recommendation; Ben will submit language for the
intgroduction/conclusion of the report .
The next meeting will be Wednesday , August 12 , 7 : 30 p .m. at
Chuck' s City Hall office .
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL, ITHACA,NY 14850
Approved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on August 10, 1992 (4:30-
5:30 pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson, Chief Harlin McEwen, Clay Hamilton,Amy Lewis,
Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,John Johnson, Drew Martin,Pat Kennedy (in place of Mayor
Nichols),Dwayne Milton (visitor- Youth and Family Program Coordinator at Southside
Community Center)
Absent: Mayor Ben Nichols (prior notice),Rick Williams, Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez
1. Al Nelson introduced Pat Kennedy and Dwayne Milton to the Steering Committee.
2. Irene Stein read the minutes from the Jury Selection subcommittee.
a. Irene noted that Jim Kerrigan has resigned from the subcommittee.
b. Questions and clarifications were addressed.
3. Minutes from the 8/3/92 Steering Committee meeting were presented.
Corrections and additions were made.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
4. Al Nelson informed the Steering Committee of Rick Williams's impending resignation
as chairperson of the Community-Police Board subcommittee.
a. Rick will bring a formal letter stating the reasons for his resignation at a later
time.
b. Rick suggested to Al that John Marcham be the new chairperson for the
subcommittee.
5. Amy Lewis said that she would present the official minutes of the Police/Community
Involvement subcommittee at a later time.
a. Amy read a letter that she is going to present to her subcommittee suggesting the
cancellation of the "Field Day" event scheduled for 8/22/92.* Through realistic
assessment of what the subcommittee can do successfully in such a brief
amount of time and without the volunteers needed, the event will be postponed
until a later date (possibly next year). Amy said though she is disappointed, she
would rather have a well organized event rather than a poorly planned one
which would inevitably discourage some participants.
b. Chief McEwen noted that planning two events so close together(referring to the
Southside Festival scheduled for 8/15/92) is sometimes too much to ask the
community to be involved with.
6. Sara Shenk represented the Community-Police Board subcommittee.
a. Sara stated that she thinks John Marcham is a good suggestion for
chairperson of the subcommittee.
b. Sara also expressed a fear that there is a false interpretation of the
subcommittee. The Task Force may think that the subcommittee is not doing
what the community wants.
* The letter that was read to the Steering Committee was passed by the
Police/Community Involvement subcommittee, and has been distributed to all affected
parties.
c. Discussion continued regarding Rick Williams's resignation. Al suggested that
the Steering Committee needs to decide whether Rick will continue as a member
of the Steering Committee after his official resignation as subcommittee
chairperson.
d. Al addressed the subcommittee chairpersons by asking what their expectations
were of the volunteer members of the subcommittees. Sara said that lack of
organization and lack of consistent attendance of the meetings were some
contributing factors to the problems.
e. Irene said that one of the factors contributing to the view that the subcommittee
is ineffective may be that the initial concerns of the subcommittee were not
reflected in the minutes. This may be offputting to people not aware of the
difficulties within the subcommittee.
f. John said that he did get a different perspective of the subcommittee meeting
when John Marcham read the minutes to the Steering Committee.
g. Amy said that one of the key issues that seemed to be bypassed was the issue of
accountability. Sara noted that there are differences in opinion as to whether or
not that issue has been addressed by the subcommittee,and whether it is in fact
a key issue for discussion. Amy suggested a formal,written step process
dealing with accountability for the Board to follow if they are not being heard.
7. Clay Hamilton said that he will have minutes from the Training Subcommittee next
week.
a. Chief McEwen referred to Barry Langerlan's comments at the last subcommittee
meeting. He noted that in general practice,checking stats(officer's arrests) is
traditional, but he,at present, does not pay attention to stats unless there are
extenuating circumstances. Drew agreed that this is not a general practice of the
Chief.
b. Clay asked Chief McEwen to clarify if an officer"never" makes an arrest, does
that mean he/she has found appropriate alternatives to arrest? Chief McEwen
replied that ultimately,the decision of whether the alternative was appropriate is
up to him.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Pat Kennedy expressed Mayor Nichol's view in support of an ombudsperson for the
Community-Police Board,but since the topic was not discussed thoroughly, she would
let the Mayor express his own views at a later time.
2. Drew Martin expressed his opinion that city committees in general do not function
adequately. He will be prepared to elaborate on this subject at a later time.
3. Dwayne Milton presented some topics to the Steering Committee.
a. Expressed that he welcomes the knowledge that a committee such as the Task
Force exists,and it is something he would like to be involved in.
b. Feels that there are two sides to the law. (1) The actual law,and(2) the law that
people are forced to take into their own hands if the actual law breaks down.
There needs to be some way to get information out about how the law works
and how the community can abide by it.
c. Concerned about how the youth in the community feel about police officers.
He thinks that there is an explosive situation existing that must be addressed.
d. Addressed the drug situation. He believes that the Police Department needs to
take a more active stance by using more forceful measures to erase the problem.
•
•
e. Chief McEwen said that the Police Department has a good handle on the drug
problem in the community,but that it is sometimes difficult to eradicate the
problem efficiently.
4. Amy presented a problem to the Steering Committee.
a. Received false accusations that she had made a complaint against an officer for
an individual.
b. Believes that her own personal time that she devotes to being an advocate for
certain individuals does not involve the Task Force.
c. Chief McEwen feels that the situation has been taken care of.
Meeting adjourned at 5:30 pm.
Police-Community Relations Training Committee
Minutes of July 28 , 1992, meeting
Next meeting will be Tuesday, August 11 , 1992, at5 : 30
The group decided to go by the above name from now on, partially
because of negative perceptions of the word "sensitivity training. "
Minutes of July 14 meeting were approved.
Barry Langerlans was present as the official representative of
the PBA.
Barry distributed an article entitled "Making Sense of Sensitivity, "
and highlighted what he felt were important points, The discussion
brought up the following points:
1 . A major part of police work in the community is service and
order maintenance rather than law enforcement. This aspect of
police work needs to be enhanced by more foot patrols and also
by less emphasis on the number of arrests made by' each officer.
A focus by the administration on "stats" (numbers of arrests)
tends to undermine the police feeling part of the community.
2 . The community needs to understand what it is the police actually
do, how much of their responsibility is helping people.
3. The police have nothing against training. What puts them off
is ad hoc training which comes about as solely a reaction to
an event and which is seen as simply a band aid. Training which
would really help the police for the long term would be more
welcomed.
4. The community should be involved in training as well as the
police.
5 . Any police training would have to take scheduling into con-
sideration, so the police would not be left short-handed.
6. An important point in soliciting input from the police via
questionnaires or surveys: anonymity. The officer needs to
trust that the information they give would not be used against
them. (The group discussed ways that the surveys could be totally
anonymous, such as a strategically placed box to put them in.
Obvously no one would put their names on them. )
7 . Barry felt that officers would generally not have a problem
with a civilian accompanying them on a beat. To speak freely
trust would have to be established.
The group had Barry go over the tentative list of questions we
came up with at our last meeting. The purpose was not to get his
answers, though we got some very helpful ones, but to see if he
thought those questions were appropriate and clear. Barry' s
general comment was not to require too much writing of officers
who are already overburdened with writing reports, and to make
questions short and simple. Based on Barry' s comments , there is
an attempt at a redraft on the next page.
Police-r �ality Re.lati. T Naini, _ _,�,uili�i_
Second draft of questions to be asked of officers:
1.a.How useful to you in your work with the community have
trainings in the following areas been?
--racism --sexism --homophobia --ageism
--cultural diversity
b. Which training (s) have been useful?
c. Which ones have not?
d. Which were effective in the short term?
e. Which in the long term?
f. Is there any/adequate follow-up?
2.4'In your present training on the above issues, are you given
evaluation forms to evaluate the training?b'are you asked to
comment on the effectiveness of the training for you?
3. Are there obstacles in the system that make it hard to use what
you learn in trainings, for example policies or informal practices?
b. Could you give an example of where there is such a conflict?
4 . (Barry said that this question required too much writing and
should be made into separate questions requiring yes, no, or maybe
answers, or multiple choice. Since I am unsure of how to do this,
I am including the question as it was on our last meeting minutes,
to be worked on more. )
4. What do you perceive as the major problem(s) between the
police and diverse groups within the Ithaca community? For
example, people of color, women, gay, lesbian & bisexual people,
young people, elders. What things have helped you interact with
these various communities in your training? What information,
skills and/or resources would help you better interact with these
and/ or other groups?
5 . (OK as is, changing only the LETN)
5. How do you feel about the current process for selecting
training topics, including L programs?
6 . Would you appreciate an opportunity to talk about what you
learned from the training afterwards with the instructor (s)
and/or fellow officers, with this feedback being part of the
training itself?
7. (As it was)
7. Are there situations which you deal with where your job would
be made easier by additional training in:
conflict resolution
listening
mediation
other
8. As befog 8. Are there other questions we should be asking officers in
order to guide our thinking about improving police and community
relations?
Barry' s comment on the importance of gaining the officers ' confidence.
( role coats v04e, --(c1 Ker)
POLICE/COMMUNITY RELATIONS TRAINING COMMITTEE MEETING: Aug. 11 , 1992.
Next Meeting: Tuesday, August 18, 1992, at 6:00. See below for details.
Present : Laura, Neil, Kris, Barry, Shauna, Clay.
1 . Read minutes from last meeting and approved. (July 28, 1992) .
2. Please note: new meeting location for this committee will be
at Clay's office---309 N. Tioga St. , Ithaca, (Thaler & Thaler Bldg. ) .
If the door is locked, ring the buzzer and someone will come down and
let you in. Clay will have to leave briefly during our meeting to go
to another gathering nearby, but will return. New meeting time is 6:00.
3. We moving the meetings to a weekly schedule until after
September 1 in order to get together a proposal in time for consideration
alongside the IPD budget proposal which has a due date of Sept. 1 .
In cognizance of the fact that our recommendations will need some amount
of funding, we will meet more often to try to put our committee ' s sug-
gestions on paper by then. This does not mean that we expect that all
funds for our proposal would come from IPD' s budget. We also realize
that our committee ' s members will not all be able to attend all meetings.
4. We reviewed & _made`. further revisions to the Questionnaire which
we would like to distribute to IPD officers to gather information about
their concerns, perceptions and needs regarding training/community rela-
tions. The final draft is attached and will be typed and given to
Drew Martin. Clay will talk to Drew about how to distribute the quest-
tionnaires to officers and about providing a collection place (possibly
in the briefing room? ) where they can be returned. We will stress the
importance of keeping the officers ' responses to our survey completely
confidential so that they may answer as candidly as they wish.
5. Kirby has submitted an interesting proposal to the committee
which we should all have received in the mail. If you didn' t get one,
contact Clay to make sure your name is on the mailing list. We did begin
reading the proposal toward the end of our meeting, however we did not
discuss much of it. One issue was identified, however, which is the cost
of implementing the proposal . We tabled the discussion until next time
if Kirby can be present . If Kirby cannot attend, we will use our time
to begin work on a questionnaire for community members .
6. We briefly discussed the starting time for our meetings and we
agreed that even if all of us can' t show up on time, we should go ahead
and try to get some work done as soon as a few of us arrive.
7. Clay gave us copies of an article from the N.Y. Times about the
NYC Neighborhood Policing (or community policing) program and how it ' s
been implemented and received. Clay has more copies if you didn' t get one .
Aug. 12 , 1992
To: Community Police Board (CPB) Committee of the
Police-Community Relations Task Force
From: John Marcham, chairman, CPBP, 273-5754 qt
A Draft Report G
This enclosed draft report is double spaced to allow you to mark
it up for the final meeting of our committee at 7 p.m. Wednesday,
Aug. 19, at GIAC.
It is also going to the leadership of the Task Force
Steering Committee, to whom I ' ll present it in preliminary form
Aug. 17. (I ' ll be away for the steering committee' s next meeting
u� )
Iftiyou have big changes to suggest before I take it to the
Steering Committee, call me at home over the weekend or on Monday
and I ' ll try to get your changes in. (I have an answering
machine on weekdays, but not always on weekends. )
It' ll help to have your thoughts before Aug. 19 , so I can
bring a clean draft to the Aug. 19 meeting. Let's hope we don't
have to do too much, but our committee has been together so
little that I am prepared to consider changing any of it if the
committee wants to after seeing this draft. I tried to follow
the rough consensus we seemed to come to Aug. 12 .
I wrote a summary of what are essentially my own feelings,
which follow. I did not put them in the report, and don't plan
to unless committee members want them in. They represent a
summary that helps explain, somewhat, why I think the committee
did not .ropose major . - .es in toe Police Board setup.(
It also s-e ill an impli-. c arge our committee, to
assess or evaluate the Boarj....as well as propose ways to improve
it: 'rhe summary (A) :
"Basically, we favor retaining most of the present Police L„----
Board arrangement set out in the city charter, and believe Ithaca
has, for the most part, as good people as we can expect in key
spots the Police Board, chief, police force, and mayor.
"But we do see the need: A) to address the distrust that
led to the formation of our task force this summer, B) to
improve the Board's availability to the community--in fact and as
perceived, and C) to get more involvement from community
organizations. "
Notes: I 'm sending copies to the mayor, the chief, and Drew
Martin of the PBA (both at the police station and at his home in
McLean) , who deserve to see it (and let me know any suggestions
they have) even though they aren't responsible for its contents.
To Irene Stein, let me know if you want to be listed as a
committee member on the basis of being on hand for one of our
meetings.
v
Report of the Community Police Board Committee
City of Ithaca, August 19, 1992
Anger early this summer over black-police relations in
California led to formation of a task force to try to
improve minority-police relations in Ithaca. Our
committee within that task force was asked to zero in
on the role in citizen-city police relations of
Ithaca's own Community Police Board, and to make
suggestions for improvement.
This Committee' s Work
Our committee itself managed to reflect the problems
facing the Police Board itself, and most civic bodies:
we attracted few persons to our weekly meetings,
seldom the same ones from week to week, switched
chairmen partway along, and did not manage to hear
from a number of the parties to citizen-police
relations that we might have.
For all these difficulties, we are able to
conclude:
Police-Citizen Feelings
1. Some officers believe many African-Americans
harbor grudges or prejudice against the police in
general and some officers in particular.
2 . A number of African-Americans in Ithaca,
particularly young males, believe many officers harbor
grudges or prejudice against particular individuals
and African-Americans in general.
l G- }
3 . We did not receive testimony as to groups
other than African-Americans who felt aggrieved :in
police dealings, but learned informally that some
7)
Hispanic-Americans and some gays and lesbians have at r'
times felt unfairly dealt with. '`]
4 . We ran into a good deal of defensiveness and 1
onp"--e-
occasional overstating of cases in our work. Without
doubt this edginess is contributed to by a host of
factors: the dangers of police work, the presence of
outsiders attracted to affluent Ithaca as a place to
sell and buy drugs, the dominant personality and
authority of the police chief relative to both
officers and citizens, the demands of Civil Service
and labor negotiations, heightened tension nationally
in black-white relations, tension because of
relatively poor job opportunities for young men, and
even grudges that individuals carry over from growing
up together in Ithaca.
The Community Police Board
5. The city has a five-member Community Police
Board (CPB) appointed by the mayor, subject to
approval by the Common Council. The Board hears
complaints against the police; makes recommendations
to the chief regarding individual officers; or on any
other police matters, including finance and budget, to
the mayor, Council, or chief; and acts otherwise as
liason from the community to the Police Department.
( 2 )
6. The Board relies on one of its members plus
the chief or his deputy to investigate individual
citizen complaints. The full Board votes on any
recommendations. The secretary to the chief prepares
minutes of Board meetings and is available to do other
staff work for the Board.
7 . Board members feel stretched by the duties,
and this year had trouble maintaining continuity when
two members were unable to attend meetings.
Police Board Investigations
8. For its part, the Community Police Board
investigated twelve cases last year in which it
received formal written complaints against police
officers, and its members believe they were able to
form independent judgments on these cases. As nearly
as we could determine, one case resulted in discipline
of an officer, but details of all cases are kept
confidential because of a mix of Civil Service, legal,
city personnel, and labor contract requirements.
9. On this scant evidence, we had no reason t
conclude the CPB decisions were other than fair and
independently arrived at. But this judgment had to be IJ.
based mostly on our evaluation of the individual CPB
members we met with and questioned at length, rather
than on a record- of their decision.
10. Many African-Americans who think about the
matter appear to believe the CPB is an arm of the
Police Department rather than independent because it
must get along with police in order to investigate
complaints.
