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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-16-2008 PCRB Community ForumAGENDA POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD COMMUNITY FORUM September 16, 2008, 7:30 P.M. EMMA J. HARVAT HALL 410 E Washington St ITEM NO. 1 CALL TO ORDER & ROLL CALL ITEM NO. 2 PRESENTATION BY FORMER PCRB MEMBER, LOREN HORTON - HISTORY /SUMMARY OF THE PCRB ITEM NO. 3 PRESENTATION BY PCRB MEMBER, GREG ROTH - PCRB COMPLAINT FILING PROCESS ITEM NO. 4 PRESENTATION BY REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE ICPD - ICPD FORMAL /INFORMAL COMPLAINT PROCESS ITEM NO. 5 PUBLIC DISCUSSION WITH POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD ITEM NO. 6 CONSIDER MOTION TO ACCEPT CORRESPONDENCE AND /OR DOCUMENTS ITEM NO. 7 ADJOURNMENT The City of Iowa City POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD COMMUNITY FORUM WHEN: Tuesday, September 16, 2008 TIME: 7:30 P.M. WHERE: Emma J. Harvat Hall 410 E Washington St TOPIC: History of the PCRB, Complaint Filing Options & Public Discussion We invite YOU to attend a forum about the History of the Police Citizens Review Board, Complaint Filing Options, and Public Discussion. Presentations will be given, followed by a public discussion. POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD COMMUNITY FORUM September 16, 2008 PLEASE SIGN IN IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS THE PCRB DURING PUBLIC DISCUSSION INDIVIDUALS WILL BE CALLED IN THAT ORDER POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD COMMUNITY FORUM September 16, 2008 IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS THE PCRB PLEASE PRINT YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS ON THE ATTACHED SHEET INDIVIDUALS WILL BE CALLED IN THAT ORDER NAME: ADDRESS: ce POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD COMMUNITY FORUM September 16, 2008 PLEASE PRINT YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS ON THE ATTACHED SHEET IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY SIGNED IN NAME: Cl - 0 c) L/ ttl6 -7) i 6 7 -6rU- ADDRESS: %d-% (,tl L 1U U T Page 1 of 1 Kellie Tuttle From: City of Iowa City [web @iowa - city.org] Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2008 8:46 AM To: Kellie Tuttle Subject: ICgov.org Media Release: General City News Police Citizens Review Board - Community Forum Contact: Kellie Tuttle Posted by: City Clerk Contact Phone: (319) 356 -5043 Originally Posted 8/27/2008 8:45:41 AM The Police Citizens Review Board will be holding a Community Forum on Tuesday, September 16, 2008 at 7:30 P.M. in Emma J. Harvat Hall. Topics will include: History of the PCRB, Complaint Filing Options & Public Discussion. The agenda is available at: ham_ / /www. icgov.org /default/apps /boards /board List. asp View and edit your subscription details. Visit our jobs page for employment opportunities. View more news from the City of Iowa City. Do not reply directly to this e-mail! It is produced from an automated system, and is not monitored for replies. If you have a question or comment about this information, please contact the originating department of this message, or by using our feedback form. For technical questions regarding the website, please contact our_web_team. 9/9/2008 Page 1 of 1 Kellie Tuttle From: City of Iowa City [web @iowa- city.org] Sent: Monday, September 08, 2008 9:18 AM To: Kellie Tuttle Subject: ICgov.org Media Release: General City News Police Citizens Review Board - Community Forum Contact: Kel_lie Tuttle. Posted by: City Clerk Contact Phone: (319) 356 -5043 Originally Posted 9/8/2008 9:17:37 AM The Police Citizens Review Board will be holding a Community Forum on Tuesday, September 16, 2008 at 7:30 P.M. in Emma J. Harvat Hall. Topics will include: History of the PCRB, Complaint Filing Options & Public Discussion. The agenda is available at: hl: / /www. icgov.ojg/de fault /apps/boards /boardList.asp • View an edit your subscription details. • Visit our lobs page. for_emplo r�ment opportunities.. • View_ more news from the City of Iowa City. Do not reply directly to this e-mail! It is produced from an automated system, and is not monitored for replies. If you have a question or comment about this information, please contact the originating department of this message, or by using our feedback form. For technical questions regarding the website, please contact our web team. 9/9/2008 Police Citt"zens R�eviewww 0 The Complaint Review Proces R Complaint A complaint can be submitted to the Police Citizens Review Board (PCRB), the Police Department, or both. Citizen Comp laint form Get complaint form through •City Clerk/City Hall •Police Department •Iowa City Public Library #&City of Iowa City web site NvWW.1Cgov.org Citizen Comp ai l nt For PCRB to review, the complaint must be filed in the City Clerk's O ce within go days of incident. • Board receives complaint form Citizen's COMP laint Forwards complaint form to Chief of Police for investigation If complaint against the Chief of Police, it is forwarded to the City Manager Investigation of Comp laint Chief's investigation must be completed within ��s and a report of the findings will be sent to the Police Citizen's Review Board (PCRB) Investigation of Comp laint The PCRB will grant extensions for the Chief's Report for a good cause shown. Police Chief's Report Detailed report of findings •May include witness and complainant statements from interviews, officer reports, and police in car video /audio LA Police Chief's Report Will contain conclusions of findings in regard to allegations in complaint. Sustained Not sustained Police Chief's Report Codes of Chief s Report Complainant PCRB Police Officers City Manager PCRB Written Report PCRB reviews Chief's Report and sets level of review Level of review set by need for evidence to arrive at conclusion PCRB Written Report -PCRB issues a written report W it hin 45 days of receipt of Chief's Report. E xtensions can be requested through City Council PCRB Written Report Detailed findings of fact *Conclusion and support Sustained Not sustained PCRB Written Report • Copies of PCRB written report •Complainant •Police Officers •City Manager •City Council PCRB Written Report The PCRB may recommend a reversal of the Chief's findings if they are; unreasonable, arbitrary, capricious, or are contrary to Police Department policy or practice, or anyfederal, state, or local law. PCRB Authority *Limited civil administrative review powers. N o authority over criminal matters or police discipline. Contact Information -PCRB 4lo E. Washington St. •Iowa City, IA, 52240 (319) 356-5041 City website mrww.icgov.org September 15, 2008 409 Crestview Avenue Iowa City, IA 52245 TO: Police Citizens Review Board Forum —Input Please accept this letter as input for your Sept. 16 hearing. I will be out of town and cannot attend. I would like to suggest that the Iowa City Police Department undertake a public information and enforcement campaign regarding State law on pedestrian rights. The trends in transportation toward increased use of public transportation, bicycles, and walking, already popular in Iowa City, are being accelerated by the high cost of gasoline. The City of Iowa City and the Johnson County Council of Governments have recently adopted a Complete Streets Policy which calls for planning all new or substantially rebuilt streets to accommodate bicycles and pedestrians. Yet, the majority of automobile drivers seem to be unaware of State laws setting forth conditions under which pedestrians have the right of way. At any rate, most disregard these laws if they are aware of them. There is a fine stipulated for violation of these laws, yet I have never seen announcements of any citations or fines listed in the press. Iowa City has seen instances of pedestrian deaths due to disregard of these laws by motorists. I often feel that I am taking my life in my hands when attempting to cross streets legally at intersections. Some recent signage attempts by the City are a step in the right direction. However, motorists will not change their habits unless there is a consistent public information campaign, underscored by consistent police enforcement with imposition of fines for violations. This is not an unrealistic idea; there