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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-15-1998 Minutes POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD MINUTES - December 8, 1998 Lobby Conference Room CALL TO ORDER Chair L. Cohen called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. Al IENDANCE Board members present: L. Cohen, P. Farrant, P. Hoffe¥, M. Raymond, and J. Watson. Staff present: Legal Counsel D. Russell and administrative assistant S. Bauer. CONSENT CALENDAR Motion by P. Farrant and seconded by P. Hoffey to adopt the Consent Calendar, as amended, accepting (g) 12/8/98 memorandum from Chief Winkelhake (deferred for discussion with Item 6 on the agenda). Motion carried, 5/0, all members present. RECOMMENDATION TO COUNCIL · Accept PCRB Public Report #98-17 · Defer action on approval of the PCRB SOP's PCRB SOP's Motion by M. Raymond and seconded by P. Hoffey to consolidate Item #3 on the agenda with Item #6. Motion carried, 5/0, all members present. J. Watson reported on the city council informal meeting at which the PCRB SOP's were discussed. The City attorney presented to the council her memo of November 13, 1998, with recommended changes. Issues included: · The procedure for handling untimely filing of complaints. The recommended change states the complainant may not be heard in person, verbally, to avoid any possibility that the facts of a complaint be discussed in a public session on the timeliness question or on the question of whether a complaint is against a sworn Iowa City police officer. · In an attempt to avoid an adversarial encounter between the complainant and the officer, the city attorney recommends an ordinance change eliminating notification and participation of the complainant in a name-clearing hearing of an officer. An additional concern expressed was if a complainant had a right to appear at a meeting, would they have a right to participate in a meeting, aside from simply asking questions. · Requiring legal counsel to be in attendance at all PCRB meetings. A discussion followed regarding legal counsel's role with the PCRB. Further discussion included: 1. The Board makes no recommendation concerning the proposed ordinance change concerning name- clearing hearings. 2. The Board requests the council to defer consideration of proposed SOP changes. 3. After discussion, the Board directed legal counsel to convey their concerns about the recommended SOP changes to the city attorney, and request a deferment of the council's action on December 15. Legal counsel will report back to the board at its next meeting, December 1 5. Meeting with City Administration Paul Hoffey reported on the meeting with he, L. Cohen and D. Russell, and City Manager S. Atkins, Chief Winkelhake, and S. Holocek. The primary purpose of this meeting was to enable the PCRB to correct the misimpression about release of names/information to the media. Board members proposed meetings (however many were needed to cover all shifts) with the police officers to explain the PCRB process and its confidentiality obligations. Both the City Manager and the Chief of Police'discouraged this method and recommended correspondence from the Board to the Chief, who agreed to disseminate it to the officers. Other items discussed were: · S. Holocek took issue with the 'Comments" section of the board's public reports. If the board is critical in its comments, even if an allegation is not sustained, there should be a name-clearing hearing because it is a report critical of an officer. (The board agreed) · Chief Winkelhake said he recommended that his officers come to name-clearing hearings, but that the union has chosen to discourage it. Discussion followed: The board directed legal counsel to prepare the letter to be sent to Chief Winkelhake for his officers. The letter will first be reviewed by S. Atkins and S. Holocek. Legal counsel will report on their comments at the board's next meeting. Once approved by the board, a copy of this letter will be sent to city council members. Because there was concern about perceived misinformation reaching the city council, consideration was given to moving the board's meeting day from Tuesday to one that would accommodate attendance at city council meetings whenever PCRB matters appear on its agenda. Since council work sessions are on Mondays, board members agreed to take turns attending when necessary. Reconsider the board's policy of 'no comment" to the press. Legal counsel reported on a conversation he had with Chief Winkelhake about the recent newspaper reports, explaining to him that he [the Chief] had complete control over the language that is used in the allegations in his reports. Motion by P. Farrant and seconded by M. Raymond directing the chair to request a meeting with the city council at one of their informal meetings in the near future. Possible discussion points could include the SOP's, concerns about the media and how it conflicts with the board's confidentiality obligations, the PCRB forums, the PCRB 1997-98 annual report, and others. Motion carried, 5/0, all members present. Chief's Memo Dated 12/8/98 After lengthy discussion of the memo (item g. in the consent calendar and attached hereto) from Chief Winkelhake regarding identification of officers in his reports to the board, legal counsel .was directed to inform the city attorney that, although this information should not go to the press or the public, board members require this information to fulfill its statutory obligations for tracking purposes and for making judgments about an officer's credibility. Legal counsel will report back to the board at its next meeting. At that time, a response will be drafted to the Chief. (This issue is another topic for a meeting between the board and council members.) COMMUNITY FORUM 10127198 Comments expressed regarding the community forum held on 10/27/98 at the Newman Center included: M. Raymond reported on a contact from an individual who expressed a feeling of intimidation by the presence of police officers at the forum. The information received from the police officers was useful, but board members would prefer some other venue to hear from the officers. At future forums, a rule shall be adopted that all speakers (including police officers) must sign the sign- up sheet, talk only at the microphone, and adhere to the 5-minute rule. RESCHEDULING COMMUNITY FORUM Direction was given to reschedule the community forum originally scheduled for December 1, 1998 to January 19, 1998, at the Broadway Neighborhood Center. Legal counsel stated that Chief Winkelhake and the City Manager preferred this forum not be videotaped. So in keeping with the board's policy for the last forum, direction to staff is to only audiotape this forum. PUBLIC DISCUSSION None EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion by J. Watson and seconded by P. Hoffey to adjourn into Executive Session based on Section 21.5(a) of the Code of Iowa to review or discuss records which are required or authorized by state or federal law to be kept confidential or to be kept confidential as a condition for that government body's possession or continued receipt of federal funds, and 22.7{11) personal information in confidential personnel records of public bodies including but not limited to cities, boards of supervisors and school districts, and 22.7(5) police officer investigative reports, except where disclosure is authorized elsewhere in the Code. Motion carried, 5/0, all member present. Meeting adjourned at 9:00 P.M. Regular meeting resumed at 9:15 P.M. Motion by P. Hoffey and seconded by P. Farrant to approve PCRB Public Report #98-17 and forward it to council. Motion carried, 5/0, all members present. Motion by P. Hoffey and seconded by J. Watson to grant the request from Chief Winkelhake for an extention to December 11, 1998, for his report on PCRB #98-18. Motion carried, 5/0, all members present. MEETING SCHEDULE · Special Meeting December 15, 1998, 7:00 P.M. · SpeCial Meeting December 22, 1998, 7:00 P.M. · Special Meeting December 29, 1998, 7:00 P.M. · Community Forum January 19, 1998, 7:00 P.M. PCRB priority-setting meeting - to be determined BOARD INFORMATION M. Raymond - reported that the Supreme Court ruled unanimously today that the Iowa statute permitting searches in traffic citations is unconstitutional. After general questions regarding the conflict of interest issue, staff was directed that a general discussion of the conflict of interest issue appear as an agenda item for a future meeting. STAFF INFORMATION S. Bauer - The "attorney services' on the proposed PCRB budget has been increased. ADJOURNMENT Motion for adjournment by P. Hoffey and seconded by P. Farrant. Motion carried, 5/0, all members present. Meeting adjourned at 9:23 P.M.