11. The current CPB practice of using the police
chief or deputy chi _ as investigator in each case
contributes to the perception that the Board is not
i ent. Our committee was told that the need for
( professionalism and confidentiality explain this
practice.
12. We were told that a number of Ithacans told
other persons they were dealt with unfairly by police r
in particular cases, but did not use the CPB to ` lodge
formal or informal complaints about police conduct.
Why? We were told they ignored the CPB because
they did not feel the Board was impartial. We were
not in a position to decide what other factors may
have kept complainers from becoming complainants.
13 . Some persons in local social service
agencies, on hearing- of a complaint against police,
deal directly with the Department and do not use the
CPB.
Other Avenues
14 . In addition to the complaint process,
members of the CPB discuss and carry out a number of
meetings with groups of citizens, ,/
to explain the
Board' s work, learn of feelings about police
activities, and encourage greater understanding and
interaction between police and citizens.
Possible Action
For all the mistrust and distance we felt and were
told about, we found considerable hope and a wish to
build on the friendships and good will that exist
among and between most Ithacans, includin• members of
minority groups, and most police officers and other
public officials.
We worked for so short a time that some of our
proposals are recomendations for further study, where
we had either noconsensuswithin our committee, or no
cle_arictarnatives.
Community Police BoardC /d *
1. Need: No one proposed any better way to �
t:g
.l`
resolve individual complaints about police service 0"A
than a citizen Board of the sort we have. ejr
�•
2 . Size: We did not debate at length the size
of the Board, but with demands likely to increase on
the Police Board, at least in the short run, the
Council should seriously review before the end of 1992
the idea of a seven- d. Good Board members
are likely to be relatively young and in demand in
other activities in the city, so it may take more of
them than at present to do the board's work and
reflect the variety of ages and interest groups in the
community necessary to make the board effective.
3 . Attendance: We propose a bylaw or practice
under which a Board member unable to attend two
meetings be approached to see if that person can and
should continue. The mayor, as appointer, should take
continuing responsibility fbr the ability of board
members to %erve and do their job.
4 . Term: We agree with Board members who said
they consider the current three-year term is needed to
learn the job and not too long to burn one out.
5. Election: We considered a proposal to allow
certain groups (GIAC, Southside Center) to elect Board
members directly and did not favor it. This would
create two classes of members, on a Board 'that 'mast
work well together, and open the way to demands for
still more directly elected members. Better the mayor
turn to GIAC, Southside, and other interested groups
whenever a vacancy occurs, and consider any candidates
they have to propose.
6. A special case: A significant portion of the
distrust and complaints against police appear to come
from young African-A - - - . The board would be
more likely to reflect and eventually deal with this
hostility if a person of, or very close to, this age r-,
group served on the board. (This suggestion came up
very late in our deliberations, and as such was not
discussed among many of the committee members. )
(Also see Proposal 12 below, regarding. advocates. )
- v
7 . Ward limits: The current limitation of no
. .
more than two board members from any one ward was not
questioned.
8. Staffing: We understand why some citizens
are uncomfortable having the chief and his secretary
play important roles in the operation of the Police
Board, but were not presented with alternatives we
could recommend 'in the time we had to study them.
If the current task force or the Council consider
some alternative to the chief as investigator, they
need to determine: To whom would a private
investigator report? What sort of professionals are
available in Ithaca on a retainer basis? At what
price? And given Civil Service, charter, and other /
laws, labor contracts, and regulations, how would an V
investigator deal with the confidentiality of criminal
justice information, the chain of command within a
police department, and the protection afforded
officers in disciplinary proceedings?
9 . Volunteers: We discussed the idea that the
Police Board might get volunteer heli from the
community in creating easier-to-use forms for
complaints, in preparing reports, and in other fields.
The Board appears' to welcome it.
Community Relations
10. Responsibility: Just as we hold the mayor
responsible for the makeup and efficient working' of
the Police Board, so we hold members of Common Council
/AJ/141 ) , 4
responsible to see, that existing groups in the
community join in bringing citizens and the police
together to foster better relations.
11. Organizations: The Police Board alone
cannot be expected to seek out, identify, evaluate and
deal with community attitudes. Existing agencies,
government 6ffices, clubs, and churches--where people
gather--must help. We suggest organizations whose
members feel aggrieved find a way to discuss olice
needs and relations as a periodic part of the program
of their group, assigning the function to an
individual or committee.
Council members should encourage community
organizations to get in touch with the chair of the
r
Police Board and invite a Board member, police
officer, or both to come to the organization, to
discuss problems and how relations and service can be
improved.
12 . "Advocates: " We favor the identification
and training of key individuals in the community to
act as intermediaries or helpers to persons who feel
they have a problem with police, but don't choose to
approach the Police Board directly, for whatever
reason. The Police Board would train each such
"advocate" (for lack of a better word) in how to file
a complaint, and what to expect in the process.
Advocates would be sought who are close to the
(j)r
population that tends to have complaints--in Southside
Center, GIAC (including its boxing program) , Social
Services, OAR, maybe the schools.
13 . Complaint forms: Although improved
recently, the Police Board complaint forms still could411)
use some simplification, and the instructions could be
in language that is easier to understand. A member of
N.
our committee has volunteered to help.
14 : Reporting: The board needs to do a more
thorough job of explaining itself. Its annual written
i
summary of complaints has been so bare as to be
meaningless. Despite problems of confidentiality,
which have kept it bare, we are sure it can tell more,
and have volunteered to help, which the Board chair
has welcomed.
Similarly, we believe the board or the Human
Se, ices Committee of Council should report quarterly
-------------
at a public meeting of Council on progress being made
e
to improve the effectiveness of the CPB, until such
time as Council and the Board feel the Board's work is
�c _
understood and able to be effective.
15. Other committees of this summer' s task ,force
are at work on ways to improve contacts between the
police and community, and we encourage those
efforts.
In Conclusion
A lot of steam seems to have left the community's
I CI, f) . .
concern about citizen-police relations in the past two
months, but we consider the subject important
nevertheless. We stand ready to help further, but
will be but of action for several weeks after Aug. 19
because of vac ons. Call us again if needed.
[Place where we might add Paragraphs A referred
to in the cover letter to this draft. ]
The report was written by the committee 's second
chairman, and submittE.d ,to members for their comments
and a vote Aug. 19. The report is also passed to
leaders of the Task Force steering committee for
comment before our meeting, and will be presented to
them A 17 so that we may have their thoughts as
well when we meet Aug. 19 . We understand final action
on this report is up to the steering committee.
Committee members: Richard Williams, Sara Shenk,
Cynthia Telfair, John Johnson, Marilyn Ray, Gregg
Thos, Lillie Tucker'. Not present recently: Birthe
Darden, Lee Carter, Vi Scbtt, Alvin Nelson, and
Alfredo Rossi (sine__ a) , and so not asked to
sign onto this report unless they want to. Spoke to
us: Chief Harlin McEwen, Carol Seligman, Kirby
Edmonds, Irene Stein. John Marcham 8/12
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
Approved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on August 15, 1992 (4:25 -
5:30 pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols,Clay Hamilton,Irene Stein, Sara
Shenk,John Johnson,John Marcham, Chief Harlin McEwen and Drew Martin (had to
leave due to unforeseen circumstances)
Absent: Amy Lewis (prior notice),Rick Williams,Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez
1. Irene Stein explained the draft report of the Jury Selection subcommittee.
a. AI Nelson asked about the public education aspect of the report. Irene said that
the education aspect of the report was not specific. Al suggested presenting the
school district with some sort of curriculum to educate the non-college bound
students in parliamentary procedures. He said that most students lack the
knowledge of these procedures, therefore they end up not knowing what their
rights are.
b. Mayor Nichols brought up his concerns about the need for drawing jury pool
names from two strata in the county. Irene said that drawing from the two
strata would increase the likelihood for a more representative jury pool.
c. Al brought up the concern that choosing jury pool names from two strata could
be used negatively against minorities or other groups or individuals. Irene said
that the actual jury pool list is drawn in Albany,therefore decreasing the chance
of discrimination in relation to these groups.
d. Al also brought up the concern about the clerk having discretionary rights to
excuse individuals from jury duty. Irene explained that the report suggests that
the reasons for exclusion from jury duty be written down to reduce the chance
for unfair/unlawful exclusion.
e. Irene suggested that the Steering Committee look over the report and bring any
changes,corrections, or additions to the next meeting.
2. Minutes from the 8/10/92 Steering Committee meeting were presented.
Corrections and additions were made.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
3. Clay Hamilton presented the minutes from the Training Subcommittee,as well as a
draft of a questionnaire to be given to police officers at a later time.
a. Clay explained the proposal that was alluded to in the minutes. He said that the
subcommittee is talking about adding a pilot/model community policing
program for the Northside/Southside community. Tentative discussions were
held with the Police Chief,and the possibility of adding two and a half more
police officers to complete the proposed program was suggested. A more
complete explanation of the program will be presented at next week's meeting.
b. Another suggestion was to continue the training process by having the Training
subcommittee become a subcommittee of the Community/Police Board
specifically for training the community and the police and for keeping up the
relations between the two.
c. Al suggested adding a member from each of the Task Force's subcommittees to
aid the Community/Police Board in police-community relations.
d. Clay noted that the questionnaire is voluntary and anonymous.
4. Mayor Nichols noted that there is an opening on the Community/Police Board.
a. Sara asked if there has been a formalized process for getting suggestions for
members of the Community/Police Board. Mayor Nichols said that there
wasn't,but he will be sending out a press release to announce the vacancy,
hopefully to get suggestions from some relevant organizations for a new,
interested member.
5. John Marcham presented the tentative proposal from the Community/Police Board
subcommittee.
a. Irene said that the initial investigations of the cases presented to the
Community/Police Board,proposed by Rick Williams, underlining what she
thinks are the fundamental issues for the subcommittee have not been addressed
in the report. She suggested adding that some other group conduct the
investigations after the Task Force has dissolved. John Johnson said that the
issue was addressed in a subcommittee meeting. Sara said that she had
conducted investigations,and that it was difficult at times because not all the
information needed was available. The Community/Police Board is taking steps
to solve this problem. Sara also said that Rick's idea was dropped because of
problems with resistance and confidentiality,among other things. John
Marcham said that the issue was not put into the minutes of the subcommittee,
and asked that if the Task Force is not satisfied with what the subcommittee has
done so far,is there time to address this concern before the report is finalized?
b. Clay brought up the other question of whether there is going to be an individual
ombudsperson added to the Community/Police Board's processes. John
Marcham said that the issue was discussed at the subcommittee meeting,and
•
that there is a problem with where that person would fit into the Board.
c. Irene noted that the issue of having a seat on the Board specifically reserved for
• a minority member of the community,chosen by the Mayor from a list of three
people suggested by relevant organizations (Southside, GIAC,etc.), should be
noted in the report because there was some discussion on the subject,and some
support was expressed.
d. Sara expressed her concern that John Marcham will be on vacation until 9/9/92,
leaving the chairperson seat open again.
6. Rick Williams's resignation was discussed.
a. Mayor Nichols noted the issue of the independence of the Community/Police
Board from the Police Department. John Marcham said that some of Rick's
suggestions were being pursued, such as the intermediary/ombudsperson
suggestion.Mayor Nichols suggested a staff person to interact with the
community to do clerical work, make sure all the forms are completed,etc. to
ensure that the investigations are done in a timely fashion. Sara suggested
putting some money in for neighborhood legal services for that purpose.
b. John Marcham suggested Marilyn Ray as the interim chairperson. John
Johnson supported that suggestion, and said that he would approach her with
that proposal.
Meeting adjourned at 5:30 pm.
WORKING DRAFT 8/19/92
REPORT OF THE POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
COMMITTEE ON COMMUNITY POLICY BOARD
BACKGROUND
At a rally and two subsequent community meetings held in May and early
June, 1992, African-Americans and other minority residents of Ithaca expressed
anger over relations between the police and community members; distrust of
the Community Policy Board's complaint procedures and of the investigatory
process used for complaints; and dissatisfaction with the jury selection
process. As a result of these meetings, the Mayor created the TASK FORCE
and designated four committees, one of which is the Committee on the Community
Policy-Board. The Committee was charged with investigating the causes for
and substance of the expressed dj.strust and dissatisfaction with the
Community-Policy Board, and to make recommendations to the Mayor for changes
in the Board that would address the problems.
This Committee began meeting on June 15, 1992 and has met ten times
since then. The Committee reviewed: articles on how Community-Police Boards
in other communities are organized, membership, investigative procedures,
and the success or lack of success of these Boards; the Police Benevolent
Association Union contract with the City; the history of the present Board;
current civilian complaint procedures, forms, and reports; and current
policies. At the Committee's invitation, Chief Harlan McEwen attended one
meeting, answered our questions, and talked at length about his role regarding
grievances against members of the Police Force, and the police relations
with the Board. Although Sara Shenk, chair of the Board, was an active member
of the Committee, the Committee also invited the other four members of the
Board to one meeting.
As a result of this work, the Committee voted August 19, 1992 to
respectfully make the following recommendations.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1- Board Structure: The Board is composed of five members appointed by
the Mayor and subject to the approval of the Common Council. The Committee
found that attendance at Board meetings and involvement in the work of the
Board has been sporadic and that the majority of the work has fallen to two
or three members. Questions were also raised about how well the composition
of the Board reflects the community
RECOMMENDATION I: It is recommended that the Mayor's screening procedures
for Board appointees include a descri of---the-wark of the Board
and time commitment required of members, and that before being
appointed, a prospective appointee make a commitment to spend the amount
of time necessary for-active participation on the Board.
RECOMMENDATION II: When a member of the Board has been absent without
excuse from three (should this be two???) Board meetings, the Mayor
shall be informed and that person's appointment withdrawn.
The Committee did not feel it would be appropriate to designate specific
seats on the Board for representatives of different community groups It
did, however, feel it was important that the African-American and other
minority community groups be given an opportunity to make recommendations
to the Mayor for Board appointments.
RECOMMENDATION III: Whenever a vacancy occurs on the Board, it is
recommended that the Mayor solicit lists of potential appointees from
Southside and other minority groups and that the Mayor appoint from
these lists.
At the current time, the Board receives secretarial support from the Police
Chief' secretary. This structure means that the Board cannot conduct any
part of its work, however tentative or exploratory, in confidence from the
2
organization it is charged to investigate.
RECOMMENDATION IV: It is recommended that support soryi Ps-for the
Board be l ca_tedoutside_the_Police Department_ in some office that will
provide the Board with complete confidentiality for their communications
and give the Board complete control over _the.decisioa.to take a matter
to the Police or to make it public.
2- Board Procedures: The Committee found several aspects of the Board's
current procedures serve either to interfere with the filing of complaints
or to undermine..confidence -in.,the._.lnye.stigaXgry.,process. First, the grievance
form itself is complicated, uses formal legal.-language, and can be difficult
for some people to complete.
RECOMMENDATION V: The grievance complaint form be simplified and
rewritten in plain language.
NOTE: Neighborhood Legal Services and John Marcham have volunteered to
accomplish this recommendation.
Second, it appears that the CoMMunity..,is not generally aware of the existence
of the Board, the procedures for filing complaints,. how to get assistance
with filing a complaint, and what to expect after filing a complaint.
RECOMMENDATION VI: It is recommended that the Board develop an
informational pamphlet and use the press and other_ ublp icforums to
increase its visibility within the community and to describe its work
and procedures.
NOTE: Neighborhood Legal Services has volunteered to assist with the
devel pment of a ..readable pamphlet describing the Board, its functions
and procedures.
Third, the first interview with a complainant is conducted b a Board member
and either Chief McEwea..or_hi _ass.isstan. This procedure has improved police
3
cooperation with the Board, but has decreased the amount of confidence the
community has that the investigation is fair and impartial. Further, Board
members, though dedicated and hardworking, are not trained investigators.
RECOMMENDATION VII: It is recommended that an independent investigator
be retained to conduct investigations for the Board and to report to
thoard. This investigator should not have current or former ties to
the police community.
Fourth, there are indications that a significant number of grievances are
not coming through the formal channels.
RECOMMENDATION VIII: It is recommended that theBgard,,.,..the African-
American community, and members of other minority groups work together
to develop a network of lay advocates yto ass, .,_people--who wish to
file a grievance.,and_.throughout the grievance process, and that the Board
and/or Neighborhood_L,egaL.S.ervic sprovide the tr.Ai ni ng for the lay
advocates.
3- Board-Community Accountability: In order to increase community trust
in the Board, it is essential that mechanisms be found to make*ha a.,a
accountable to_:,tYlic. Current procedures provide minimal feedback
either to persons who have filed a grievance or to the community at large
regarding the work of the Board or results of investigations or actions
taken following an investigation.