are other states in which this has become a statewide habit and the pedestrian is regularly ceded right of way when crossing legally. Chapter 321.327 of the Iowa Code provides that pedestrians have the right of way at "any marked or unmarked crosswalk at an intersection." In addition, Chapter 321.353 provides that "drivers must stop at the sidewalk" when exiting or entering driveways. Chapter 321.329 provides that motorists must "avoid colliding with pedestrians." Let's begin to enforce these laws in Iowa City. Resources devoted to this will benefit many more people than some other enforcement campaigns now underway. Thanks you for your consideration. Carol Spaziani 410 E. WASHINGTON IOWA CITY, IA 52240 -1826 PH: 319 - 356 -5275 FAX: 319 - 356 -5449 September 22, 2008 Mr. Michael Larson Chair, Police Citizens Review Board rn City of Iowa City o > w Dear Mr. Larson and PCRB members, i All of the citizens that spoke at Tuesday's hearing made comments appreciative of the time you and the board take out of your busy schedule. I would like to echo those sentiments and thank each of you for your service and commitment to the citizen's of Iowa City. Recently the Iowa City Police Department was CALEA reaccredited for the 3 I straight time. Our policies & procedures meet the "Best Practices Standard" of all of the departments from across the nation. This in part is because of the role you play on the Police Citizen's Review Board. An investigative team traveled to Iowa City to inspect the ICPD and each policy is reviewed. Just having the policy isn't enough, we have to prove and document that we comply with our own policies. The accreditation committee that reviewed the inspection report was very supportive and complimentary of Iowa City's Police Citizen's Review Board. Your mere existence helped the reaccreditation process. I would also like to thank the citizens that spoke at the hearing. It is important that the citizens have a trusting relationship with their police department and I heard nothing at the hearing that can't be worked out and discussed. I felt it very rewarding that even those that have philosophical differences with certain policies still spoke appreciatively of the Iowa City Police Department. Time and space prohibits me from commenting on all that was discussed but I would like to comment on a few of the highlights. Some concern was mentioned that the PCRB does not track the number of complaints against one particular officer. The ICPD does have a PEWS system or Personnel Early Warning System. This is a requirement of CALEA accreditation and a subsystem of our Internal Affairs process. The PEWS system is complex but it does track the behaviors, complaints and incidents that allow supervisors to intervene when possible triggering events occur that do not reach the level of a complaint. It was suggested that ICPD does not cooperate with 'jail alternative initiatives' and that Ames PD had 0 arrests for Public Intoxication. Neither of these assertions is correct. There was a reporting glitch to the FBI that ICPD staff caught in time and corrected however Ames did not. If you check with Ames directly you will find that Ames has many Public Intoxication cases and is no better or worse than Iowa City. The assertion that ICPD takes too many people to jail is also incorrect and actually is a statement of perception. The fact of the matter is that cases like simple possession of marijuana are "indictable offenses." All Iowa peace officers are required by state law to book offenders of indictable offenses. To book means to fingerprint and mug shot and this occurs presently only at the jail. Some arrestees go to jail because their condition makes it unsafe to release them on their signature. I am very supportive of a "Cite and Release" policy that would allow for an officer to release an arrestee on his or her signature promising to appear in court for some offenses. It is not by ICPD policy that we transport these types of cases to jail. It is because of Iowa Code or public safety that we transport these types of defendants to jail and I would be the first to agree with you that many arrestees do not need to be incarcerated any longer than it takes to book them, assign a court date and if necessary take their bond. Lastly, it was asserted that ICPD harasses certain bars. The level of alcohol enforcement conducted by ICPD in the downtown area is a controversial issue. I frequently hear from both sides, that we're down there too much or we're not down there at all. The Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division abdicates all enforcement to the local level retaining administrative licensing authority. This puts local police departments and city code inspectors in the position of ensuring compliance with every law and ordinance on the books. This is a monumental task that would keep a team of full time inspectors busy. At the same time we have responsibility for keeping the peace throughout the rest of Iowa City. We receive tips on establishment abuses from a variety of sources and many times the complaints come from other liquor establishments. We have to take those tips where they lead and if an establishment is found to be violating state law then the next time there is an inspection they are likely to be re- inspected. The department tries to balance time spent in the downtown business district with the needs of the rest of the City. It is a vibrant area and when we are not present violent unprovoked assaults frequently occur along with vandalism and property damage. In closing I would like to reiterate that issues brought up in the forum are oftergimes issues that I and my staff agree with however you have to look deeper at why * &do what we do. It's dialog and openness that creates public trust and on behalf opao ofiRe officers I appreciate your service and assistance with building that trust. NO M Sincerely, y w N XZI E. adine Chief of Police September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 1 September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board— Community Forum 7:30 P.M. Members Present: Michael Larson, Chair; Greg Roth; Abigail Yoder; Janie Braverman; Donald King Staff: Catherine Pugh, Legal Counsel; Kellie Tuttle Others Present: Captain Richard Wyss of the ICPD; and former PCRB member, Loren Horton Call to Order & Roll Call: Larson/ ...begin with item number one, call to order and roll call. Uh, Janie Braverman. Braverman/ Here. Larson/ Donald King. King/ Here. Larson/ Michael Larson is present. Greg Roth. Roth/ Here. Larson/ Abigail Yoder. Yoder/ Here. Larson/ Kellie Tuttle, and Catherine Pugh. Excellent. Item number two, presentation by former PCRB Member, Loren Horton, on the history and a summary of the PCRB. Welcome back, Loren! Presentation by Former PCRB Member, Loren Horton — History /Summary of the PCRB: Horton/ Thank you. Thank you for having me back. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm to talk about the history of the PCRB. It has been in existence a little over 11 years, and I served on the Board for two terms, which means I was on for eight years, uh, the majority of the time that the Board's been in existence. I, uh, wanted to start off by, uh, pointing out that the Iowa City Press - Citizen on September 10th had an editorial about this, uh, PCRB Forum, and they pointed out, uh, three very important things, the changes that were made last, uh, November in the General Election by which the PCRB was made a permanent, uh, part of City government, not a, uh, necessarily as it was before, sort of a creature of the City Council. It was also given the power to subpoena witnesses, and it was required to hold at This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum • Page 2 least one public community forum and this is the first one under that. I'm assuming we could hold more than that. Now I'm going to rely a good bit on, uh, memory, uh, for this, but I have two excellent assistants scattered throughout the audience. Catherine Pugh, our Legal Counsel, will be able to correct me when I make errors of fact, and Marian Karr has been around for the entire existence of the Board, and she has a razor -sharp memory and will be able to give me clues too. The Board was created in 1997, and the