[CPRB] revising propaganda

[Ricky Baldwin]

Maybe this is a good time to justtake a look at our
Coalition pamphlet explaining what a CPRB is, etc.  I
updated it very minimally (see below) for the public
hearing last week, mainly to reflect some changes in
the Mayor's Taskforce proposal since the 2002 draft
proposal, and to fit it into the format I was
printing.  

But have a look.  Anything we need to change? 
Language?  Tone?  Info?  See what you all think!
Ricky


What is the proposed Citizen Police Review Board?

A citizen police review or oversight board is an
impartial body, independent of the police department
itself, that is empowered to receive and investigate
citizen complaints against police officers, and to
perform other oversight functions.

In the case of specific complaints, the proposed board
will investigate the complaints, make findings, and
recommend disciplinary action to the Chief of Police
and to other appropriate government officials. The
board will also evaluate patterns of complaints, as
well as police policies and procedures, and recommend
policy changes as deemed necessary or desirable. And
the board will issue periodic reports to the community
documenting the police department's responsiveness, as
well as statistical breakdowns with regard to types of
complaints, findings, location by district, and the
number of officers with a history of multiple
complaints.

Why is a Citizen Police Review Board needed? 

The police department of a community is arguably the
most important of the municipal services. The police
are certainly the most visible of any of the
government agencies, interacting with citizens more
directly and more intensively than any other branch of
government. Given the extent of the powers delegated
to police officers by law, and the pressures under
which they are frequently required to function, any
abuse of those powers necessarily results in more
serious consequences for the individual citizen and
for the community as a whole. It is vital that the
police department be a trustworthy and respected
organization.

Historically, complaints against police officers have
been investigated and evaluated by the police
department itself. This process is inherently flawed
both in theory and in practice. It tends to discourage
citizen input and to promote secrecy, both of which
run counter to accepted notions of democracy. As a
consequence, many citizens lack confidence that the
police can serve as an effective check on their own
behavior. 

The latter part of the twentieth century gave rise to
a groundswell of grassroots community initiatives to
create independent citizen police review or oversight
boards, whose purpose was to review complaints
regarding police behavior and policies, and to make
disciplinary and policy recommendations on the basis
of citizen input.

We share the belief that, under current law, the most
effective means of ensuring police accountability to
the public, and fostering a positive police-community
relationship, is an impartial oversight board composed
of citizens from all neighborhoods and walks of life. 

We further believe that such a board is totally
consistent with and supportive of the Urbana Police
Department's own mission statement, which includes the
following:

“We pledge to help create a safer environment in which
to live, work, and recreate through problem solving
and collaboration with our citizens.”

“The public should have input into policy development
which directly impacts quality of life.”

Are such Citizen Police Review Boards effective?

A number of studies have examined the effectiveness of
various models of citizen police review boards. In
general, the success of an oversight board has been
found to be contingent on the degree of its true
independence from the police department, the measure
of genuine commitment to its success on the part of
all interested parties in the community, and the depth
of public trust in its effectiveness.

The board must also have a mandate to make policy
recommendations, so that it is involved in structural
reform and not merely in the discipline of individual
officers. Our proposed model addresses and
incorporates all of these factors.

What are some of the features of the proposed Citizen
Police Review Board? 

1	Seven unpaid Board members representing diverse
constituencies in the city.

2	An advisor on police procedure appointed from the
Urbana Police Department. 

3	Training for Board members in police department
policies and procedures. 

4	A place to file complaints outside of the police
department itself

5	Funding adequate for proper investigation of
complaints, including the hiring of an independent 
investigator on an ad hoc basis as the Board deems
necessary. 

6	Subpoena power to compel witness testimony, to be
used as the Board deems necessary. 

7	A mediation option available for use in lieu of a
full Board investigation of a citizen complaint. 

How will members of the Board be selected?

The current proposal calls for a Board consisting of
seven unpaid citizen members, chosen by the Mayor with
the advice and consent of the City Council. The
nomination process would be an open one, with
structures in place to ensure that any citizen can
apply. Candidates for nomination would not be city
employees or law enforcement personnel.

The members of the Board would choose their own
chairperson, and promulgate their own rules of
procedure in accordance with their legislative
mandate. 
How will the Board be funded?

The Board would be funded with tax revenue from the
general operating budget of the city. We anticipate,
and it has been demonstrated in other cities, that the
expense of the proposed Board would be offset at least
in part by fiscal savings elsewhere in the budget.
We would also expect a reduction in the cost to the
city of civil litigation against the police, as
increased accountability to the public should result
in less misconduct by police and fewer lawsuits filed
by citizens. Moreover, cities that show due diligence
in working to increase police accountability are less
likely to be found negligent when faced with a civil
suit.

To whom will the Board be accountable?

The Board would be created by municipal ordinance as a
separate office within the city government. It would
be accountable to the City Council, to whom is
delegated the power of legislative and budgetary
authority. Ultimately, the Board would be accountable
to the citizens of Urbana, who elect the members of
the City Council.

For more: www.prairienet.org/cprb


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