RECOMMENDATION IX: It is recommended that the Board exgaud--the
explanag_to the complainant re•ardin• the :•- • ' findings and action
taken.
RECOMMENDATION X: It is recommended that the Board be requiredo
make quarterly and/or annual substantive reports to the Mayor, the Common
Council, and to the community regarding all their activities.
4
4- Continuance of Committee: Finally, given the short time the Committee has
been in operation, it has not been able to investigate the full extent of
unfiled grievances or to discover all the reasons grievances are not filed.
RECOMMENDATION XI: It is recommended that the life of the Committee be
extended to complete this task and that the Committee involve members
of the African-American and other minority in the process to the fullest
extent possible.
•
5
/ t\'
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 4
— t
RECOMMENDATION XI: The Commission, Neighborhood Legal Services, mem-
bers of the Tompkins County Defense Bar, and/or other community groups
will be requested to provide the training for the lay advocates.
4- Commission-Community Accountability: In order to increase community
trust in the Commission and in the police, it is essential that mechanisms
be found to make the Commission more accountable to the public. Current
procedures provide only minimal feedback either to persons who have filed a
complaint or to the community at large regarding the work of the Board, the
results of investigations, or actions taken following an investigation.
Additionally, there are indications that the Board plays an important role
in recommending changes in police approach even when an investigation does
not find grounds for disciplinary action but finds an incident could have
been handled better. It is also clear that the public is unaware of this
important aspect of the Board's role.
pdQ,k:cc' Bo-cv..t.0 RECOMMENDATION XII: The Commission shall expand the explanation to the
complainant regarding its findings and all actions that it recommends
as a result from its findings.
�a�Qa�.O - RECOMMENDATION XIII: The Commission's role shall be clarified and
explained to complainants and to the general public so that it is
4___ generally understood that when an investigation does not lead to
disciplinary action other remedial action may be recommended.
RECOMMENDATION XIV: The Commission will be required to give semi-
,,,_pakA4 Q annual substantive reports to the Mayor, the Common Council, and to
t4 the community regarding all their activities and the changes they have
sought and achieved.
5- Independent Investigator: Finally, the Committee believes it is impera-
tive that both the perception and reality of the independence of the Com-
mission's complaint investigations be improved. Research has shown that
independent, professional, investigations of complaints is critical for
public confidence in the process. Furthermore, since Commissioners, though
dedicated and hardworking, are not trained investigators and since it is
not possible for an agency to investigate itself impartially, we feel it
imperative that this option be fully reviewed. The Committee envisions that
the investigator's primary responsibilities will be to locate and interview
witnesses in the community, establish the physical circumstances surround-
ing an incident, and complete such other assignments as the Citizen Commis-
sioners shall choose to assign, within the constraints of existing laws.
h RECOMMENDATION XV: The City Attorney shall explore the feasibility of
the Commission having the assistance of an independent investigator to
kIS°C° assist Citizen Commissioners in the investigation of complaints; and,
if feasible, recommend to the Mayor the steps which are necessary to
assure the Commission has this assistance as soon as possible; or, if
not feasible at this time, recommend whatever steps might be necessary
to make it possible to ensure the Commission has this assistance at
the earliest possible time.
22 (Appendix E)
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 3
charged to investigate. This structure may contribute to the public percep-
tion that the Board lacks independence.
RECOMMENDATION VI: Support services for the Commission must he located- K(1-1—
outside
ocated- n't "outside the Police Department in some office that will provide it with-
complete confidentiality for their communications.
3- Board Procedures: The Committee found several aspects of the Board's
current procedures serve neither to facilitate the filing of complaints nor
to engender confidence in the investigatory process.
* First, the complaint form itself is complicated, uses formal legal lan-
guage, and can be difficult for some people to complete. ^1)0r..(
RECOMMENDATION VII: The complaint form must be simplified and rewrit-9t0
ten in plain language. , c
tt�C..
* Second, it appears that the Community is not generally aware of the
existence of the Board, the formal or informal procedures for filing com-
plaints, how to get assistance with filing a complaint, nor what to expect
after filing a complaint. In addition to our recommendation for addressing
this situation, we encourage the Commission to seek speaking opportunities
with a full range of community groups and organizations. Finally, we sug-
gest organizations whose members feel aggrieved also find a way to discuss
police activities and relations as a periodic part of their group's pro-
gram, assigning the function to an individual or committee.
RECOMMENDATION VIII: The Commission shall develop an informational- 1041.10614 and use the press, speaking engagements at community groups-. N•S, C1
and organizations, and public forums to increase its visibility within
the community, to describe its work and procedures, and to increase
its accountability to the community. •
* Third, the first interview and all subsequent interviews with a complain-
ant and witnesses is presently conducted by a Commissioner and either the
Police Chief or his assistant. This procedure is believed to have contribu-
ted to the Board's perceived lack of independence.
RECOMMENDATION IX: At the very least, the Commission will initiate the
investigatory process by meeting alone with the complainant to explain -C ,(.0
the investigatory process, to clarify the facts of the complaint, and 1.4s
to offer the complainant an opportunity to seek the assistance of an ._- -
advocate. The Citizen Commissioner and the complainant would then meet
together with the Chief or his deputy to pursue the complaint.
* Fourth, there are indications that a significant number of complaints are
not coming through either the existing formal or informal channels.
RECOMMENDATION X: The Commission, will work together with the African-
American community and members of other minority groups to develop a :1'4--
network of lay advocates to assist people who wish to make an informal
complaint or to file a formal complaint, and throughout the complaint
process.
21 (Appendix E)
Police-Community Relations Task Force
Committee on the Community-Police Board
Notes of the 8/19/92 meeting
PRESENT: Birthe Darden, John Johnson, Myra Malcolm (for Gregg Thomas) ,
John Marcham, Sara Shenk, Irene Stein, Lillie Tucker, and Marilyn
Ray (notetaker) .
1- John Marcham's report on Monday's Steering Committee meeting:
A- he did not present his draft report because he had received several
suggestions for substantial changes and objections to presenting it
before the Committee reviewed it;
B- a proposal was made that a contract be entered for Neighborhood Legal/
Services (NLS) to provide independent secretarial assistance and
investigatory services for the Board; and
C- because he would be out of town for the next three weeks, he resigned/
as chair of the Committee and suggested I take over the responsibilities.
2- Myra reported that NLS submitted a proposal to the City for funding
for NLS to provide advocacy services in 'issues dealing with access to
justice and that such a role was more appropriate for them.
3- The Committee accepted John's resignation and recommendation that I
serve as Chair of the Committee. I asked for assistance with improving
African-American participation on the Committee.
4- For remainder of the meeting, we reviewed the working draft of our
report that I had prepared. We agreed on substantial changes and I
have attached the new draft (with the changes underlined). We will go
over the changes and discuss them at next week's meeting.
5- Lillie offered to find meeting space at Southside Community Center for
our next meeting: 7:00 pm, Wednesday, August 26, 1992
S
WORKING DRAFT 8/26/92
REPORT OF THE POLICE—COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
COMMITTEE ON COMMUNITY—POLICE BOARD
BACKGROUND
At a rally and two subsequent community meetings held in May and early
June, 1992, African—Americans and other minority residents of Ithaca expressed
anger over relations between the police and community members; distrust of
the Community Police Board's complaint procedures and of the investigatory
process used for complaints; and dissatisfaction with the jury selection
process. As a result of these meetings, the Mayor created the TASK FORCE
and designated four committees, one of which is the Committee on the Community
Police—Board. The Committee was charged with investigating the causes for
and substance of the expressed distrust and dissatisfaction with the
Community—Police Board, and to make recommendations to the Mayor for changes
in the Board that would address the problems.
This Committee began meeting on June 15, 1992 and has met approximately
ten times since then. The Committee reviewed: articles on how Community—
Police Boards in other communities are organized, membership, investigative
procedures, and the success or lack of success of these Boards; the Police
Benevolent Association Union contract with the City; the history of the
present Board; current civilian complaint procedures, forms, and reports;
and current policies. At the Committee's invitation, Chief Harlan McEwen
attended one meeting, answered our questions, and talked at length about
his role regarding grievances against members of the Police Force, and the
police relations with the Board. Although Sara Shenk, chair of the Board,
was an active member of the Committee, the Committee also invited the other
four members of the Board to a meeting and Kirby Edmonds was able to accept.
It is clear from this Spring's public meetings and from previous such
meetings that the minority community lacks confidence in the independence
of the Board. At this stage in the Committee's work, we believe that, in
order to improve both the fact and the perception of the Board's independence
and fairness, it is imperative that substantial changes be made as soon as
possible in manner in which the Board handles grievances, relates to the
community, and in its accountability to the community. As a result of our
work, the Committee voted to respectfully make the following recommendations.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1- Board Name: The name of the Board has been construed by many members
of the community as indicating a lack of independence from the police /-
structures.
RECOMMENDATION I: It is recommended that the name of the Community-
Police Board be changed to ivilian Review Boar .
2- Board Structure: The Board is composed of five members appointed by
the Mayor and subject to the approval of the Common Council. The Committee
found that attendance at Board meetings and involvement in the work of the
Board has been sporadic and that the majority of the work has fallen to two
or three members. Questions were also raised about how well the composition
of the Board reflects the community.
RECOMMENDATION II: It is recommended that the Board be increased from —)
five to seven members.
RECOMMENDATION III: It is recommended that the Mayor's screening
procedures for Board appointees include a description of the work of
the Board and time commitment required of members, and that before being
appointed, a prospective appointee make a commitment to spend the amount V
of time necessary for active participation on the Board.
RECOMMENDATION IV: When a member of the Board has been absent without
good cause from three Board meetings in any calendar year, the Mayor
2
shall be informed and that person's appointment withdrawn.
Since the African—American community, and specifically, young men in that
community, have not expressed trust in the Board, the Committee felt the
following recommendation would be appropriate.
RECOMMENDATION V: It is recommended that at least two seats on the
Board must be reserved for African—Americans and that one of these seats C
be reserved for an African—American 25 years of age or younger.
Whenever a vacancy occurs in one of these seats, that the Mayor will
solicit the names of three candidates from the African—American community
and/or youth organizations, and that the Mayor will appoint from the
lists. This shall in no way limit the number of minority members of
the Board.
At the current time, the Board receives secretarial support from the Police
Chief' secretary. This structure means that the Board cannot communicate in
writing about any part of its work, however tentative or exploratory,
independent of the organization it is charged to investigate. This structure
has contributed to the public perception that the Board lacks independence.
RECOMMENDATION VI: It is recommended that support services for the Board )p
be located outside the Police Department in some office that will
provide the Board with complete confidentiality for their
communications.
3— Board Procedures: The Committee found several aspects of the Board's
current procedures serve neither to facilitate the filing of complaints nor
to engender confidence in the investigatory process.
First, the grievance form itself is complicated, uses formal legal language,
and can be difficult for some people to complete.
RECOMMENDATION VII: It is recommended that the grievance complaint
3
form be simplified and rewritten in plain language.
NOTE: Neighborhood Legal Services and John Marcham have volunteered to
work with the Board to accomplish this recommendation.
Second, it appears that the Community is not generally aware of the existence
of the Board, the procedures for filing complaints, how to get assistance
with filing a complaint, nor what to expect after filing a complaint.
RECOMMENDATION VIII: It is recommended that the Board develop an
informational pamphlet and use the press and other public forums to
increase its visibility within the community, to describe its work
and procedures, and to increase its accountability to the community.
NOTE: Neighborhood Legal Services has volunteered to assist the Board
with the development of a readable pamphlet describing the Board, its
functions and procedures.
Third, the first interview with a complainant is presently conducted by a
Board member and either the Police Chief or his assistant. This procedure
has improved police cooperation with the Board and the ability of the Board
to recommend alternative approaches to improve police—community relations.
This work, while important, is neither visible to nor generally understood
by the community. Furthermore, this procedure has also served to decreased
the amount of confidence the community has that the investigation is fair
and impartial.
RECOMMENDATION IX: It is recommended that, at the very least, the
first interview with a complainant be conducted by a Board member or
other designated investigator unaccompanied by a member of the Police
establishment.
Fourth, there are indications that a significant number of grievances are
not coming through the formal channels.
4
RECOMMENDATION X: It is recommended that the Board, the African—
American community, and members of other minority groups work together
to develop a network of lay advocates to assist people who wish to
file a grievance and throughout the grievance process.
RECOMMENDATION XI: It is recommended that the Board, Neighborhood Legal
Ser n-u.- • Tompkins County Defense Bar, and/or other
community groups provide the trai ' r. for the lay advocates.
4— Board—Community Accountability: In order to increase community trust
in the Board and in the police, it is essential that mechanisms be found to
make the Board more accountable to the public. Current procedures provide
minimal feedback either to persons who have filed a grievance or to the
community at large regarding the work of the Board, on the results of
investigations, or actions taken following an investigation. Additionally,
the Board has not been successful in publicly explaining the importance of
their role in recommending changes in police approach when an investigation
does not find grounds for disciplinary action but did find an incident to
have been handled in an inflammatory or less than tactful manner.
RECOMMENDATION XII: It is recommended that the Board expand the
explanation to the complainant regarding the Board's findings and all
the actin
RECOMMENDATION XIII: It is recommended that the Board's mediator role
be clarified and explained to grievants and to the general public so
that it is generally understood that when an investigation does not
lead to disciplinary action other remedial action may occur.
E CQMhFNDA_-TION XIV: It is recommended that the Board be required to
give semi—annual substantive reports to the Mayor, the Common Council, / ,r n
and to the community regarding all their activities and the changes
5
they have sought and achieved.
5— Restructuring Police Beats: Although the charge to the Committee focused
on the Board, during our work, it has repeatedly been discussed that one of
the most effective ways to quickly improve police—community relations would
be to assign officers to neighborhood beats. Some officers are more skilled
than others is defusing Potentially antagonistic situations in the African—
American community.
RECOMMENDATION XV: It is recommended that the Board and Police explore
ways to create neighborhood beats that would be consistent with the
Union contract.
6— Continuance of Committee: Finally, the Committee believes it is imperative
that both the perception and reality of the independence of the Board's
investigations of complaints be improved. Research has shown that independent,
professional investigations of complaints is essential for Public confidence
in the process. However, given the short time the Committee has been in
operation, it has not been possible for the Committee to determine all the
ramifications of or procedures for either hiring an independent investigator
to assist the Board with investigating complaints or of other alternatives
for providing this assistance to the Board. Since, Board members, though
dedicated and hardworking, are not trained investigators and it is impossible
for an agency to investigate itself impartially, we feel it imperative that
this option be fully reviewed.
RECOMMENDATION XVI: It is recommended that the life of the Committee be
extended to complete this task and that the Committee involve members
of the African—American and other minority groups in the process to
the fullest extent possible.
6
' TO: Police-community Relations Task Force Steering Committee
FROM: Police-CUmmuzlity Relations Training Sub-Committee
RE: Recommendations
DATE : August 20, 1992
Our committee ' s purpose has been to explore the possibility of using
training and education to improve police-community relations, whether
in-house traini.ngs for officers, in sessions for the community, and/or
in sessions for the police and community together . Although our com-
mittee has met rrequently, regularly and for long hours , we do not feel
that we have had enough time to complete our task. From our earliest
meetings with one another it was clear to us that , given our diverse
perspectives and experience, it was essential to develop respectful
communication , build trust in one another and to gather more information
before we could make intelligent recommendations that would create any
lasting positive changes . We have, however, made quite a lot of progress
and have come up with several suggestions which we think will result in
a real shift in how IPD serves community and in how Ithaca residents will
perceive and relate to the police force .
1 . We strongly recommend that the life of our sub-committee be extended
so that we can follow through on the recommendations below. we would be
willing to become an ad hoc sub-committee of some appropriate standing
entity with a related purpose, but we believe that we will be most ef-
fective if we can function independently with continued secretarial and
clerical support, and a meeting space . It is important to us that we be
allowed to conLinue as a committee so that we can produce some genuine,
practical results and that our time and effort thus far is not wasted .
We think that 3rtdependent status will help reinforce our credibility
and reduce the likelihood that our process will be one-sided or perceived
as adversarial by any parties .
If we are granted an extension to continue, we would oversee the
following steps in what we envision as a process with three or four phases .
T . 1 ) Distribute the Questionnaire (attached ) to IPD officers through
Drew Martin; we designed this instrument to gather information from of-
ficers about their concerns, needs and perceptions about training for
. working with various communities in Ithaca . we believe that this infor-
mation gatheri.nca is an essential prerequisite for effective training and
programming that will assist officers and meet their training needs .