immediate impetus for the creation of the Police Citizens Review Board was an unfortunate incident in 1996, the accidental shooting death of a citizen by a police officer. As a result of that, there was a good bit of, uh ... uh, I'm trying to think of the right verb. There was a lot of upset about that, and a lot of the people who were upset about that appeared, uh, here before the City Council during the Council meeting time when things not on the agenda can be discussed, and it was, uh, very, very time consuming. Obviously we want citizens to have the chance to talk about what is upsetting them, but the City Council as a result of that incident and the after effects of it, decided to create the Police Citizens Review Board. I believe, Catherine, it's the first and only one in the State of Iowa, uh, and actually one of the few in the nation. Uh, it provides a venue by which citizens who have a complaint about the behavior of a police officer have a place to come and register that complaint and know that it will be investigated and a... a conclusion will be reached, and the Police Department and the City Council will both be aware of what our conclusions are, as a result of the investigation and so on. But, uh, structurally, the Board was created in 1997, and there was, uh, some revision of it in 2001, and then the major revision of it in 2007. I thought I would, uh, point out that one of the things that the Board does, must do, is to, uh, have a good working relationship with the Iowa City Police Department, and I do want to say here that through the administrations of Chief Winklehake and Chief Hargadine, that has been true, and a member of the Police Department is present at our meetings, both to provide information and also to answer questions and to carry, uh, questions and information from the PCRB back to the Police Department. We've been very fortunate to have as our representatives from the Police Department both Chief Hargadine and Chief Winklehake have appeared at our meetings, but for the most part, our representative from the Police Department has been Captain Matt Johnson or Captain Tom Widmer. Captain Widmer is now retired and Captain Rick Weiss is, uh, the usual representative. They are there to, as I say, answer questions and to report, uh, back to the Chief if we have things that we want to discuss with him. I'm reading now from the ordinance and I want to be sure that you are clear about that, uh, there's one section of the ordinance that says, `The Board shall have no authority over Police disciplinary matters.' Also, another section says, `The Board is not intended to be a Court of Law, a torte claim process or other litigation process.' Another thing, and, uh, Greg, who's going to talk about the complaint process may get into this. `A complaint of the Board may be filed by any person with personal knowledge of the incident.' Now, during the, uh, time that I have been on the Board we have, uh, had complaints filed before the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board that complained about the behavior of an officer of the Iowa State Highway Patrol, uh, one about the This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board - Community Forum Page 3 University of Iowa Police. Those are not within our purview, not within our jurisdiction, and they have to be summarily dismissed. I think it would be very, very helpful if the public were very, very clear on that. It is the Iowa City Police Department and the officers of it that are the issue here. When we, uh, receive a complaint, there is a particular process and Greg will get into that, so I won't need to, but I, uh, do want to, uh, point out in the ordinance that not only do we have the right to subpoena, which was given to us last November, but prior, I shouldn't say "us" anymore. I'm not on it — excuse me! Uh, there are various levels of review. When we get a complaint, there are various levels of review that we can decide to use. We can, uh, refer ... we do refer ... we did, they do, refer the complaint to the, uh, Chief of Police who then, uh, does the investigative process and sends a report to us. We can accept that report on the record with no additional investigation; however, we can also, should we wish to, we can meet with the complainant. We can meet with other witnesses, as far as that goes. We can meet, uh, with the officers who are the subject of the complaint, although they have the right not to meet with us, and sometimes they have and sometimes they have not. We can request the Chief to do additional investigation. We can conduct our own investigation and we've always been able to do that, uh, and hire our own investigators, but now we do have subpoena powers. I was thinking before I came tonight of an instance when we might have wished to use the subpoena power before we had it, and the only time I can think of that that would have been an issue was one case — I'll try to ... try to keep from divulging anything confidential here ... the complainant lived in Iowa City and we were able to interview the complainant, but there were witnesses to the incident that the complaint was about and the witnesses lived in a faraway large city. We would have liked to talk to those witnesses and we did not have subpoena power; however, the Iowa City Police Department in their investigation also wished to talk to those witnesses, and so they engaged the services of the Police Department in that distant large city, but it turns out that the, uh, witnesses, people involved as witnesses, had evidently given false names and addresses and telephone numbers so the police in that faraway distant city were unable to locate them. So the subpoena power, which we might have liked to use, would have been fruitless; we couldn't have found them either, I don't think. The Iowa City Press - Citizen article also noted that not very many complaints come before the Police Review Board, uh, and it cites that in 2008 we had six, fiscal year 2007 we had four. If they'd gone back one more year, fiscal 2006, we had 13. So, picking one or two years doesn't quite do it. I believe in the initial year or the second year was the peak number of complaints, and Catherine will help me with the numbers. It's in the 20's or 30's, which one was it? Pugh/ I think it may have been up to the 30's, Loren, and that was before my tenure, so ... um, but it ... (both talking) Horton/ I'm thinking that it was either 27 or 33, uh, complaints. Uh, now the issue of number of complaints, uh, can be looked at two ways. I'm probably getting far afield from the history, but it's a venue by which I can say what I think here. The, This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 4 uh, small number, few number of complaints, whatever is grammatical there, uh, may be an indication, and I hope it is, that the Police Department is doing a crackerjack job and there are no complaints against it. It may also be the ignorance of the people who might like to fire up complaints that they don't know how, they don't know they can. There's also the fact that they can file complaints with the Police Department itself, without coming to us, and contrary to what was said in one previous public forum, during my eight years we did have one other public forum, a citizen suggested that we stand down on the Ped Mall at midnight and hand out, uh, complaint forms, and we didn't think that was a very sensible thing, and so we did not do that. At any rate, I don't think the number of complaints, nor even the disposition of the complaints is a way to judge the need for the Police Citizens Review Board and the effectiveness of it, or uh, much else of what is going on. I think that I have covered enough of the history of it, uh, now and we probably should get into the complaint review process, which is really the meat of the matter. Thank you, Mike. Larson/ Thank you, Loren. Item number three, presentation by PCRB Member, Greg Roth, the complaint filing process. Greg. Presentation by PCRB Member, Greg Roth — PCRB Complaint Filing Process: Roth/ Okay, uh, created a PowerPoint for this, so if you'd like to look at that ... you don't need to. Um, but basically, but what I want to get across is if you have a complaint for the PCRB, um, how you