2) We will develop a process for gathering information from Ithaca
residents about wtldt information, education and training would be valu-
able to community members in dealing with police. The process might be a
questionnaire , a call-in talk show or a gathering . We would like to ask
residents if they think designating trusted community members as liaisons
between resident.; and the Community Police Board and IPD would be good.
We foresee asking residents what would make the liaisons ' role credible,
. and if it would be helpful to train liaisons to act .as advocates and as
.guides through the process of making a complaint or filing a grievance
with police commissioners, etc. With community input and approval , we can
foresee providing training for individuals to become liaisons . We ' d ask
residents who they ' d like to see serving in the liaison role.
3 ) We recommend organizing an informational session for community
members, youth in particular, called "Know Your Rights" . This event would
•
be led by a police officer, a police commissioner and a community
leader . Hopefully, this workshop could be offered every year . The con-
tent should include solid information on how to respond when stopped
and questioned by police, what particular ordinances citizens should
know about, and what our rights are when dealing with law enforcement
and/or when we think we are victims of crime. Are there curfews for
youth? Must you answer an officer ' s questions? When is a fight an as-
sault? We see this type of information as very empowering for the com-
munity, and something which could be offered fairly soon. By having
officers deliver this information, the workshop will provide additional
opportunities for police to interact positively with the community, par-
ticularly young people, by bringing a supportive message to them regard-
ing their rights . There may be other similar informational training eventE
that can involve police and community which might be identified by the
questionnaires , etc .
4) We recommend that the city seriously consider expanding and
deepening the Neighborhood Policing program, by appointing an appropriate
group to explore and determine how to institute it in Ithaca. This group
would have the task of determining the feasibility and cost of implement-
ation, as well as to examine how to avoid shortages of existingp2-i ‘v-tel- .
We would foresee the Chief and members of the police force working close-
ly with this group, and that the Mayor and Common Council should consider
whatfunds would need to be allocated for implementation and intensive
training for officers involved in Neighborhood Policing .
The reason our sub-committee sees Neighborhood Policing as appeal-
ing is because it shifts the emphasis from arresting suspects and break-
ing up fights to developing crime prevention strategies and cooperative
problem solving within communities . As we understand Neighborhood Polic-
ing, it describes an entire approach to peacekeeping that requires a deep-
er level of relationship between officers and the community they serve
than can be developed when officers are shifted from one area to another .
II . 1 ) Our committee will review the Questionnaires returned from IPD.
2 ) We will consider how to meet the training/skill building needs
and suggestions expressed by officers in the surveys . It should be noted
that the Community Dispute Resolution Center is a local resource which
can provide valuable trainings in conflict resolution and communication
skills . Common Council may want to fund putting CDRC on retainer to pro-
vide those skill building workshops . In addition, trainings on Dealing
with Differences (which focus on multicultural awareness and increasing
effectiveness in work with diverse populations ) are not currently offered
to all IPD officers . It seems important that funding for such possible
trainings be allocated by the city as well as in the Chief ' s budget. We
anticipate that some combination of the above types of trainings needs
to instituted as a routine part of officers ' training, and NOT as one-
shot, crisis interventions or hand-aid solutions that have not worked in
the past . We will pay close attention to the input we get from officers
about what has worked well , and recommend only programs which will create
long-term change .
3 ) We will implement the process for gathering information from the
diverse communities of Ithaca (which we ' ll develop in phase I ) .
4 ) We could foresee inviting officers from other cities where
Neighborhood Policing is already being practiced to come to Ithaca to
present informational sessions to IPD officers and to the community to
describe what it is and how well it ' s working . It seems very important
' that all of us be able to get our questions answered and to feel com-
fortable with this strategy in order for such a program to have the sup-
port of both the community and IPD, and thereby, .a likelihood of succeed-
ing here. If the city decides to designate certain neighborhoods as ap-
propriate for Neighborhood Policing, then the officers assigned to those
areas should be provided with very high quality preparation for their
duties to insure their success. The Chief , officers involved , and this
committee would give input into the content of the training.
III . 1 ) We will review the community questionnaired and/or other forms
of input from residents, and make. recommendations as to what further
workshops or informational sessions would be valuable to the community.
2 ) We would be willing (using the input from the community) to seek
out individuals to see if they would be willing to 'serve as liaisons , and
we would help to develop a training process for them to orient them to
the Community Police Board and how to effectively interact with IPD, etc .
These liaisons might also be asked to help make presentations at the
community workshops mentioned .above. It might be agood idea to identify
potential liaisons sooner rather than later, which would expedite the
implementation of their function and related programming.
3) Any officers who in the future are assigned to Neighborhood Pol-
icing could, as part of their duties , help set goals and have input into
future training designs intended for the rest of the TPA force, to enhance
those officers ' abilities to interact more productj.vely with the diverse
communities in Ithaca, and to be more supportive of Neighborhood Policing
efforts .
We would like to point out that all of these suggestions regarding
an expansion of Neighborhood Policing are being proposed only in the
event that the community supports this as a good strategy for neighbor-
hoods. As you can see, most of our recommendations depend on the gather-
ing of more information, but that seems preferable to forcing trainings
and strategies on people without their consent . We see that the nature of
effective human relations training and education takes time and full par-
ticipation of all parties involved . We are committed to taking our task
seriously and to not offer quick-fix solutions .
We wish that we could attach a specific dollar amount to the cost
of these programs, however that was not the task set before us . What we
have done is to share the best of our thinking thus far and bring it to
your attention that any quality programming will require additional funds
FROM: Police-Community Relations Training Committee
TO: Ithaca Police Department Officers
Our committee is very interested in having input from officers about
your concerns, needs and perceptions about training for working with
various communities in Ithaca. Please, for our information, read all
of these questions and respond as candidly as you wish. These surveys
will not identify individual officers, and will be used only to help
us think more intelligently about how to improve police-community rela-
tions . Your input will be appreciated.
Our committee ' s purpose is to explore the possibility of using training
to improve police and community relations , whether in-house for officers ,
in sessions for the community, and/or in sessions for the police and com-
munity together. We recognize that gathering information is an essential
part of our task, and we value hearing from you.
1 . a. How useful to you in your work with the community have trainings
in the following areas been?
racism sexism homophobia
cultural diversity
b. Which training(s ) have been useful?
c. Which ones have not?
d. Which were effective in the short term?
e. Which in the long term?
f . Is there any/adequate follow-up?
2. a . In your present training on the above issues, are you given
evaluation forms to evaluate the training?
b. Are you asked to comment on the effectiveness of the training
for you?
3 . a. Are there obstacles in the system that make it hard to use what
you learn in trainings , for example--policies or informal practices?
b. Could you give an example of where there is such a conflict?
4. a. Do you perceive any major problems between the police as a group
and any of the following diverse groups within the Ithaca community?
For example : people of color : NO YES . Could you summarize the-.
problem?
Women: NO YES Could you summarize the problem?
Gay, lesbian and bisexual people : NO YES . Could you summarize
the problem?
Young people: NO YES . Could_ you summarize the problem?
Elders : NO YES . Could you summarize the problem?
Any other group: •Could you summarize the problem?
b. Has anything in your training helped you interact with these
various communities?
If so, how?
c. What information or skills might help you better interact with
these or other groups?
5. How do ,you feel about the current process for selecting training
topics, including the LETN programs?
6. Would you appreciate an opportunity to talk .ab'out what you learned
from the trainings, afterwards , with_ the instructor(s ) and/or fellow
officers, 'with this feedback being part' of the training itself?
7. Are there situations which you deal with where your job would be
made easier by additional training in:
conflict resolution mediation
listening skills other skills .
8. Do you have any special skills or information to share with fellow
officers or the community that you feel might help improve police/commun-
ity relations?
9. What do you think would improve police/community relations?
10. What would increase your confidence in this process?
11 . Are there other questions we should be asking officers in order to
guide our thinking about improving police/community relations?
s .
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
Unapproved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on August 24, 1992 (4:20
-5:30 pm)
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols,Chief Harlin McEwen,Clay
Hamilton,Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,John Johnson,Amy Lewis, Drew Martin,Marilyn Ray
Absent: Rick Williams, Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez
1. Marilyn Ray was introduced to the Steering Committee as a representative from the
Community/Police Board subcommittee.
2. Minutes from the 8/15/92 Steering Committee meeting were presented.
Corrections,questions,and clarifications were addressed.
Vote carried,minutes approved.
3. Irene Stein asked the Steering Committee for reactions on the proposal from the Jury
Selection subcommittee.
a. Chief McEwen said that he approves of the proposal. He then asked what was
going to be done about other possible deficiencies of the system not addressed
in the proposal. Irene said that that those problems are addressed through
changes in the procedure suggested in the proposal. Marilyn Ray also noted
that the stratified random sampling system has been successfully used in
Monroe County.
b. Motion to adopt the report by the Steering Committee of the Task Force.
Vote carried,none apposed,one abstention,motion passed.
c. Irene expressed her interest in following through with the report,taking it
through the procedure to be adopted.
4. Marilyn Ray explained some of what the Community/Police Board subcommittee has
been doing.
a. They are revising a draft of a proposal which will be available to Steering
Committee members after it has been approved by the subcommittee.
b. One of the biggest problems that the subcommittee faces is its intent to preserve
the mediating role of the Community/Police Board,and that members of the
Board are not trained investigators,therefore needing outside assistance,
possibly through a professional investigator. It is difficult to convince
community members of the Board's impartiality when the people being
investigated are involved in the investigations.
c. The subcommittee is also asking to have its existence extended to conclusively
make worthwhile recommendations.
d. Due to the negative connotations associated with the"Community/Police Board"
name,the subcommittee thinks that it would be beneficial to change the name of
the Board.
e. The subcommittee has discussed increasing the number of members on the
Board from five(5) to seven(7) members because of the previous history of
lack of representation as well as work overload. Along with this topic,the
subcommittee has discussed reserving two(2) seats on the Board for members
of the African-American community. One of these would be for a member of
age twenty-five(25)or younger. The mayor would solicit names of potential
candidates from the community(youth organizations,etc.) to fill these seats.
f. Due to poor attendance,the subcommittee has discussed penalties for
r
•
i
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
Unapproved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on August 24, 1992 (4:20
-5:30 pm)
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols, Chief Harlin McEwen,Clay
Hamilton,Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,John Johnson,Amy Lewis, Drew Martin,Marilyn Ray
Absent: Rick Williams, Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez
1. Marilyn Ray was introduced to the Steering Committee as a representative from the
Community/Police Board subcommittee.
2. Minutes from the 8/15/92 Steering Committee meeting were presented.
Corrections,questions,and clarifications were addressed.
Vote carried,minutes approved.
3. Irene Stein asked the Steering Committee for reactions on the proposal from the Jury
Selection subcommittee.
a. Chief McEwen said that he approves of the proposal. He then asked what was
going to be done about other possible deficiencies of the system not addressed
in the proposal. Irene said that that those problems are addressed through
changes in the procedure suggested in the proposal. Marilyn Ray also noted
that the stratified random sampling system has been successfully used in
Monroe County.
b. Motion to adopt the report by the Steering Committee of the Task Force.
Vote carried,none apposed,one abstention,motion passed.
c. Irene expressed her interest in following through with the report,taking it
through the procedure to be adopted.
4. Marilyn Ray explained some of what the Community/Police Board subcommittee has
been doing.
a. They are revising a draft of a proposal which will be available to Steering
Committee members after it has been approved by the subcommittee.
b. One of the biggest problems that the subcommittee faces is its intent to preserve
the mediating role of the Community/Police Board,and that members of the
Board are not trained investigators,therefore needing outside assistance,
possibly through a professional investigator. It is difficult to convince
community members of the Board's impartiality when the people being
investigated are involved in the investigations.
c. The subcommittee is also asking to have its existence extended to conclusively
make worthwhile recommendations.
d. Due to the negative connotations associated with the"Community/Police Board"
name,the subcommittee thinks that it would be beneficial to change the name of
the Board.
e. The subcommittee has discussed increasing the number of members on the
Board from five(5) to seven(7) members because of the previous history of
lack of representation as well as work overload. Along with this topic,the
subcommittee has discussed reserving two(2) seats on the Board for members
of the African-American community. One of these would be for a member of
age twenty-five(25)or younger. The mayor would solicit names of potential
candidates from the community(youth organizations,etc.) to fill these seats.
f. Due to poor attendance,the subcommittee has discussed penalties for
unexcused absences over a certain limit to be determined.
g. The subcommittee does feel that the Board needs some type of hired clerical
worker,but that Neighborhood Legal Services may have conflicts of interest,
and therefore should not be considered as a source for this purpose.
h. The subcommittee feels that the grievance complaint itself should be simplified
into "plain English."
i. Trained advocates from the community should be available to complainants to
assist them.
j. The subcommittee discussed having a complainant's first meeting with the
Board without the presence of police officers,therefore decreasing inhibitions
from the complainant in telling the Board about the problem as they perceive it.
k. They may recommend that the Board improve its reports to complainants on
what actions were taken.
1. The subcommittee has also discussed increasing the Board's visibility in the
community.
m. Chief McEwen and Drew Martin noted that neither the Police Chief nor the PBA
have been consulted on the points that are being discussed within the
subcommittee. Drew also noted that the Training subcommittee and the
Community Involvement subcommittee have discussed their intentions with the
PBA.
n. It was clarified that one of the purposes of the Steering Committee is to act as a
forum for discussion of the issues presented by the subcommittees.
o. Chief McEwen expressed his concerns about the brief synopsis of the
subcommittee's discussions. He explained his disapproval of expanding the
Board. Increased attendance and commitment from the existing members
would solve the problems instead of expanding the Board to seven (7)
members. He is adamantly opposed to having reserved seats within the Board
for any set groups or individuals. Also, he is opposed to having a private
investigator added to the Board,and believes that it is against the labor contracts
to hire one. Overall, Chief McEwen expressed that some of the problems
addressed by the subcommittee are ones which do not need to be addressed at
this time.
p. Drew Martin noted that the PBA is not obligated to participate in the
investigations,and has done so in the past out of courtesy. The
Community/Police Board has no authority over the officers in the Police
Department. Sara Shenk noted that she has argued against a private investigator
within the subcommittee. Drew expressed that the PBA would be against a
private investigator because it is unnecessary,and it has no authority over the
officers. He also said that the problem is with the community's perception of
the Board,not the Board itself. Sara noted that the Board has been able, in the
past, to conduct its investigations successfully.
q. Drew expressed his objections to having one third (1/3) designated seats on the
Board. Marilyn said that this came as a reaction to specifically the African-
American community's dissatisfaction with the Board's work. Clay Hamilton
noted that the current mayor has been sensitive to the needs of the minorities of
the community in this respect,but that there may need to be a policy to continue
this practice.
r. Drew expressed that an unfounded complaint should not be followed through
with. Marilyn clarified that the Community/Police Board also acts as a mediator
between the officers and the complainants,but that further investigations would
not continue if a complaint was unfounded. Sara said that there have been
unfounded complaints, but that there hasn't been an official follow-up on those.
s. Mayor Nichols expressed his concern about the Community/Police Board's
ability to function as an independent organization. He does not think that hiring
an independent investigator is an answer to that problem. Chief McEwen said
that he doesn't disapprove of an ombudsperson or advocate.
t. Drew said that he believes that the African-American criminal community has
made most of the complaints about police-community relations. Several
members of the Steering Committee disagreed on that point,and believe it is a
misconception.
5. Because of time restraints,the reports from the Community Involvement and Training
subcommittees will be discussed at the next Steering Committee meeting.
Meeting adjourned at 5:30 pm.
4 ,h '
Report and Recommendations
of the Committee on Jury Selection
The Committee on Jury Selection has reviewed the law and
current practice regarding the preparation of the lists of
prospective jurors and the manner in which prospective jurors are
selected from those lists. The Committee sees several problems
that currently exist. As a result of these problems the pool at
a trial of prospective jurors does not adequately reflect a cross-
section of the community.
The creation of a pool of prospective jurors is a multi-step
process. Originally a master list is created. This list currently
includes registered voters, motor vehicle lists, income tax payers
and people who volunteer to be on jury lists. The Committee
believes that this original master list should be as inclusive as
possible and believes that at present a significant number of
people, and in particular, certain classes of the population
specifically lower income and/or minorities, are systematically
under-represented on this master list.
The Committee recommends that the original master list of
prospective jurors referred to in Section 506 of the Judiciary Law
be made up of not only the lists which are currently used but also
additional lists including but not limited to names of parents and
guardians of school children obtained from the school district;
names of students over the age of eighteen (18) obtained from the
school district and local colleges and universities; lists of
people paying utility bills; and such other lists as the
Commissioner of Jurors may be able to obtain. In particular, the
Commissioner of Jurors should also attempt to obtain, a list of
individuals obtaining unemployment and social services benefits.
The next step in creating the pool of prospective jurors is
to mail out jury questionnaires. The Committee recommends that the
Jury Commissioner shall make sure that all persons on the master
list of prospective jurors is mailed a jury questionnaire.
Currently, anyone who does not return the questionnaire is
eliminated from the pool of prospective jurors. A problem is that
the response rate to the questionnaires is significantly below
fifty percent ( 50%) .
Section 509 of the Judiciary Law provides that the person to
whom the questionnaire is mailed shall complete and sign it and
return it to the Commissioner. The Committee recommends that the
questionnaire be sent with a covering letter emphasizing the legal
obligation of the person who receives the questionnaire to complete
it and return it.
The Commissioner of Jurors then prepares a jury notification
list. Currently, anyone who does not return the questionnaire is
left off the jury notification list. The Committee recommends that
1
\;-A
the practice be reversed and that anyone who does not return the
qualification questionnaire instead of being left off the jury
notification list is, instead, put on the jury notification list.
It is, of course, possible or probable that some of these
individuals would not be qualified jurors. The Committee does not
see this as an insurmountable problem. When a jury is to be
selected persons are currently notified that they are to appear in
court. A procedure could be developed where people who have
returned the qualification questionnaire are directed to appear in
court shortly before the court session and individuals who have not
previously filled out the qualification questionnaire and whose
names are selected from the expanded jury notification list could
be summoned to appear an earlier time that day. The Commissioner
would then examine those persons to see if they qualify. If they
do not, they would be sent home. If they qualified, they would
remain in court to possibly be selected on a jury.
The Committee believes that certain classes of the population,
specifically lower income and/or minorities have systematically
been excluded from the jury system. In particular, black residents
are under-represented in the pool of jurors. The Committee
recommends that in order to insure that black residents be included
in the pool in proportion to their percentage of the County
population, the lists of jurors called should be divided into two
strata, one stratum to consist of all those living at the addresses
within the election districts of the Second Ward of the City of
Ithaca as of January 1, 1993; the other stratum being all those at
all remaining addresses. Names should be drawn from these two
strata in proportion to their fraction of the total county
population. Since a significant portion of the County' s black
population resides in the aforementioned Second Ward election
district, selection from the stratum in proportion to its
percentage of the total County population is the best way to insure
that the drawn pool will consistently contain names of black
residents in proportion to their percentage of the population.
This procedure will have to be reviewed and modified after receipt
of each census report. The Committee further recommends that an
analogous procedure should be established and used for the
selection of juries in the City of Ithaca.
Pursuant to Section 517 of the Judiciary Law, the Commissioner
of Jurors has the discretion, on the application of a prospective
juror who has been summoned to attend, to excuse that juror from
jury service or to postpone the time of jury service. The
Commissioner of Jurors is currently given that authority provided
in Section 517 . However, it is unclear whether this authority is
administered under specific guidelines or standards. The Committee
recommends that specific written standards and guidelines be
developed under which the Commissioner of Jurors would exercise her
authority pursuant to Section 517 to grant excuses or postponements
to jurors.
2
J/'
The Committee further recommends that there be established a
program of public education regarding the importance of service on
juries and how the jury system works.
The Committee believes that all the above recommendations
could be put in place in a relatively short period of time without
additional authority from the federal or state governments. The
Committee believes that additional steps should be taken which we
realize will require state and federal action. In particular, the
Committee recommends:
1. That the procedures set forth above be set into state law
as legal requirements; and,
2. That appropriate legislation be passed to provide that
lists of individuals receiving unemployment benefits, social
services and medicaid benefits be made available to the
Commissioner of Jurors for use by the Commissioner of Jurors in
selecting the lists of prospective jurors.
August 13, 1992
3
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
Unapproved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on August 31, 1992 (4:20
-5:35 pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Chief Harlin McEwen,Mayor Ben Nichols,Clay
Hamilton,Amy Lewis,Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,Marilyn Ray
Absent: prior notice-John Johnson,Drew Martin
without notice-Rick Williams,Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez
1. Discussion was held on the topic of a new secretary for the Task Force.
a. Mayor Nichols said that he would ask his secretary,Theresa Alt,if she would
be willing to take over.
2. Minutes from the 8/24/92 Steering Committee meeting were presented.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
3. Amy Lewis summarized what the Community Involvement subcommittee has been
doing.
a. Amy asked the Steering Committee to extend the deadline for the
subcommittee's report until 9/14/92 due to lack of attendance at previous
subcommittee meetings.
b. The subcommittee has spoken with agencies(ex.: Learning Web) for funding
for a mentoring program placed out of Southside, dealing primarily,but not
exclusively with law enforcement representatives(IPD). The program will start
with approximately ten(10) members,and build according to success. A PEER
(Police Efforts to Enhance Relations) program has also been discussed. The
basis of this program is structured similarly to a junior police force. The Police
Athletic League(PAL) has been discussed as an option for the IPD to look into.
The subcommittee is also urging the continuation of police-youth interaction,
specifically the Cops and Kids program,or others like it.
c. Regarding the mentoring program,there will be a heavy screening and training
process to choose mentors for the kids. Funding will be needed to hire a staff
member to coordinate the program,and it would not be structured like the
Youth Bureau's One-to-One program. The subcommittee would rather model
their program after the Learning Web's program. The mentors would be asked
to commit to a once-a-week meeting with their matched child,possibly adding
up to 12 - 15 hours per month. Group activities with all of the mentors and
children will also go along with the commitment. The majority of children
which the program would attract probably will be African-American or Latino,
and since the mentors may not have the same cultural background,the
subcommittee has spoken to someone familiar with cross-cultural mentoring.
d. Mayor Nichols expressed his concern about adding another mentoring program
if there is the possibility of adding to an existing one. If not all of the mentors
are police officers, there will be a problem getting funding related to Police-
Community Relations. Amy said that the point of this was to de-emphasize the
fact that these mentors are police officers. The program will be designed to
stress that being a police officer is a job,not a personality trait. It also will not
be specifically geared toward police officers,but priority will be given to them.
e. Irene expressed her concern that the mentoring program is not specifically
related to Police-Community Relations,and that the focus is too abstract to
accomplish its goals. Amy explained that the main interests in the program
were to create a positive interaction between children(some of whom have little
reinforcement from adults,and are at risk in becoming negatively focused)and
adults. By including the IPD in this,the program will be designed to create
positive images of law enforcement agents.
f. Sara suggested putting more money into the One-to-One program or the
Learning Web program specifically for use in the African-American community,
instead of creating a new program and"reinventing the wheel."
g. Marilyn Ray and Chief McEwen also said that there may be a problem with
officer interest because the subcommittee wishes to start so many programs.
Chief McEwen explained some of the points of the DARE program,and said
that from that, there is positive enforcement from police officers. He feels that
there should be more of an emphasis on the fact that the mentors will be police
officers.
h. Alvin asked Amy why the subcommittee has had such poor attendance. Amy
said that frustration with the process, lack of/momentum of interest,among
other things have contributed.
i. Chief McEwen noted that there has been a somewhat negative perception about
the cancellation of the Field Day. Irene suggested speaking to the officers about
the ideas to recreate interest in community involvement. Amy said that she
doesn't feel comfortable presenting ideas that haven't been approved by her
subcommittee,but that after some things are finalized,presenting the ideas will
be beneficial.
j. because of the time restraints,the discussion will be continued at a later time.
4. Clay Hamilton presented the Training subcommittee's proposal and asked for any
comments or questions.
a. The subcommittee is asking for more time to follow through with the survey it
is handing out to the police officers,and possibly start to implement some of
their recommendations. Mayor Nichols noted that the original deadline of
9/15/92 was for reports and recommendations,not necessarily implementing the
recommendations.
b. The subcommittee has decided that it would not be beneficial to add itself to an
existing group(such as the Community/Police Board) to prolong its existence.
However,if that is the only way it will continue to exist,the subcommittee will
make arrangements accordingly.
c. The subcommittee has recommendations,but that they feel that they need more
time to get input from all affected parties.
d. Chief McEwen expressed concern that the subcommittee is trying to do more
than they can handle. He also feels that the questionnaire will be ineffective.
Clay said that the subcommittee has gotten positive feedback from the PBA
about the questionnaire. The Chief restated that he feels that the subcommittee
needs to focus on one topic (namely sensitivity training).
e. One of the recommendations which the subcommittee wishes to continue with is
the community policing suggestion. Mayor Nichols stated that he doesn't think
that extended life of the subcommittee will help that,and to focus on the
continuation of the training in the community and police.
f. Chief McEwen noted the "civilian police academy" idea that was presented
earlier(referring to IIa of the Training subcommittee's proposal). Clay said that
idea could be implemented after the input from the community and police has
been accounted for.
g. Clay said that he would ask the subcommittee for a specific time frame for
completing the work they want to get done. He will present this proposal at the
next meeting.
,r
h. Chief McEwen disagrees with II-4. He thinks that there is enough orientation
material provided by the department.
i. Marilyn Ray said that III-2 of the proposal is very similar to something that the
Community/Police Board is working on.
5. Sara stated that the Community/Police Board has requested to meet with the Steering
Committee subcommittee to discuss some of the things they are proposing.
a. Irene said that she thinks it would be beneficial for the Community/Police Board
to meet with the subcommittee first. Sara said that she would try to arrange
that.
Meeting adjourned at 5:35 pm.
**Note: There will be no Steering Committee meeting on 9/7/92.
Meetings will continue on 9/14/92.**
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
Approved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on August 24, 1992 (4:20-
5:30 pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols, Chief Harlin McEwen,Clay
Hamilton,Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,John Johnson, Amy Lewis, Drew Martin, Marilyn Ray
Absent: Rick Williams, Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez
1. Marilyn Ray was introduced to the Steering Committee as a representative from the
Community/Police Board subcommittee.
2. Minutes from the 8/15/92 Steering Committee meeting were presented.
Corrections,questions,and clarifications were addressed.
Vote carried, minutes approved.
3. Irene Stein asked the Steering Committee for reactions on the proposal from the Jury
Selection subcommittee.
a. Chief McEwen said that he approves of the proposal. He then asked what was
going to be done about other possible deficiencies of the system not addressed
in the proposal. Irene said that that those problems are addressed through
changes in the procedure suggested in the proposal. Marilyn Ray also noted
that the stratified random sampling system has been successfully used in
Monroe County.
b. Motion to adopt the report by the Steering Committee of the Task Force.
Vote carried, none apposed,one abstention, motion passed.
c. Irene expressed her interest in following through with the report,taking it
through the procedure to be adopted.
4. Marilyn Ray explained some of what the Community/Police Board subcommittee has
been doing.
a. They are revising a draft of a proposal which will be available to Steering
Committee members after it has been approved by the subcommittee.
b. One of the biggest problems that the subcommittee faces is its intent to preserve
the mediating role of the Community/Police Board,and that members of the
Board are not trained investigators,therefore needing outside assistance,
possibly through a professional investigator. It is difficult to convince
community members of the Board's impartiality when the people being
investigated are involved in the investigations.
c. The subcommittee is also asking to have its existence extended to conclusively
make worthwhile recommendations.
d. Due to the negative connotations associated with the "Community/Police Board"
name,the subcommittee thinks that it would be beneficial to change the name of
the Board.
e. The subcommittee has discussed increasing the number of members on the
Board from five(5) to seven (7) members because of the previous history of
lack of representation as well as work overload. Along with this topic, the
subcommittee has discussed reserving two (2) seats on the Board for members
of the African-American community. One of these would be for a member of
age twenty-five (25) or younger. The mayor would solicit names of potential
candidates from the community(youth organizations,etc.) to fill these seats.
f. Due to poor attendance,the subcommittee has discussed penalties for
•
unexcused absences over a certain limit to be determined.
g. The subcommittee does feel that the Board needs some type of hired clerical
worker,but that Neighborhood Legal Services may have conflicts of interest,
and therefore should not be considered as a source for this purpose.
h. The subcommittee feels that the grievance complaint itself should be simplified
into "plain English."
i. Trained advocates from the community should be available to complainants to
assist them.
j. The subcommittee discussed having a complainant's first meeting with the
Board without the presence of police officers,therefore decreasing inhibitions
from the complainant in telling the Board about the problem as they perceive it.
k. They may recommend that the Board improve its reports to complainants on
what actions were taken.
1. The subcommittee has also discussed increasing the Board's visibility in the
community.
m. Chief McEwen and Drew Martin noted that neither the Police Chief nor the PBA
have been consulted on the points that are being discussed within the
subcommittee. Drew also noted that the Training subcommittee and the
Community Involvement subcommittee have discussed their intentions with the
PBA.
n. It was clarified that one of the purposes of the Steering Committee is to act as a
forum for discussion of the issues presented by the subcommittees.
o. Chief McEwen expressed his concerns about the brief synopsis of the
subcommittee's discussions. He explained his disapproval of expanding the
Board. Increased attendance and commitment from the existing members
would solve the problems instead of expanding the Board to seven (7)
members. He is adamantly opposed to having reserved seats within the Board
for any set groups or individuals. Also,he is opposed to having a private
investigator added to the Board,and believes that it is against the labor contracts
to hire one. Overall, Chief McEwen expressed that some of the problems
addressed by the subcommittee are ones which do not need to be addressed at
this time.
p. Drew Martin noted that the PBA is not obligated to participate in the
investigations,and has done so in the past out of courtesy. The
Community/Police Board has no authority over the officers in the Police
Department. Sara Shenk noted that she has argued against a private investigator
within the subcommittee. Drew expressed that the PBA would be against a
private investigator because it is unnecessary,and it has no authority over the
officers. He also said that the problem is with the community's perception of
the Board,not the Board itself. Sara noted that the Board has been able, in the
past, to conduct its investigations successfully.
q. Drew expressed his objections to having one third (1/3) designated seats on the
Board. Marilyn said that this came as a reaction to specifically the African-
American community's dissatisfaction with the Board's work. Clay Hamilton
noted that the current mayor has been sensitive to the needs of the minorities of
the community in this respect,but that there may need to be a policy to continue
this practice.
r. Drew expressed that an unfounded complaint should not be followed through
with. Marilyn clarified that the Community/Police Board also acts as a mediator
between the officers and the complainants,but that further investigations would
not continue if a complaint was unfounded. Sara said that there have been
unfounded complaints, but that there hasn't been an official follow-up on those.
s. Mayor Nichols expressed his concern about the Community/Police Board's
ability to function as an independent organization. He does not think that hiring
�
an independent investigator is an answer to that problem. Chief McEwen said
that he doesn't disapprove of an ombudsperson or advocate.
t. Drew said that he believes that the African-American criminal community has
made most of the complaints about police-community relations. Several
members of the Steering Committee disagreed on that point,and believe it is a
misconception.
5. Because of time restraints, the reports from the Community Involvement and Training
subcommittees will be discussed at the next Steering Committee meeting.
Meeting adjourned at 5:30 pm.
SFP 0 4 1QQP
Police-Community Relations Task Force
Committee on the Community-Police Board
Notes of the 9/1/92 meeting
PRESENT: Sara Shenk, Irene Stein, Gregg Thomas, Lillie Tucker, and Marilyn
Ray (notetaker) .
1- The Community-Police Board requested a formal meeting with the Steering
Committee in order to object to some of the recommendations our committee
is working on. The Steering Committee referred the request to us for
response.
2- The Board has the following three primary objections:
a- Apparently, the name 'Civilian Review Board' is aS'loaded for the
police as the current name is for some sections of the community,
and the Board objects to changing the name to the Civilian Review
Board;
b- The Board is split 2 to 2 on the idea of increasing the Board from
5 to 7; and
c- The Board is opposed to designating seats for any group because it
would become difficult to limit the numbers of designated seats.
For example, last year the Asian-American community had some
complaints and might be justified in seeking a designated seat. etc.
3- We reviewed Draft #3 and changed some language in response to the Board's
objections.
4- It was decided to invite the Board to meet with us for an hour on Friday
afternoon, September 11. Since GIAC and Southside are both undergoing
renovations and not available for our meeting, Sara and Irene will
make time and place arrangements and notify everyone.
5- After the meeting with the Board on the 11th, the Committee will meet
for an hour to finalize our recommendations. The goal is us to finish
our work so that I can have the final draft to present to the Steering
Committee at their next meeting, Sept. 14th.
6- Please read Draft #4 and come prepared to discuss it with the Board
and recommend final changes in the following Committee meeting.