would convey that, and it's, uh, it's not that difficult. You submit it to the PCRB, uh, you can submit a complaint through the Police Department or you can submit a complaint to both, either or both is fine. Um, there are many places you can get the complaint form, um, City Clerk in the City Hall, right across the hall here. You can get `em at the Police Department. You can get `em at the Iowa City Library, uh, the City of Iowa City has a web site, um, and I believe that you can go on there and print them off. So there are ... there are numerous ways or places that these are. If you'd like the web site, it's just icgov.org which is very common governmental -type web site. Now, we have limitations by the City Code that when we can and can't, um, hear a complaint, and one of them is time, and a complaint has to be filed at the City Clerk's office within 90 days of the incident, or the time that the complaint is about. Um, it is a simple, it is or it isn't within that timeframe. If it's not within that timeframe, we cannot hear it. Uh, it's not that we may not want to, um, we can't because the City Code section states it has to be within those 90 days. Now, first step is basically that we will receive, uh, the complaint form through the Clerk's office, and we forward it to the Chief of Police. Uh, as Loren was talking about, we have, um, ways in which we can investigate it ourselves, but that only comes after we receive the Chief's report and information that they have provided us and then we make a determination on that. So first the complaint goes to the Chief of Police. The Chief of Police assigns, uh, someone within the Police Department to carry out the investigation. If the complaint itself is against the Chief of Police, then the complaint is forwarded to the City Manager for that This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 5 investigation. And I am not sure if...if they would probably turn to an outside source for an investigation, but I'm not sure. ...getting a little off the screen here. Okay. Um, throughout this whole, um, process there are several time limits, uh, that we are placed under, and sometimes they work and sometimes they don't, and we need to ask for extensions, uh, one of them has to do with the Chief's investigation, and it needs to be completed within 90 days, and then the report, um, needs to be sent to the Police Citizens Review Board. Um, it is a ... a report that is very detailed, um, it's not a brief summary. It, uh, brings other pieces of evidence, such as the result of the interviews, um, audio, video, etc., from the squad cars and there's a lot of things that we can look at, before we decide how to proceed. Uh, if a good cause is shown for an extension, um, if the Chief requests an extension and we as a Board feel that he has a good cause, uh, then we will grant an extension, um, to extend that deadline, as far as when the Chief's report has to be to us. I kind of went ahead of myself here, but ... there are actually many sources that the Chief can use, um, to provide us with information. Uh, they ... they will interview the officers involved, uh, they will interview complainants, uh, if they can they will interview other witnesses, uh, like Loren was talking about with the one situation. Sometimes that's very, uh, difficult to do, uh, but they try, um, repeatedly, um, before they ... before they would give up. Um, the police -in -car video and audios, um, have really helped the Board. Um, they are, uh, a new tool, um, I guess. Uh, and it...it really clarifies a lot of situations for us. Now, with... sometimes in a complaint, there are more than one allegations. Sometimes there's one allegation, two allegations, or more, and the Chief's report will come to a conclusion on all of those allegations, and basically is the complaint, or the allegation sustained, or is it not sustained. And generally, this is the same thing that we are thinking about when we look at the Chief's report. Copies of the Chief's report go to the complainant. They go to the PCRB. They go to the police officers that are involved directly, and they go to the City Manager. And so before we have even started, um, to think about what we are going to do with this complaint, it is pretty well distributed. First thing, uh, that we're going to do is we're going to talk about what level of review we are going to use, and Loren covered that very well, as far as are we going to investigate it on just the, uh, just the facts we have. Are we going to call for more, uh, witnesses, you know, and now we have a subpoena power, uh, where we can actually compel people to come before us. Uh, the majority of the time, uh, we feel very comfortable that the Chief's report has been very thorough and is accurate and we really don't need anything else. Um, but we will do that as the evidence, as we see it before us, if we think something, um, you know, maybe we need a little bit more or something like that, we will ... will ask (mumbled) Oh, if you want the section that these are under, if you'd like to look it up, um, City Code it is Title 8, Chapter 8 of the City Code, so it's 8.8 -7. Thank you. Okay, when we have discussed the allegations and the Chief s report as they pertain to the allegation, or as it does, we will then, um, as a board, um, make certain decisions. If we sustain or ... or don't sustain what the Chief s report has said, and actually it's very, um, it's very ... what? Stated in a certain way. We have to decide basically is the Chief s report, you know, capricious or, you know, other kinds of words that are This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 6 in the City Code, um, but we are supposed to do that within 45 days. Sometimes, again, uh, due to ... we only meet once a month, there are other things. We can't, um, always meet this deadline so we can request the City Council for an extension, and that has not been a problem, that I know of, since, um, since we've ... since I've been on the Board anyway. And our report ends up an awful lot, and not necessarily in substance, but in form, uh, like the Chief's. We come to a conclusion of the allegations, and we support what the Chief has found or we, uh, don't support it. I mean, we find it's not sustained or it is sustained. And then, copies of our report go to the complainant, the police officers, the City Manager, and the City Council. And here's the wording, um, from the Code. Uh, we may recommend a reversal of the Chief's findings if they are unreasonable, arbitrary, capricious, or are contrary to Police Department policy or practice, or any federal, state, or local law. Uh, we get, um, copies of the Police Department's policies and practices as they are updated, and um, we also have available as all, as you do, um, through the internet of all the policies that the Police Department has and so if there is something that is, you know, unreasonable or inconsistent with those, we may recommend reversal. Now as far as the Board's actual authority, um, we have very, very limited, um, power. We can review, and we can suggest, um, but that's about it. Um, we don't have any power over... or discipline that the Chief may use or may not use. Um, we can make recommendations, and uh, we have a couple times in the past, um, but as far as actually deciding a criminal matter or a civil matter, we don't have that—that power. If you would like to get a hold of the Police Citizens Review Board, uh, the address is here, 410 E. Washington Street, Iowa City, Iowa 52240. The telephone number – 356 -5041 and again, um, I'll take you back to the City web site at icgov.org. Larson/ Thank you, Greg. Item number four, presentation by representative from the Iowa City Police Department, Captain Rick Wyss, and unfortunately Captain Wyss is going to have to depart immediately after this. He has other business to attend to, so I will hand it over to you, Sir. Presentation by Representative From the Iowa City Police Department – ICPD Formal/Informal Complaint Process: Wyss/ Thank you, and thanks for having me. I think the way I want to start this out. I was asked to give a presentation on the process that we follow when we receive a complaint. And first thing I want to address is there's a, uh, this item number four is