NEXT MEETING: FRI. SEPT. 11
TIME (4:00 or 5x40-dam) AND PLACE TO BE ANNOUNCED
1--/dcy/i c:,,-)7 e,?;j/ Ci/y A//
THE MAYOR'S TASK FORCE ON POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS
REPORT OF COMMUNITY-POLICE BOARD COMMITTEE
September 16, 1992
INTRODUCTION
• At a rally and two subsequent community meetings held in May and early June,
• 1992, African-Americans, members of other minority groups, and other residents
of Ithaca expressed various concerns about police - community relations; ques-
tioned the Community-Police Board's complaint procedures and the complaint
• investigatory process; and expressed dissatisfaction with the jury selection
process. As a result of these meetings, the Mayor created the TASK FORCE and
designated four committees, one of which is the Community-Police-Board Commit-
tee. The Committee was charged with investigating the causes for and substance
of the lack of confidence in the Community-Police Board, and with making recom-
mendations to the Mayor for changes in the Board that would address the prob-
lems.
This Committee began meeting on June 15, 1992 and has met thirteen times
since then. The Committee reviewed: articles on how Community-Police Boards in
other communities are organized, and membership, investigative procedures, and
the success or lack thereof for such Boards; the Police Benevolent Association
Union contract with the City; the history of the present Board; current civil-
ian complaint procedures, forms, and reports; and current Board policies. At
the Committee's invitation, Chief Harlan McEwen attended one meeting, answered
questions, and talked at length about his role regarding grievances against
members of the Police Force, and the police relations with the Board. Although
Sara Shenk, chair of the Board, was an active member of the Committee, the
Committee also invited the other three Commissioners to several meetings, and
Kirby Edmonds and Carol Seligmann met with the Committee a number of times.
It is clear from this Spring's public meetings and from previous such meet-
ings that many people do not see the Board as a "useful, accessible or respon-
sive resource". The Committee did not take upon itself the job of evaluating
the quality of the Board's past work. Instead, the Committee has responded to
the concerns expressed by those who attended the public meetings and our charge
by examining the policies, procedures and structure of the Board. In this
manner, the Committee's recommendations are forward looking and do not question
the dedication, time, and hard work provided by members of the Board to the
community.
We conclude that in order to gain the community's confidence, it is necessary
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 2
that substantial changes be made as soon as possible in the manner in which the
Board handles grievances, interacts with the community, and in its accountabil-
ity to the community. As a result of our work, the Committee voted to respect-
fully make the following recommendations.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1- Board Name: The name of the Board has been construed by many members of
the community as indicating a lack of independence from the police structures.
RECOMMENDATION I: The name of the Community-Police Board shall be changed to
Citizen's Commission on Community Relations and members shall be known as
Citizen Commissioners.'
2- Board Structure: The Board is composed of five Commissioners appointed by
the Mayor and subject to the approval of the Common Council. The Committee
found that attendance at Board meetings and involvement in the work of the
Board has been sporadic and that the majority of the work has fallen to two or
three Commissioners. Additionally, since this Committee is making several
recommendations that will increase the work of the Board, in order to accomp-
lish these tasks, additional Citizen Commissioners will be required. Finally,
questions were also raised about how well the composition of the Board reflects
the community.
RECOMMENDATION II: The Commission will be increased from five to seven Com-
missioners.
RECOMMENDATION III: The Mayor's screening procedures for appointees to the
Commission shall include a description of the work of the Board and time
commitment required of Commissioners, and that before being appointed, a
prospective appointee must make a commitment to spend the amount of time
necessary for active participation on the Commission.
RECOMMENDATION IV: When a Citizen Commissioner has been absent without good
cause from three meetings of the Commission in any calendar year, the Mayor
shall be informed and that person's appointment withdrawn.
The Committee is strongly of the opinion that it is important that the Commis-
sion be representative of the community as a whole and most specifically in-
! 'Hereinafter, "Board" will be used to refer to current activities and
procedures, and "Commission" will refer to future activities and procedures.
•
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 3
clude representation by segments of the community that have traditionally not
expressed trust in the Board or the fairness of the police such as the Gay and
Lesbian and the African-American community, and specifically, young African-
American men. Toward that end the Committee makes the following recommendation.
RECOMMENDATION V: The Mayor shall solicit the names of candidates from a
range of community groups including but not limited to the Gay and Lesbian
Task Force, the African-American community, and youth organizations AND
appoint commissioners from these lists in such a manner as to ensure maximum
diversity among sitting members. Further, before approving of such appoint-
` ments, the Common Council will evaluate the effect each appointment will
have on the diversity of representation on the Commission.
At the current time, the Board receives secretarial support from the Police
Chief's secretary. This structure means that, although members may communicate
in writing privately and confidentially, the Board cannot communicate official-
ly in writing about any part of its work, however tentative or exploratory,
independent of the organization it is among other things charged to investi-
gate. This structure may contribute to the public perception that the Board
lacks independence. •
RECOMMENDATION VI: Support services for the Commission must be located out-
side the Police Department in some office that will provide it with complete
confidentiality for their communications.
3- Board Procedures: The Committee found several aspects of the Board's cur-
rent procedures serve neither to facilitate the filing of complaints nor to
engender confidence in the investigatory process.
* First, the grievance form itself is complicated, uses formal legal language,
and can be difficult for some people to complete.
RECOMMENDATION VII: The grievance complaint form must be simplified and
rewritten in plain language.
* Second, it appears that the Community is not generally aware of the existence'
of the Board, the formal or informal procedures for filing complaints, how to
get assistance with filing a complaint, nor what to expect after filing a
complaint. In addition to our recommendation for addressing this situation, we
encourage the Commission to seek speaking opportunities with a full range of
community groups and organizations. Finally, we suggest organizations whose
members feel aggrieved also find a way to discuss police activities and rela-
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 4
tions as a periodic part of their group's program, assigning the function to an
individual or committee.
RECOMMENDATION VIII: The Commission shall develop an informational pamphlet
and use the press, speaking engagements at community groups and organiza-
tions, and public forums to increase its visibility within the community, to
describe its work and procedures, and to increase its accountability to the
community.
* Third, the first interview and all subsequent interviews with a complainant
and witnesses is presently conducted by a Commissioner and either the Police
Chief or his assistant. This procedure is believed to have contributed to the
Board's perceived lack of independence.
RECOMMENDATION IX: At the very least, the Commission will initiate the in-
vestigatory process by meeting alone with the complainant to explain the
investigatory process, to clarify the facts of the complaint, and to offer
the complainant an opportunity to seek the assistance of an advocate. The
Citizen Commissioner and the complainant would then meet together with the
Chief or his deputy to pursue the complaint.
* Fourth, there are indications that a significant number of grievances are not
coming through either the existing formal or informal channels.
RECOM4ENDATION X: The Commission, will work together with the African-Ameri-
can community and members of other minority groups to develop a network of
lay advocates to assist people who wish to make an informal complaint or to
file a grievance, and throughout the grievance process.
RECOMMENDATION XI: The Commission, Neighborhood Legal Services, members of
the Tompkins County Defense Bar, and/or other community groups will be re-
quested to provide the training for the lay advocates.
4- Commission-Community Accountability: In order to increase community trust in
the Commission and in the police, it is essential that mechanisms be found to
make the Commission more accountable to the public. Current procedures provide
only minimal feedback either to persons who have filed a grievance or to the
community at large regarding the work of the Board, the results of investiga-
tions, or actions taken following an investigation. Additionally, there are
indications that the Board plays an important role in recommending changes in
police approach even when an investigation does not find grounds for disciplin-
ary action but found an incident could have been handled better. It is also
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 5
.clear that the public is unaware of this important aspect of the Board's role.
RECOMMENDATION XII: The Commission shall expand the explanation to the com-
plainant regarding its findings and all actions that it recommends as a
result from its findings.
RECOl4ENIDATION XIII: The Commission's mediator role shall be clarified and
explained to complainants and to the general public so that it is generally
understood that when an investigation does not lead to disciplinary action
other remedial action may occur.
RECOMMENDATION XIV: The Commission will be required to give semi-annual
substantive reports to the Mayor, the Common Council, and to the community
regarding all their activities and the changes they have sought and achieved.
5- Independent Investigator: Finally, the Committee believes it is imperative
that both the perception and reality of the independence of the Commission's
complaint investigations be improved. Research has shown that independent,
professional, investigations of complaints is critical for public confidence in
the process. Furthermore. since Commissioners, though dedicated and hardwork-
ing, are not trained investigators and since it is not possible for an agency
to investigate itself impartially, we feel it imperative that this option be
fully reviewed. The Committee envisions that the investigator's primary respon-
sibilities will be to locate and interview witnesses in the community, estab-
lish the physical circumstances surrounding an incident. and complete such
other assignments as the Citizen Commissioners shall choose to assign. within
the constraints of existing laws.
RECOMMENDATION XV: The City Attorney shall explore the feasibility of the
Commission having the assistance of an independent investigator to assist
Citizen Commissioners in the investigation of complaints; and, if feasible,
recommend to the Mayor the steps which are necessary to assure the Commission
has this assistance as soon as possible; or. if not feasible at this time,
recommend whatever steps might be necessary to make it possible to ensure the
Commission has this assistance at the earliest possible time.
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS TASK FORCE
CITY HALL,ITHACA,NY 14850
Unapproved minutes from the Steering Committee meeting held on September 21, 1992 (4:15 -
5:30 pm).
Present: Coordinator Alvin Nelson,Mayor Ben Nichols, Clay Hamilton,Irene Stein, Sara Shenk,
Marilyn Ray,Chief Harlin McEwen,Hope Hart(observing)
Absent: prior notice-Amy Lewis,John Johnson
without notice- Rick Williams,Gerald Dumay,Jose Montanez,Drew Martin
1. Minutes of the meeting of September 14, 1992 were amended slightly and approved as amended.
2. Clay Hamilton finished the report of the Training Committee by asking for questions or comments.
a. Ben Nichols asked whether Hamilton had talked to Drew Martin about the questionnaire in the
last few weeks. Hamilton answered that he had not talked with Martin,but the only point
Drew Martin had raised a question about did not relate to the Training Committee but rather to
an African-American slot on the Police Review Board. Chief McEwen said that Martin had
raised questions to the Chief. He apparently has not been talking with his PBA designee on the
Training Committee,Barry Langerlan. The history is that Langerlan is self-appointed,and the
PBA subsequently agreed to designate him. Since there seems to be conflicting information
Marilyn Ray suggested that Hamilton contact Martin directly. However,Martin is out of town
for a week. The questionnaire can be sent out,and it will be done through Drew Martin
anyway.
b. Alvin Nelson asked about the community questionnaire. Clay Hamilton answered that it is on
the agenda for the first time at tonight's meeting.
c. Ben Nichols returned to the question of the Training Committee staying on. The consensus
was that it would not be independent but in fact the Steering Committee would continue on an
as-needed basis.The time frame was five months. The Training Committee should revise its
report to drop the reference to independent status.
d. Chief McEwen pointed out that he, Alvin Nelson, Sara Shenk,Kirby Edmonds and Kathy
Gillern would be going to Rochester to hear about community policing in Houston. He tried
to get the PBA to go,but they didn't appoint anyone.
4. Future Steering Committee work was planned. The Steering Committee will meet again next week
(September 28) for the report of the Community Relations Subcommittee to be presented by Amy
Lewis. This is the last regular meeting. After that the Steering Committee will meet as needed.
After next week's meeting the Steering Committee will have to put together an overall report that
will say whether we accept all the recommendations of the subcommittees as joint
recommendations. For instance, there is the question of the investigator. If we want to continue to
monitor implementation of the recommendations of the Task Force we should say so in the report.
A subcommittee should draft it,and then the full Steering Committee discuss or accept it.
5. Marilyn Ray presented the Final Report(sixth version) of the Community-Police Board
Committee. Since the last draft there have been significant modifications,taking into account
1
4 -
•
comments of both the PBA and the Steering Committee. [Refer to the September 16 version of the
Report for text of each recommendation.]
a. Recommendation I. Change name to Citizen's Commission on Community Relations. Chief
McEwen suggested Citizens'Commission on Police-Community Relations. Sara Shenk,the
single hold-out on the subcommittee against dropping the word "police" from the name,argued
that the subcommittee had been assuming Southside community opinion from too few
comments. What is going to change attitudes about the Commission is what it does,not its
name.
b. Recommendation II. Increase in membership to seven due to workload.
c. Recommendation III. Mayor's screening process for new members to include a description of
the work and workload.
d. Recommendation IV. Removal of appointees after three absences.
e. Recommendation V. Recruiting a more broadly representative Commission. This section
contains a typo,which Marilyn Ray will correct before submitting final copy. Ben Nichols
asked what is meant by youth organizations. Marilyn Ray clarified that it meant organizations
that work with youth, such as the Youth Bureau or the Learning Web. Chief McEwen was
concerned that a kid might be made a member and called on to investigate;Ray said that they
were not looking for teenagers as members but rather young people 18 to 25 years old.
f. Recommendation VI. In order to achieve to perception of independence, support services for
the Commission must be moved out of the Police Department.
g. Recommendation VII. Complaint form to be rewritten in plain language.
h. Recommendation VIII. Information explaining the Commission must be spread through an
informational pamphlet, the press, meetings.
i. Recommendation IX. The Commission should initiate investigations by meeting alone with the
complainant to clarify the complaint and explain procedures. Later both may meet with the
Chief or his deputies. The Chief remarked that this is a reasonable way of doing business.
j. Recommendation X. "The Commission will work together with the African-American
community and members of other minority groups to develop a network of lay advocates to
assist people who wish to make an informal complaint or to file a grievance, and throughout
the grievance process." Chief McEwen pointed out that the term "grievance"is a technical
union term. Marilyn Ray agreed that the Final Report would use the term "complaint."
k. Recommendation XI. Request to provide training for advocates. Chief McEwen suggested
avoiding the T.C.Defense Bar(Association of Defense Attorneys), since they are for lawsuits.
Marilyn Ray said that the subcommittee had felt that the Neighborhood Legal Services would
be particularly good, since they have a softer approach.
1. Recommendation XII. Provide feedback to persons who have filed complaints. People have
not known that their complaint was taken seriously. Sara Shenk said that the present
Community Police Board had heard this. They have worked on the problem, but their
procedures could still be improved..
m. Recommendation XIII. "The Commission's mediator role shall be clarified and explained..."
Chief McEwen asked what that means. Marilyn Ray explained that the Commission might give
2
the Police the message, "There's nothing wrong with what you did by the book,but you could
do better." Sara Shenk suggested that the wording be changed to "The Commission's
mediating role"and all agreed.
n. Recommendation XIV. Semi-annual reports.
o. Recommendation XV. The City Attorney is to explore the feasibility of an investigator to
investigate complaints. . Marilyn Ray explained that they do not envision an investigator
having access to Police records. Sara Shenk said that the commissioners felt unanimously that
they did not want people interviewing witnesses in their stead,but an investigator might go out
and try to find witnesses. Alvin Nelson asked whether investigators would be volunteers.
Marilyn Ray said no, they would be paid. Clay Hamilton added that they would be on contract
and paid if called on. Chief McEwen expressed opposition. Marilyn Ray pointed out that the
recommendation is only for the City Attorney to investigate the possibility.
p. Marilyn Ray conveyed other thoughts from the subcommittee. They want their report made
public as soon as possible. It is time to get back to the community,so that they know that we
have really been working. The subcommittee wants to present its report at a public meeting
with Common Council present or at least the Human Services Committee.
6. The discussion returned to the question of how the work of the Task Force would be concluded.
a. There were several alternatives but two main paths of action. The Steering Committee could
write a report that is in effect a cover letter presenting the reports of the four committees(Ben
Nichols,Chief McEwen,Marilyn Ray). Or the Steering Committee could write a report
summarizing those recommendations of the subcommittees that it agrees to pass on (Irene
Stein,Clay Hamilton). Dissenting opinions could be attached. It was agreed with five votes in
favor that the Steering Committee's "cover letter" would present those recommendations agreed
to by the Steering Committee(with some listing of priorities) but would also specifically
identify those recommendations by the Committees that were not geing endorsed. It could
include items not in the subcommittee reports.
b. Each committee,perhaps excepting the Jury Selection committee,could hold a public meeting.
Or,to insure turnout,there could be one meeting for the whole Task Force.
c. Irene Stein pointed out that the Steering Committee moved the Jury Selection report be referred
to Council. However, it was noncontroversial. She now moved that the Police Committee
Board Subcommittee report be accepted and referred to Council. At Marilyn Ray's suggestion
the report was tabled until the Steering Committee can write its cover letter.
d. Next week's meeting will hear Amy Lewis present the report of the Community Involvement
Committee. The Steering Committee will also set up the writing subcommittee.