listed as ICPD formal/informal complaint process. I want to make it very clear that the Iowa City Police Department policy does not provide for any informal process of a complaint review. The informality only speaks to the manner in which we receive those complaints. A formal complaint is one which is written out, signed with a name. However, at the Police Department we take any number of complaints from a number of different sources. The source can come from emails, from letters, from phone calls, from a face -to -face with a watch commander, and those complaints are accepted, and once we're at the stage where This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board – Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 7 there's a complaint and we've identified a complaint and the possibility of problematic behavior the procedure becomes formal. And so if I can just emphasize that there is no informal investigative process. The informality of this is only in the manner in which we receive that complaint. We, like the PCRB we don't have a time line. We've accepted complaints that have been well beyond 90 days, uh, as limited by the PCRB and typically the process that occurs is when a complaint comes in, if it comes in from the PCRB or from a formal complaint, it goes through the Chief's office and it is assessed or it's evaluated. If a complaint is received through a watch commander, again, it is evaluated in the same manner. The complaint is looked at, at face value. An evaluation's made trying to determine if given all the circumstances described in this complaint, if everything in it is accurate and true, what is the likely disciplinary action that's going to happen. If it's a minor infraction and the disciplinary action is likely to be, uh, at a level of counseling the officer, uh, additional training, maybe a, uh, minor written reprimand, then a supervisory review will take place. And the supervisor will at that time try to talk to the complainant if they're available; identify any witnesses, if they need to contact them; they'll certainly speak with the officer; uh, review any physical evidence, such as the in -car camera systems; and they'll try to make a determination on if the complaint is sustained or not sustained. In any event, regardless of what happens, the supervisor at that point will complete a report, which will be filtered through the chain of command, up to the commander of field operations, as well as the Chief of Police. Uh, the supervisor can take immediate steps to remedy this complaint. If it's like I said counseling or up to a minor written reprimand, it's reviewed by the Chief of Police and the Chief can certainly agree with that assessment, or he can disagree and ask that further information be, uh, obtained or further investigation be completed. If during that review process the allegations are more significant and the disciplinary action is more punitive, such as suspension or the officer gets days off, or um, demotion or termination of employment, at that point an internal investigation is assigned usually to two inves ... two supervisors will conduct the investigation. Those investigations are conducted very similarly to criminal investigations. We gather all the evidence we possibly can. We interview the witnesses. We interview the officers, and we interview the complainant. The one exception to the criminal case is when we interview the officer, we have the authority to compel the officers to make a statement. Uh, they don't have a choice. They have to answer the questions set forth before them. So, at any time during this process, if we develop probable cause that a criminal offense has occurred, that there's been a violation of state, local or federal laws, then we have to consult with the City Attorney's office and review where we're going to go with that, if other agencies have to be notified, if another agency will be called and asked to do a joint criminal investigation, alongside the internal investigation, and the reason that's important is when we do the internal investigation and we compel the officers to make those statements, those statements cannot be used in any subsequent criminal investigation. So, those two investigations must be kept separate and for that reason we usually call in an outside agency, get the DCI or other agency to conduct the criminal aspect of the investigation. The goal is to have these This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 8 investigations completed within 60 days, and the—the investigators, or the supervisor who are conducting those investigations have five separate classifications where they can classify their findings. The first one is unfounded. Unfounded means that the evidence clearly shows that the allegations that were made are not true. The second one is exonerated, and that's a situation where the investigation shows that, uh, the allegations as stated are true, however, the officers were legally justified within the policy when they committed those acts. We can classify the allegation as not sustained, and that means that there's not sufficient evidence to say either way that the allegations did occur, or that the allegations did not occur. The allegations can be, uh, classified as sustained, whereby the investigation clearly shows that the allegations as stated occurred. The fifth classification we have is policy failure, and that's a situation where the allegations as stated were true, the investigators feel that those actions were inappropriate; however, they were acting within the policy and procedures at ... of the Police Department. At that time the main focus would be on the policies and procedures, and to, uh, make the corrections necessary. Once that report is completed, the investigators will also recommend any disciplinary action, if necessary, and again, it's filtered up through the chain of command. It is reviewed by the cap ... commander of field operations and it's also reviewed by the Chief of Police. Anyone of those two levels can return that for further investigation to have other questions answered, and at the point where the Chief is satisfied with the investigation, he's the one that makes the final determination on any disciplinary action. The Chief is allowed to consider previous disciplinary actions, as well as employment history, when he makes that determination or disciplinary decision. Uh, in any event, all complaints, all sustained complaints are retained in the employee's personnel file. Any of the other complaints are retained in the internal investigations file, but it's not like they sit there and gather dust. Those complaints are reviewed, uh, those complaints are reviewed for evaluation purposes on the officers, that those complaints were filed against. They're also reviewed to assess training and equipment needs and assessments. They're reviewed to assess the needs to change policies and procedures, as well to assess the adequacy of supervision on the street. Ideally, we'd like to never hear a complaint about any officer, but the reality is things are going to happen. Sometimes officers makes mistakes, or sometimes there's just situations that could be handled better, and we've always been open to getting that feedback, so if there's corrections to be made, we want to be able to make those corrections, and um, we're also open to positive reinforcement. If officers are out there doing a good job, we like to hear that information too and pass that on. Thank you. Larson/ Thank you. Item number five, public discussion with the Police Citizens Review Board. Please—please state your name and speak slowly we can get it on record. Public Discussion With Police Citizens Review Board: Able/ My name is Dean Able. I'm a citizen of Iowa City. First I'd like to thank the Board Members, past and present, and welcome the new members, and thank you This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 9 for your service to the community. I feel it's a very important service, and I appreciate the time and effort that you take. I have one question that, um, partly a point of fact that I may have misunderstood something that Mr. Roth said, um, but I think one concern of people ... is the issue of multiple complaints from a citizen complainer, or multiple allegations against a particular officer. And I think we can see why this is important. Some citizens may be cranks, and make multiple complaints, and this needs to be considered. On the other hand, if a particular officer would receive multiple complaints, this in itself, I think, is an issue. My understanding is that when you examine the complaints in executive session, that the complainer and the officers are anonymous. If that understanding is correct, I'm interested in the comment Mr. Roth made about the use of audio and visual tapes. Obviously anonymity would not be preserved in executive session, if you were seeing this material, and I recall attending a recent meeting of the Board where this problem of anonymity in tapes was discussed and actually, uh, was presented as a reason not to use those tapes as evidence to the Board. So my question or concern is, uh, are the tapes really available to the Board to view and listen to, and second, what kind of safeguards do you have to handle or to be aware that a particular officer is receiving multiple complaints, or that a particular citizen is making multiple complaints? Am I clear? Thank you very much. Larson/ Thank you. To make sure I understand your question, you're asking about the use of the in -car audio and visual, uh, evidence, and your second part of the question is, multiple complaints against the same officer? Okay. Um (unable to hear other person talking) sure. Able/ What I'm asking is, do you have in ... do you have a process to track this kind of information? Larson/ Track multiple complaints against an officer? Able/ Yes, rather than saying we have four complaints against four different officers, is a very different thing than recognizing that you have four complaints against a single officer, just as having four complaints from four citizens is a lot different than having four complaints from one citizen. Are you able to evaluate that ... is my concern. Larson/ Thank you. Roth/ I'll address both of those. Um, first as far as the audio /video concerns, um, presently, um, we cannot view the video portions of the tapes because they haven't found a way to keep the, uh, the officer's identity hidden, um, because it's difficult because the officer's moving around, etc. We have, uh, accessed through the audio portions and that is ... so we have access to those, okay, so right now we're kind of half and half, um, as ... I hope that addressed the first concern, and the idea obviously is, if a way can be found, um, hopefully we'll see audio sometime. I would love to. Um, there ... they can clear up a lot of things very This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 10 quickly. Um, the second, um, item is about multiple complainants or multiple ... of complaints against an officer or multiple complaints by one person. As a board, um, we need to stay neutral, and for us to have information about a certain officer having numerous complaints against them, or on the other hand, a complainant bringing many questions before the Board, um, may very well or could prejudice the Board, and the idea of us not knowing who they are is to prevent this kind of prejudice in our decision making. And so we take each incident as it occurs on the facts of that incident. That kind of...of information as Captain Wyss stated would be used by the Chief, who of course the officers are not, um, you know, anonymous here, and would use that in a disciplinary action, um, but we do not have... Able/ I asked this question, uh, at a Board meeting and received an answer verified by Council, that the officers were assigned a number, therefore, you would not know the identity of the officer, their anonymity would be preserved. But if number 27 kept showing up, my understanding was this is the way the information is presented, that every officer has a secret number and that that number is in the report, and so you would recognize if there was an officer who was the subject of multiple complaints. That's what I was told. Am I in error? Or is that the way it's done? Roth/ I don't believe that's the way it's done, but I will refer to Counsel on that. Pugh/ May I, Greg ... okay. Um, I did and that is the case. There are numbers assigned to the officers, uh, the PCRB does not keep track of those numbers and for the reason, particularly that Mr. Roth addressed, we're trying not to take into consideration past events whenever a complaint is reviewed, and furthermore, even if the PCRB did note multiple complaints against one particular officer, it wouldn't have any effect on how they handled the complaint, because they have no power over the consequences to the officer, and I have one small correction. The PCRB is aware of the complainants' identities. So we do know if we've got several complaints from one particular complainant. Does that help? You're welcome. Roth/ There have been situations where information has led me to I know who the officer is, and I've excused myself from that ... from that case. Cox/ Jeffrey Cox (unable to hear others talking) hi, I'm Jeff Cox, I was, uh, one of the, first again, I want to repeat what Dean said and thank you for taking on this job. There's better ways to spend an evening, I'm sure! Uh, and uh, I really think that having a degree of accountability to the police is really fundamental to a democracy in making that visible and you do that, and I, uh, really appreciate the work that you do on this. Um, one of the jobs of the PCRB as I understand it is also to give advice to the City Council on policing policy, not internal matters but on policing policy generally, and that's one of the things I want to address tonight, uh, because we're in the middle of a debate about a new jail, and one of the This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 11 distinctive things about Iowa City is that we... city taxes don't go to pay for the jail, but we fill it up, we being the City. Uh, and ... and it puts the Sheriff in a rather difficult position because, uh, County taxes go for it and the Sheriff goes for it. Uh, I was the treasurer of a, uh, political action committee called the Citizens for Alternative to a New Jail, which uh, conducted essentially a campaign against, uh, the bond issue for the new jail, back in 2000. Uh, and uh, you know, one of our arguments then was that we should try to reduce the need for a jail by reducing the volume of people who are going to the jail. The current jail holds, I believe, 96 people, double - bunked. The jail proposed in 2000 held 330, uh, proposals for the new jail run 250 to 420, and so forth. Uh, we need about 150 a night at peak, in order to accommodate our current flow of prisoners into the jail, and uh, I myself think we need a new jail. I just...I'm worried though that we are going to overbuild it. Now, when ... in terms of capacity... when the bond issue failed in 2000, and you may recall that the ... the jail got 30% of the vote in Iowa City. It needed 60% countywide, it got 30% in Iowa City and it got 35% countywide, so it was a disastrous failure. I mean, it was an extraordinary rejection of...of a jail. Uh, the uh, Sheriff, Lonnie Pulkrabek, uh, actually campaigned on and has carried out his campaign promises to work to find new alternatives to the jail, to try to find ways to keep up with people who are outside the jail, to use electronic bracelets, to use diversion programs, uh, of course what he's trying to do is build a case for a new jail by showing that things are being done to reduce the capacity, or reduce the need for it. Our court system has gotten drug courts and diversion programs at work, in cooperation with the County Attorney, but as near as I can tell, the Iowa City Police Department has been completely uncooperative in this. That is, it is the one body that has done nothing to help, uh, reduce the demand for the new jail. Uh, and I've got the ... the Department of Public Safety puts arrest rates for different, uh, counties in Iowa on the web, and you know, I ... they're very slow in getting them up, but on the last year that I looked, uh, which was I believe 2006, uh, the arrest rate for drugs in Iowa City was, this isn't the number of arrests, it's the rate per 100,000. There were 798 arrests per 100,000 people. The