Meeting adjourned at 5:30 pm.
Next meeting 9/28/92 at 4:15 in Second Floor Conference Room
3
Final Version
THE MAYOR'S TASK FORCE ON POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS
REPORT OF COMMUNITY-POLICE BOARD COMMITTEE
September 21, 1992
INTRODUCTION
At a rally and two subsequent community meetings held in May and early June,
1992, African-Americans, members of other minority groups, and other residents
of Ithaca expressed various concerns about police - community relations; ques-
tioned the Community-Police Board's complaint procedures and the complaint
investigatory process; and expressed dissatisfaction with the jury selection
process. As a result of these meetings, the Mayor created the TASK FORCE and
designated four committees, one of which is the Community-Police-Board Commit-
tee. The Committee was charged with investigating the causes for and substance
of the lack of confidence in the Community-Police Board, and with making recom-
mendations to the Mayor for changes in the Board that would address the prob-
lems.
This Committee began meeting on June 15, 1992 and has met thirteen times
since then. The Committee reviewed: articles on how Community-Police Boards in
other communities are organized, and membership, investigative procedures, and
the success or lack thereof for such Boards; the Police Benevolent Association
Union contract with the City; the history of the present Board; current civil-
ian complaint procedures, forms, and reports; and current Board policies. At
the Committee's invitation, Chief Harlan McEwen attended one meeting, answered
questions, and talked at length about his role regarding complaints against
members of the Police Force, and the police relations with the Board. Although
Sara Shenk, chair of the Board, was an active member of the Committee, the
Committee also invited the other three Commissioners to several meetings, and
Kirby Edmonds and Carol Seligmann met with the Committee a number of times.
It is clear from this Spring's public meetings and from previous such meet-
ings that many people do not see the Board as a "useful, accessible or respon-
sive resource". The Committee did not take upon itself the job of evaluating
the quality of the Board's past work. Instead, the Committee has responded to
the concerns expressed by those who attended the public meetings and our charge
by examining the policies, procedures and structure of the Board. In this
manner, the Committee's recommendations are forward looking and do not question
the dedication, time, and hard work provided by members of the Board to the
community.
We conclude that in order to gain the community's confidence, it is necessary
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 2
that substantial changes be made as soon as possible in the manner in which the
Board handles complaints. interacts with the community. and in its accountabil-
ity to the community. As a result of our work, the Committee voted to respect-
fully make the following recommendations.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1- Board Name: The name of the Board has been construed by many members of
the community as indicating a lack of independence from the police structures.
RECOMMENDATION I: The name of the Community-Police Board shall be changed to
Citizen's Commission on Community Relations and members shall be known as
Citizen Commissioners.'
2- Board Structure: The Board is composed of five Commissioners appointed by
the Mayor and subject to the approval of the Common Council. The Committee
found that attendance at Board meetings and involvement in the work of the
Board has been sporadic and that the majority of the work has fallen to two or
three Commissioners. Additionally. since this Committee is making several
recommendations that will increase the work of the Board. in order to accomp-
lish these tasks, additional Citizen Commissioners will be required. Finally,
questions were also raised about how well the composition of the Board reflects
the community.
RECOMMENDATION II: The Commission will be increased from five to seven Com-
missioners.
RECOMMENDATION III: The Mayor's screening procedures for appointees to the
Commission shall include a description of the work of the Board and time
commitment required of Commissioners. and that before being appointed, a
prospective appointee must make a commitment to spend the amount of time
necessary for active participation on the Commission.
RECOMMENDATION IV: When a Citizen Commissioner has been absent without good
cause from three meetings of the Commission in any calendar year, the Mayor
shall be informed and that person's appointment withdrawn.
The Committee is strongly of the opinion that it is important that the Commis-
sion be representative of the community as a whole and most specifically in-
'Hereinafter, "Board" will be used to refer to current activities and
procedures, and "Commission" will refer to future activities and procedures.
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 3
clude representation by segments of the community that have traditionally not
expressed trust in the Board or the fairness of the police such as the Gay and
Lesbian and the African-American community, and specifically, young African-
American men. Toward that end the Committee makes the following recommendation.
RECOMMENDATION V: The Mayor shall solicit the names of candidates from a
range of community groups including but not limited to the Gay and Lesbian
Task Force, the African-American community, and organizations that work with
youth AND shall appoint commissioners from these lists in such a manner as to
ensure maximum diversity among sitting members. Further, before approving
appointments to the commission, the Common Council will evaluate the effect
each appointment will have on the diversity of representation on the Commis-
sion.
At the current time, the Board receives secretarial support from the Police
Chief's secretary. This structure means that, although members may communicate
in writing privately and confidentially, the Board cannot communicate official
ly in writing about any part of its work, however tentative or exploratory,
independent of the organization it is among other things charged to investi-
gate. This structure may contribute to the public perception that the Board
lacks independence.
RECOMMENDATION VI: Support services for the Commission must be located out-
side the Police Department in some office that will provide it with complete
confidentiality for their communications.
3- Board Procedures: The Committee found several aspects of the Board's cur-
rent procedures serve neither to facilitate the filing of complaints nor to
engender confidence in the investigatory process.
* First, the complaint form itself is complicated, uses formal legal language,
and can be difficult for some people to complete.
RECOMMENDATION VII: The complaint form must be simplified and rewritten in
plain language.
* Second, it appears that the Community is not generally aware of the existence
of the Board, the formal or informal procedures for filing complaints, how to
get assistance with filing a complaint, nor what to expect after filing a
complaint. In addition to our recommendation for addressing this situation, we
encourage the Commission to seek speaking opportunities with a full range of
community groups and organizations. Finally, we suggest organizations whose
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 4
members feel aggrieved also find a way to discuss police activities and rela-
tions as a periodic part of their group's program, assigning the function to an
individual or committee.
RECOMMENDATION VIII: The Commission shall develop an informational pamphlet
and use the press, speaking engagements at community groups and organiza-
tions, and public forums to increase its visibility within the community, to
describe its work and procedures, and to increase its accountability to the.
community.
* Third, the first interview and all subsequent interviews with a complainant
and witnesses is presently conducted by a Commissioner and either the Police
Chief or his assistant. This procedure is believed to have contributed to the
Board's perceived lack of independence.
RECOMMENDATION IX: At the very least, the Commission will initiate the in-
vestigatory process by meeting alone with the complainant to explain the
investigatory process, to clarify the facts of the complaint, and to offer
the complainant an opportunity to seek the assistance of an advocate. The
Citizen Commissioner and the complainant would then meet together with the
Chief or his deputy to pursue the complaint.
* Fourth, there are indications that a significant number of complaints are not
coming through either the existing formal or informal channels.
RECOMMENDATION X: The Commission, will work together with the African-Ameri-
can community and members of other minority groups to develop a network of
lay advocates to assist people who wish to make an informal complaint or to
file a formal complaint, and throughout the complaint process.
RECOMMENDATION XI: The Commission, Neighborhood Legal Services, members of
X, the Tompkins County Defense Bar, and/or other community groups will be re
, quested to provide the training for the lay advocates.
4- Commission-Community Accountability: In order to increase community trust in
the Commission and in the police, it is essential that mechanisms be found to
make the Commission more accountable to the public. Current procedures provide
only minimal feedback either to persons who have filed a complaint or to the
community at large regarding the work of the Board, the results of investiga-
tions, or actions taken following an investigation. Additionally, there are
indications that the Board plays an important role in recommending changes in
police approach even when an investigation does not find grounds for disciplin-
Community-Police Board Committee Report. . . .page 5
ary action but finds an incident could have been handled better. It is also
clear that the public is unaware of this important aspect of the Board's role.
RECOMMENDATION XII: The Commission shall expand the explanation to the com-
plainant regarding its findings and all actions that it recommends as a
result from its findings.
RECOMMENDATION XIII: The Commission's role shall be clarified and explained
to complainants and to the general public so that it is generally understood
that when an investigation does not lead to disciplinary action other remed-
ial action may be recommended.
RECOMMENDATION XIV: The Commission will be required to give semi-annual
substantive reports to the Mayor, the Common Council, and to the community
regarding all their activities and the changes they have sought and achieved.
5- Independent Investigator: Finally, the Committee believes it is imperative
that both the perception and reality of the independence of the Commission's
complaint investigations be improved. Research has shown that independent,
professional, investigations of complaints is critical for public confidence in
the process. Furthermore, since Commissioners, though dedicated and hardwork-
ing, are not trained investigators and since it is not possible for an agency
to investigate itself impartially, we feel it imperative that this option be
fully reviewed. The Committee envisions that the investigator's primary respon-
sibilities will be to locate and interview witnesses in the community, estab-
lish the physical circumstances surrounding an incident, and complete such
other assignments as the Citizen Commissioners shall choose to assign, within
the constraints of existing laws.
RECOMMENDATION XV: The City Attorney shall explore the feasibility of the
Commission having the assistance of an independent investigator to assist
Citizen Commissioners in the investigation of complaints; and, if feasible,
recommend to the Mayor the steps which are necessary to assure the Commission
has this assistance as soon as possible; or, if not feasible at this time,
recommend whatever steps might be necessary to make it possible to ensure the
Commission has this assistance at the earliest possible time.
MEMO TO: TASK FORCE ON POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS COMMITTEE ON COMMUNITY-
POLICE BOARD: Birthe Darden, John Johnson, John Marcham, Alfredo
Rossi, Sara Shenk, Irene Stein, Cynthia Telfair, Gregg Thomas,
Lillie Tucker, and Rick Williams
FROM: Marilyn Ray
SUBJECT: (1) Final Version of our Report
(2) Report on Steering Committee Process for Release
DATE: 9/22/92
• At our last meeting, on 9/16/92, after we reviewed our report, you requested
me to clarify with the Steering Committee the process it will follow now
that most Committee Reports are completed and also to request an opportunity
for our committee to participate in the public release of our report. These
subjects were discussed at the Steering Committee meeting yesterday and
that committee agreed to the following process:
1- All Committee Reports will be passed on to Common Council's Human
Services Committee as presented;
2- The Steering Committee will write a Memo to accompany the reports
in which the Steering Committee will analyze the strengths and
weaknesses of the individual reports from a comprehensive
perspective and discusses the various recommendations it supports;
3- The goal will be for the Steering Committee to complete this work
by mid to late October;
4- There will be one public meeting called to present all the reports;
and
5- Each Committee will be invited to present their report at the
public meeting.
When I presented our final report to the Steering Committee, the name we
had finally selected, Citizen's Commission on Community Relations, continued
to generate a lot of discussion. The Mayor, Chief McEwen, and Sara were
opposed to our suggested name, saying it did not clearly explain what it
was about and needed to have the word "Police" in it.
Enclosed is the final version of our report.
I'll be in contact when we need to meet to discuss the public meeting.
THE MAYOR'S TASK FORCE ON POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS
REPORT OF THE POLICE!COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT COMMITTEE
September 23, 1992
INTRODUCTION
The Police / Community Involvement Committee was set up to research and
make recommendations to the Mayor for ways in which the Ithaca community
and the Ithaca Police Department could increase positive interaction, especially
in the Southside Community. This committee began on June 15, 1992 and has
met on twelve (12) occasions since then. The committee decided on specific
objectives and researched and reviewed options to meet these objectives in a
cost efficient and timely manner. We met with local organizations which have
established youth programs, police officers, and Chief Harlin McEwen. We
looked at programs established in other communities and discussed, at length,
perceptions of the present relationship between the Southside community
youth and the IPD. We conclude that much attention must be given to the
development of a positive relationship between the community and the IPD in
order to have increased respect and cooperation on the part of both groups. As
a result of research and discussion, the Committee voted to make the following
recommendations.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Community Wolk Beat- We recommend that additonal onpower be
placed in a walking beat in the Southside area and that consideration be taken
in the choice of officers to perform this duty. It is the hope that the perception of
the "white male cop" in this community can be altered significantly if a police
officer interacted with residents and youth on a daily, more casual basis.
2. Ride Along Program- We recommend that the Ithaca Police Department
invites Southside residents to participate in a Ride Along program set up by a
committee comprised of residents and police officers, including at least one (1)
youth of color.
9
page 2
3. P.E.E.R. Program- We recommend that the City designate funds for the
planning and implementation of this program (see attached Program
Description), based out of Southside Community Center, which will encourage
youth and law enforcement to work together in a positive and educational
environment. It is also recommended that a committee comprised of police
officers; parents and appropriate agencies be formed to facilitate this project.
4. Field Day- It is recommended that an Ithaca City Field Day be held each
year to provide a fun and non-threatening environment for the youth and Ithaca
Police to interact. This could be funded by outside sponsors, the PBA, and the
city. However, successful planning will be best accomplished by a Board set
up to monitor finances, program planning, public relations, etc.... We
recommend that the city appoints a Board and becomes a permanent sponsor
of this annual event.
I
Police Efforts To Enhance Relationships
P_E_E.R
Purpose of the Program:
This program is set up to target youths, particularly Asian, Hispanic,
African American, and Native American, between the ages. of 7 thru
14 years of age, but not limited to all underrepresented children. A
commitment is needed by the city , county and state police to
interact with these children on a volunteer basis. It is designed to
help improve relationships between police offficers and children in
the community. Through programming, our intention is to involve
increased interaction with police and children; therefore, creating
understanding and sensititvity with the aim in establishing a
positive relationship between police officers and the
disenfranchised community.
Possible Programming :
1) Ride along ( with consenting adults ) in police vehicles.
2) Tours of the Sheriff's Department, and/or police station.
3) Tutoring kids in need of extra help.
4) Drug Awareness program such as D. A. R. E.
5) Physical fitness exercises or training.
6) Story telling.
7) Uniforms and/or dress up day (T- shirt ).
8) Question and answer period for those interested in police work.
9) "Card collecting"
r i
TO: Police-Community Relations Task Force Steering Committee
FROM: Police-Community Relations Training Sub-Committee
RE: Final Recommendations
DATE: September 24, 1992
Our committee's purpose has been to explore the possibility of using training and education to
improve police-community relations,whether in-house trainings for officers, in sessions for the
community,and/or in sessions for the police and community together. Although our committee has
met frequently, regularly, and for long hours, we do not feel that we have had enough time to
complete our task. From our earliest meetings with one another it was clear to us that, given our
diverse perspectives and experiences, it was essential to develop respectful communication, build
trust in one another and to gather more information before we could make intelligent
recommendations that would create any lasting positive changes. We have, however, made quite a
lot of progress and have come up with several suggestions which we think will result in a real
shift in how IPD serves the community,and in how Ithaca residents will perceive and relate to the
police force.
We have been granted an extension to continue our work until February 28, 1993, and we
will oversee the following steps in what we envision as a process with three phases.
Phase
1). We will distribute the questionnaire(see attached),to IPD officers through Drew Martin.
We designed this instrument to gather information from officer's about their concerns, needs and
perceptions about training for working with various communities in Ithaca. We believe that this
information gathering is an essential prerequisite for effective training and programming that
will assist officers and meet their training needs.
2). We will develop a process for gathering information from Ithaca residents about what
education, information, and training would be valuable to community members in dealing with
police. The process might be a questionnaire or forum(s)for information gathering. We will ask
residents their views on designating trusted community members as lay advocates ho could act as
guides through the process of using the services of IPD, or filing a,.'sH+� w police
commissioners through the Community-Police Board,etc. We foresee asking residents what would
t 1
make the roles of the advocates credible for them. We will also ask residents who they would like
to see serving as lay advocates. We recommend providing thorough trainings for individuals to
become advocates.
3). We recommend organizing an information session for community members, youth in
particular, called "Know Your Rights." This event would be led by a police officer, a police
commissioner and a community leader. Hopefully,this workshop could be offered every year. The
content should include solid information on how to respond when stopped and questioned by police,
what particular ordinances citizens should know about,and what our rights are when dealing with
law enforcement, and/or when we think we are victims of crime. For example, "Are their
curfews for youth?" "Must you answer an officer's questions?" "When is a fight an assault?"
We see this type of information as very empowering for the community and something which could
be offered fairly soon. By having officers deliver this information, the workshop will provide
additional opportunities for police to interact positively with the community, particularly young
people, by bringing a supportive message to them regarding their rights. There may be similar
informational training events that can involve police and community which might be identified by
the questionnaire.
4). We recommend that the city explore expanding and deepening the Neighborhood Policing
Program. We recommend that the Mayor and Common Council should consider what funds would
need to be allocated for implementation and intensive training for officers involved in
neighborhood policing.