comparable arrests in Ames, same size town, same number of students, uh, 188 per 100,000. One - quarter the arrest rate. I ... and, I mean, there's ... we have a good reason to believe there's more alcohol being consumed in Iowa City, but we have no reason to think there's more marijuana being smoked, none whatsoever. Uh, you know, and also if you look at the arrests for public intoxication, the Iowa City Police arrest rate for public intox, 1,536 per 100,000. The Ames City Police arrests was zero. They arrested not one single person for public intoxication. The, uh, the, uh, apparently they leave that to the Iowa State and University police. Now, we have 50 bars in downtown Iowa City and there are only 14 in Ames, because we have a 19- year -old drinking age, and so we've got a problem with alcohol, but the problem with marijuana is a rather different matter. Uh, we are taking very large numbers of people to jail who spend the night in jail and take the County resources for this. Many of them arrested not even for simple possession, but for constructive possession, which is an arrest of someone who's in the room where someone else is in possession of marijuana, and I think it's going to be very difficult as long as the Iowa City This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 12 Police continue this high arrest policy, and I don't think Iowa City is over policed in terms of numbers, but I ... if you look at the figures, you would assume we're over policed, but I ... I don't think we have too many police officers, but these are questions of policy. They're questions of police policy. And I think it's, you know, there ... more recent statistics, these statistics that were in place before Chief Hargadine came in place. There might be better ones. I hope there are, and I would be delighted to see that there are, but I think we're going to have a very hard time, uh, persuading voters to build a large new jail if we don't have some visible modifications in policing policy in Iowa City, and I think we ought to do that. We ought to be good citizens and ... and try to cooperate with the Sheriff and the court system. So, I'd encourage you to pass these views on to the City Council. Thank you. Hanson/ My name is Peter Hanson. I'm a resident of Iowa City. I have, uh, several issues, although they overlap with what's already been said. Uh, first of all, I'm not personally familiar with any of the five of you, and I'm kind of curious, I assume this is not a high- paying job serving on this Board, and I'm wondering what you do in the real world, and do any of you have law enforcement experience or are any of you attorneys or what sort of background you have. That's the first one. Uh, second one, follow up on Dean's. Did I understand correctly that, back in the year when you got 27 complaints, if they were all a complaint about the same officer, you would not... you would not know that? Or did I misunderstand the answer? Pugh/ And again, that was before my tenure. They may have known that it was against the same officer, but it would not have had any effect on how they handled each complaint. That would have been a matter for the Police Department. That would have been a disciplinary matter. Hanson/ So the impetus of accumulative problem, uh, the Board doesn't make recommendations or anything. It's up to the... Pugh/ It's outside the purview of the Board. Hanson/ Uh, third item, a friend of mine said she submitted a letter, uh, in which she made a suggestion or recommendation and she was told that recommendations were outside of the purview of the Board. The Board simply handles complaints and nothing else, which would also relate to what, uh, Jeff Cox said, uh, he's making a suggestion and a change in police policy. Is ... is that something which this Board is open to hear, and to pass on if they feel so inclined, or uh, does the Code simply say that all they can do is deal with complaints? Uh, fourth item, uh, Mr. Horton in his remarks indicated that ... that you are the only Police Citizen Review Board in the State of Iowa, and I don't doubt that, but he also added that you're one of very few in the nation, and I don't think that's correct. I think many large cities have, uh, police review boards, citizen review boards of some type, but I could be wrong. So anyway, going back to the beginning of the list, could This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 13 you introduce yourself and give a little background on who you are and ... and specifically, uh, do you have any law enforcement experience, any criminal justice experience, legal experience and so forth. Larson/ Thank you. Would you like to begin? Braverman/ Sure. I'm Janie Braverman. I am new to the Board as of the first of this month, first of September. I have 24 years experience in the practice of law, not in the criminal, uh, arena. I was a real estate and business and environmental lawyer in Denver for 24 years. I've been in Iowa City for four and you're right. This is not a high paid position. It's actually volunteer position. You're correct about that. King/ I'm Don King, and um, I've been on the Board since June of 2007. Uh, was a police officer for five and a half years in Anchorage, Alaska, and uh, I joined, uh the Board as a volunteer. Larson/ My name's Mike Larson. I'm a program manager at a local company, and I've been on the Board for three years; been a citizen of Iowa City for 35. Roth/ My name is Greg Roth, and I have ten years of law enforcement experience, and I've been teaching criminal justice for 14 years since that. Um, I'm pretty much a life -long, well, guess I can't say that yet, but um, up to now, I've only spent eight years of my life outside of the Iowa City, North Liberty, Coralville area so uh, left for a while and then came back. So I pretty much call this my home. Yoder/ My name is Abbie Yoder. I'm a recent graduate of the University, but I've been here six years. Um, I don't have any law enforcement experience. I work here at the City as a flood recovery assistant currently, and I don't know if that covers pretty much (mumbled) Hanson/ And the question regarding recommendations — does this Board have any authority beyond handling complaints. Guess you're probably in the best position to... Pugh/ Yeah, the Code does allow for the Board to make recommendations to the Police Department or to the City Council about police. Hanson/ Well, then I'm curious as to why my friend was, when she submitted a letter, I think was told by Kellie that, uh ... some reason it wasn't appropriate. Pugh/ I just, I looked at the letter very briefly. I... Hanson/ I don't refer to the content of the letter, but ... is it appropriate for someone to submit a letter to the Board, making a recommendation regarding a certain practice or something. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 14 Pugh/ Certainly, I... Hanson/ So Jeff was not out of order, uh, suggesting you change a policy, in other words. Pugh/ Well, no, we can't change a policy. Hanson/ He's not out of order suggesting that you recommend to the Police that they change a policy or something. Pugh/ No, it's not out of order, but, yeah, I mean, the simple answer is that the PCRB can make recommendations under their ordinance to the Council and to the Police Department. Hanson/ Which means that citizens like Jeff can suggest that they make a recommendation, and they may or may not... Pugh/ And I believe he did that, made that request. Sure. Hanson/ Thank you. Larson/ Thank you. Dieterle/ I guess, Dean, that those of us who didn't sign in ahead are supposed to sign up so you should... Larson/ I wrote your name down. Dieterle/ Oh, okay. Um, I'm Caroline Dieterle and I am a citizen of Iowa City. I've lived here since 1968. And I am very glad that we have the Board, that you people are serving on, and I thank you all so very much for your time and your effort that you're putting into this, because I know that it does, uh, take a chunk out of your personal time, and I'm grateful. Um, when I heard that there were, uh, few complaints, you know, I think that few complaints is an evidence of a good situation, and not evidence that, uh, it's an underused resource of some sort that isn't doing anything. I think that it's very