The reason our sub-committee sees neighborhood policing as appealing is because it shifts the
emphasisip•r developing crime prevention
strategies and cooperative problem solving within communities. As we understand neighborhood
policing, it describes an entire approach to peacekeeping that requires a deeper level of
relationship between officers and the communities they serve as opposed to the level that can be
developed when officers are shifted from one area to another.
However,those of us who were present at the Southside Community Center's meetings which
preceded the formation of this Task Force,remember the misgivings and apprehensions which our
neighbors expressed about the possibility of an increased presence of police on our streets. We
think that in order for neighborhood policing to succeed in Ithaca, the community must understand
how It works, how it will benefit us, and also gain a sense of ownership and inclusion in the
process,strategy,and programming.
3
Phase II
I). Our committee will review the questionnaires returned from IPD.
2). We will consider how to meet the training/skill building needs and suggestions expressed
by officers in the surveys. It should be noted that the Community Dispute Resolution Center Is a
local resource which can provide valuable trainings in conflict resolution and communication
skills. Common Council may want to fund putting CDRC on retainer to provide those skill building
workshops. In addition, trainings on Dealing with Differences (which focus on multicultural
awareness and increasing effectiveness in work with diverse populations), are not currently
offered to all IPD officers. It seems important that funding for such possible trainings be allocated
by the city, as well as in the Chief's budget. We anticipate that some combination of the above
types of trainings need to be instituted as a routine part of officer's training, and NOT as one-shot
crisis interventions or band-aid solutions that have not worked in the past. We will pay close
attention to the input we get from officers about what has worked well, and recommend only
programs which will create long term change.
3). We will implement the process for gathering information from the diverse communities of
Ithaca(which we will develop in Phase I).
4). In the event that Neighborhood Policing is going to be expanded, we recommend that
members of the IPD force receive an orientation to the Neighborhood Policing strategy and be
apprised of the likely impact of its implementation both upon their jobs and on the community.
5). We recommend inviting one or two officers from another city where neighborhood policing
is already being practiced to come to Ithaca to present an information session to the community to
describe what it is and how well it's working. It seems very important that all of us be able to get
our questions answered and to feel comfortable with this strategy in order for such a program to
have the support of both the community and IPD, and thereby, a likelihood of succeeding here. If
the city decides to designate certain neighborhoods as appropriate for neighborhood policing, the
residents of these neighborhoods should have the opportunity to understand the likely impact it
will have on them.
We believe that Chief McEwen has extensive knowledge of how various neighborhood policing
programs elsewhere have been utilized,and that he also has some clear-cut ideas on how he would
like to see neighborhood policing proceed in Ithaca. However, given the difficulties and mistrust
that some Ithaca residents have with some IPD officers, we think that the best forum for giving
4
. - S
information to the community would be through a panel of people with expertise which would
include- but not be limited to Chief McEwen and Officer Gilleran.
Phase III
1). We will review the community questionnaires and/or other forms of input from residents
and make recommendations as to what further workshops or informational sessions would be
valuable to the community.
2). We will compile a list of individuals identified by the community,to serve as lay advocates
(Refer to Phase I, 2). We will provide this list to the Police-Community Board. Based on our
assessment of community needs,we would be happy to also give the Board suggestions and input on
developing a training model that would benefit the lay advocate's in their roles,
3). Any officer assigned to Neighborhood Policing should be provided with high quality
preparations for their duties to ensure their success.
4). Any officers who in the future are assigned to Neighborhood Policing could,as part of their
duties,help set goals and have input into future training designs intended for the rest of the IPD
force to enhance those officers' ability to interact more productively with the diverse
communities of Ithaca and to be more supportive of Neighborhood Policing efforts.
5). We recommend that once lay advocates have been functioning in their roles that they be
asked to help make presentations of future community workshops as mentioned above.
We would like to point out that all of these suggestions regarding an expansion of Neighborhood
Policing are being proposed only in the event that the community supports this as a good strategy
for neighborhoods. As you can see most of the recommendations depend on the gathering of more
information, but that seems more preferable than forcing trainings and strategies on people
without their consent. We see that the nature of effective human relations training and education
takes time and full participation of all parties involved. We are committed to taking our task
seriously and not offering quick fix solutions.
We wish that we could attach a specific dollar amount to the cost of these programs, however,
that was not the task set before us. What we have done is to share the best of our thinking thus far
and,bring to your attention that any quality programming will require additional funds.
.
draft 1048792
Dear Members of the Ithaca Common Council:
At a rally on the Commons and at two community meetings held in May
and early June, 1992 at the Southside Community Center, a broad spectrum of
community residents expressed various concerns about police-community
relations. During the final community meeting, the participants developed
the following list of six suggestions to improve police-community rela-
tions: "(1) acknowledge"double standard" (racism) in police behavior; (2)
provide sensitivity training to all officers; (3) establish a mentor prog-
ram between cops and kids; (4) order racially abusive officers to perform
community service in Southside; (5) change the rules that govern the Police
Review Board; and (6) change the jury selection process. " This list was
incorporated into a letter to the Mayor which was read into the record at a
later meeting of the Common Council.
In June, the Mayor created the TASK FORCE ON POLICE-COMMUNITY RELA-
TIONS and charged the Task Force with researching and making recommenda-
tions to the Mayor and Common Council for ways to improve Police-Community
relations in Ithaca. The work of the Task Force was organized in the form
of a Steering Qob
mtee d four wo ing committees: the Jury Selection
Committee; thei o- munity- Committee; the Police-Community
Relations Training Committee (first designated the Police Sensitivity
Training Committee) ; and Community-Police Board Committee.
The Steering Committee was chaired by Alvin Nelson and consisted of
the Chairs of each of the Task Force's four working committees, the Presi-
dent of the Police Benevolent Association, the Chair of the Community-
Police Board, the Chair of the Human Services Committee of Common Council,
and two ex-officio members, the Mayor and the Chief of Police. Later the
Steering Committee voted to add two students, who attended some of the
meetings. Membership on the wor incT�'g co-mmittees was open to all interested
members of the community and the Police Force who were willing to particip-
ate in the work of the committees. The list of members of the Steering
Committee and each of, the four other Committees is attached as appendix A.
The Steering Committee and most of the other Committees met weekly
throughout the Summer months, September, and into October in order to
discharge their responsibilities. The Steering Committee wishes to commend-
,,d'the members of the working committees for the time and effort they have
expended in service to the Ithaca community.
The Steering Committee is pleased to present the enclosed reports as
prepared by each of the four Task Force Committees, and the Steering Com-
mittee's recommendations regarding each of the reports.
The Steering Committee unanimously endorses the recommendations of the
Jury Selection Committee. It requests Common Council recommend to the
Tompkins County Board of Representatives that it take appropriate steps to
implement them. The Jury Selection Committee recommendations include: (1)
expanding the master list from which prospective jurors are selected to
include the widest possible representation of Tompkins County residents;
(2) emphasizing the legal obligation to complete and return the question-
` .11
uestion-\ .11
2
naire sent to all possible jurors; (3) directing anyone who fails to com-
plete and return the questionnaire to appear at Court for determination of
their qualification to serve on a jury; (4) developing and implementing
written standards for excusing jurors from service and for granting jurors
permission to postpone their jury service; (5) using a stratified random
sampling technique to include African-American residents in jury pools in
proportion to their percentage of the county population; and (6) calling
for state legislation,, i nec ssary,1 41wimplement the above recommenda-
tions , ,t-
The SteeAri' Committee unanimously endorses and requests Common Coun-
cil adopt and take appropriate steps to implement the recommendations of
the Police-Community Involvement Committee. The Police-Community Involve-
ment Committee recommends: (1) expanding the Community Policing project
recently begun by the Ithaca Police in the Southside Community; (2) that
Ithaca Police invite city residents, especially Southside residents,
ages and over, to participate in a Ride-Along program; (3) implementing
a P.E.E.R. . program at the Southside Community Center to increase positive
interactions between police and children ages 7 through 14 during variety
of program activities; and (4) holding an annual Ithaca City Field Day for
police officers and youth.
The Steering Committee unanimously endorses and requests Common Coun-
cil adopt and take appropriate steps to implement the plans of the Police-
Community Training Committee. The Police-Community Training Committee
recommends: (1) that the City organize and conduct a community forum on
"Know Your Rights" annually; (2) supporting the expansion of Community
Policing program; (3) providing high quality training to police officers
assigned to Community Policing before they commence their new duties; and
(4) that community lay advocates be involved in police-community presenta-
tions and forums.
The Steering Committee took three separate actions on report of the
Community-Police Board Committee.
First, they" Steering Committee unanimously endorses recommendations
number II through XIV contained in the report of the Community-Police Board
Committee and requests Common Council action to implement these recommenda-
tions. The 13 specific recommendations can be summarized by the following:
(1) make modifications to the structure of the Board, the method for selec-
ting and removing and information provided to prospective Commissioners;
(2) make changes in the procedures the Board uses for investigating citizen
complaints and enhancements to currently available information about the
Board; (3) locate support services for the Community-Police Board in an
office outside the Police Department; and (4) increase reporting to com-
plainants regarding action taken on complaints, and to the Common Council
and the community regarding Board activities, findings, recommendations,
and other actions.
Second, the Steering Committee, by majority vote, recommends the name
of the Community-Police Board be changed to Citizen's Commission on Com-
munity-Police Relations. A minority endorse the recommendation of the
3
working committee that the name be changed to Citizen's Commission on Com-
munity Relations.
Third, the majority of the Steering Committee support the Committee's
recommendation number XV that the City Attorney explore the feasibility of
providing the Commission with the assistance of an independent investigator
and requests Common Council adopt the recommendation. A minority expressed
strong opposition to this recommendation.
Finally. the Steering Committee has approved the request of the
Police-Community Training Committee to continue its work until February 28.
1993. The Steering Committee will continue to oversee the work of this
committee until a final report is completed and forwarded to the Common
Council.
Sincerely.
Alvin Nelson
Task Force Coordinator
draft 10/9/92
Dear Members of the Ithaca Common Council:
At a rally and two subsequent community meetings held in May and early
June, 1992, African-Americans, Latino-Americans, Asian Americans, repre-
sentatives from various special interest groups, and other Ithaca community
residents expressed various concerns about police-community relations.
During the final community meeting, the participants developed the follow-
ing list of six suggestions ways proposed to the Common Council to improve
police-community relations: "(1) acknowleIge"double standard" (racism) in.
police behavior; (2) provide sensitivity training to all officers; (3)
establish a mentor program between cops and kids; (4) order racially abus-
ive officers to perform community service in Southside; (5) change the
rules that govern the Police Review Board; and (5) change the jury selec-
tion process. "
As a result of these suggestions, the Mayor created the TASK FORCE ON
POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS and charged the Task Force with researching and
making recommendations to the Mayor and Common Council for ways to improve
Police-Community relations in Ithaca. The work of the Task Force was broken
down among the following five committees: Steering Committee which was
charged with overseeing, coordinating --and reviewing the work of the other
four committees; the Jury Selection Committee; the Community-Police-Board
Committe the Police ComMunity_ Relations Training_Committee;drat desig-
nated the Police Sensitivity. Training Committee; and-Community-Police Board
Committee.
The Steering Committee was composed of the Chairs of each of the four
Task Force's Committees, the President of the Police Benevolent Associa-
tion, the Chair of the Community-Police Board, the Chair of the Human
Services Committee of Common Council, one student each from TC3 and ACS, a
citizen chair, and two ex-officio members, the Mayor and the Chief of
Police. Membership on the camMittees`was open to all interested members of
the community and the Police Force who were willing to participate in the
work of the committees. The list of members of the Steering Committee and
each of the four other Committees is attached as appendix A.
The Steering Committee and most of the other Committees met weekly
throughout the Summe r months and into Septembez__in _order to discharge their
responsibilities. All _ the Task-l'z fce committee members are to be commended
for the time and effort they have expended in service to the Ithaca com-
munity.
The Steering Committee is pleased to present the enclosed reports as
prepared by each of the four Task Force Committees, and the Steering Com-
mittee's recommendations regarding each of the reports.
The Steering Committee unanimously endorses the recommendations of the
Jury Selection Committee. It requests Common Council adopt these recommen-
dations and recommend to the Tompkins County Board of Representatives that
it adopt and take appropriate steps to implement them as well. The Jury
Selection Committee recommendations include: (1) expanding the master list
from which prospective -jurors areselected to include the widest possible
representation of Tompkins County residents; (2) emphasizing the legal
. 1
2
obligation to complete and return the questionnaire sent to all possible
jurors; (3) directing anyone who fails to complete and return the question-
naire to appear at Court for determination of their qualification to serve
on a jury; (4) developing and implementing written standards for excusing
jurors from service and for granting jurors permission to postpone their
jury service; and (5) using a stratified random sampling technique to
include African-American residents in jury pools in proportion to their
percentage of the county population.
The Steering Committee unanimously endorses and requests Common Coun-
cil adopt and take appropriate steps to implement the recommendations of
the Police-Community Involvement Committee. The Police-Community Involve-
ment Committee recommends: (1) expanding the Community Policing project
recently begun by the Ithaca Police in the Southside Community; (2,}-that
the Ithaca Police invite city residents, especially Southside residents,
ages 15 and over, to participate in a Ride-Along program; (3) implementing
a P.E.E.R. rogram__a_t th�_SQuthsi a Communes
__p -„�.�... y� nester„} to increase positive.t''' `'
interactions between police and children ages 7 through 14 during variety
of program activities; and (4) that an Ithaca City Field Dam r
o�.nolice of-
ficers and each year: .� .� .x,
The Steering Committee unanimously endorses and requests Common Coun=
cil adopt and take appropriate steps to implement the plans of the Police-
Community Training Committee. The Police-Community Training Committee
recommends: (1) that the City organize and conduct a community forum on
"Know Your Rights” annually; (2) supporting the expansion of Community
ici
P ng program ; (3) providing high__qua ity *raining._. nolice_.afficers
assigned to Community Policing before they commence their new duties; and
(4) that community lay advocates be involved in police-community presenta-
tions and forums.
Further, the Steering Committee has approved the request of the
Police-Community Training Committee to contig a its...w kk ebrua 8,
. The Steering Committee will continue to oversee the Committee's work
until a final report is acted upon and forwarded to the Common Council.
The Steering Committee took three separate actions on report of the
Community-Police Board Committee.
First, the Steering Committee unanimously endorses recommendations
number II through XIV contained in the report of the Community-Police Board
Committee and requests Common. Council action to implement these recommenda-
tions. The 13 specific recommendations can be summarized by the following:
(1) make modifications to the' structure of the Board, the method for selec-
ting and removing and information provided to prospective Commissioners;
(2) make changes in the ptocedures the Board uses for investigating citizen
complaints and enhancements to currently available information about the
Board; and (3) increase reporting to complainants regarding action taken on
complaints, and to the, Common Council and the community regarding Board
activities, findings, recommendations, and other actions.
Second, the Steering Committee requests that Common Council consider a
3
modification of the first recommendation (No. I) in the report of the
Community-Police Board Committee. This recommendation suggests that the
name of the Community-Police Board be changed to the Citizen's Commission
on Community Relations. After careful consideration of the reasons the
Committee suggested this particular name, the majority of the Steering
Committee agreed that the name should be more specific and voted to recom-
mend that the name be changed to Citizen's Commission on Community-Police
Relations (addition underlined) .
Third, the majority of the Steering Committee supports the Committees
recommendation number XV and requests Common Council adopt the recommenda-
tion. The fifteenth and final recommendation in this Committee's Report
recommends that the City Attorney explore the feasibility of providing the
Commission with the assistance of an independent investigator.
Since there was, however, strong opposition by some members of the
Steering Committee, most notably by the Chief of_Police, to the concept of
an independent investigator's involvement in the investigation of citizen
complaints and to even exploring the feasibility of such assistance. The
Steering Committee felt it was also necessary to express the minority
report regarding the final recommendation (No. XV) in the report of the
Community-Police Board Committee.
Sincerely,
Alvin Nelson
Task Force Coordinator
.1wt-C(
APPENDIX A Btu
� - - ib/q
MEMBERS OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE
MEMBERS OF THE JURY SELECTION COMMITTEE
Nick Celia
Benjamin Darden
Charles Gutman
James Kerrigan
Marilyn Ray
Irene Stein, Chair
MEMBERS OF THE POLICE-COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT COMMITTEE
MEMBERS OF THE POLICE-COMMUNITY TRAINING COMMITTEE
MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY-POLICE BOARD COMMITTEE
Birthe Darden
John Johnson
John Marcham,{Chair #2j
Marilyn Ray, Chair #31,›
Alfredo Rossi
Sara Shenk
Irene Stein
Cynthia Telfair
Gregg Thomas
Lillie Tucker
Richard Williams) (Chair #1) .