reassuring, uh, for the people of Iowa City to know that we do have this Board. And using once again, as we did in the campaign, the analogy of an insurance policy, um, you buy an insurance policy and it's very nice to have one, even if you never make any claims on it, because that means that things have been peaceful. And speaking of peaceful, I also would like to, uh, make a suggestion for you to say something to the Council, um, I agree very much with what Professor Cox said, um, I know because of my time, um, working at the University that the social sciences in particular have become very fond of quantifying things. They want to emphasize the science part of social science. And of course to do that that means gathering a lot of statistics, and in order to get the statistics, uh, you know, let's say if you're a police This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 15 department, that means you know the number of stops, the number of arrests, and so forth that are made. And I, just as I think that it's a faulty way to look at history or economics or any of the other social sciences, I think it's a faulty way to look at the police department too, because to me a successful police department keeps the peace, and if people are not bothering anyone, um, regardless of what they're putting into their bodies in terms of alcohol or marijuana, um, if they're not bothering anyone else and they're not committing any property crimes and they're not driving intoxicated, um, the best thing to do is leave them alone and have the police concentrate their efforts on trying to find the people that commit the assaults, the burglaries, the vandalism, that sort of thing that we have had more or less a rash of lately. And I think, speaking with people who live in my neighborhood, that that is a sentiment that is not mine alone. I think a lot of people respect the work that the police do and that under, uh, Chief Hargadine, in particular, I think things have improved over the last couple of years since he was hired. Um, but you know as Professor Cox mentioned, um, you know, gathering statistics of how many traffic stops are made or how many PAULA arrests there are, um, to me isn't the measure of a good police department. So I don't figure ... so I don't favor those things. Um ... it's easy to think that because we're a bigger town that that means that we have to have more crime. You know, I don't really believe that that's true. Um, I think the things that cause more crime, uh, are other factors that come into play, and uh, so I don't think that it's being foolish to think that we can go back to the age that I can remember when I came to town here, when the police did basically keep the peace. I mean, if you did anything bad, you were in big trouble. You just ... they caught whoever did it! And um, I worked at the jail as an interviewer and so I knew basically who was being pulled in, and I think a very good job was done by local law enforcement. Um, and I think that, you know, I work at the paper now, the University Daily Iowan, and I tend to hang out where the students are and I think most of, the vast majority of the students are very, very, uh, peace loving people who aren't about to make trouble for anybody. Um, I'm always glad when I read the police review ... police, the police report in the paper and I see that somebody who's been arrested for public intox has also been arrested because they've done something else. You know, they've done something that would tend to indicate that they have been, you know, in an antisocial attitude. Um, you know, they have urinated in public, they have gotten into a fight, um, you know, they've done something else. Um, the arrests where it's just simply a case of PAULA, nothing else, or simple possession of marijuana, uh, I always wonder whether the person in ... in this case was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, and became a statistic. And I think that the less we have of that, you know, the better off we are. Um, but as I said, by and large, um, we live in a very nice community and I think most people want to keep it that way and I think if you say something to the City Council, I'd be very appreciative. Thank you. Larson/ Thank you. Okay, item number six, consider a motion... certainly, please! Fidelis/ I didn't sign up because I didn't intend to, uh, make a statement. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 16 Larson/ Sure. Fidelis/ I'd like to reiterate what Caroline has said and a few other statements. Larson/ Can we get your name, please? Fidelis/ Uh, my name is Libris Fidelis. I'm a member of Johnson County Green Party and I'm also a resident of downtown, uh, downtown Iowa City. Um, my involvement with the City Police Department has been very sparse. It's only been happenstance, and occasional official business when I wasn't at fault for anything. So, uh, from what I have seen from pretty much a distance without evaluating the Police Department itself is that the officers and the, uh, Police Chief are very professional. I find the officers to be very, uh, congenial, very fair and honest. I don't know about certain incidents; however, I would like to give a... a background idea about other cities, such as in Los Angeles where there's a terrible conflict between the citizens and the police department, who has been known since the 1930's to conduct civil investigations that were, uh, predatory on the public, and then there was also St. Louis where I lived for three years, and uh, the city council and the mayor were very much against having any citizens on the police review board. Uh, the thing was though that although most of the officers in St. Louis were dedicated and very good officers, um, it just kept coming up in the newspapers that there were shootings all the time of people that were illegitimate, and it just kept coming up and coming up, so the review board is still being pushed by many citizens to be formed, and um, we are very fortunate to have one here. Um, the thing about our review board is, uh, incidents can happen. Uh, the best police department in the world cannot have a, uh, police department that's totally free of any kind of, uh, malfeasance or whatever by individual officers who may come along occasionally, or even officers who in some kind of stress may make a bad decision, and that's where our citizen review board comes in. Um, the citizen review board prevents an issue from becoming dormant, or uh, overlooked or forgotten, and in this process it also shows a police department that there is a non - police department agency that does have the authority to review and consider what has happened, and that brings the issues up to the police department which keeps the police department aware that they also are a part of the community, that they're not just some overlord. Um, basically, uh, the only things I've seen that I really don't like is one thing, uh, by our police department was the harassment of certain bars. Now, I do not advocate the bar mentality. I don't like it, but it is a business and if people are willing to be responsible, and if the bars are responsible as businesses to not promote drunkenness in public and um, possible liabilities due to drunk driving and so forth, then um, for whatever reasons that they exist, uh, they have a right as a business because our society accepts this, and until our society decides that we don't want alcohol to be a part of our society, um, we basically have to treat them as a business, which is what City Council has maintained all along. But, there are incidents where the, um, police department has had certain campaigns against certain bars, and uh, I think This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 17 that basically if someone does something wrong, it should be cause and effect. It shouldn't be a matter of, well, we don't have much to do tonight so let's go out and at least justifying our being here by getting somebody into trouble. And that is very vaguely what I see on the undercurrent against these bars. Now, this is a city, uh, problem that has to be addressed, possibly by elections with the public deciding how they're going to regulate bars and so forth. But overall, I think that the police department has to take the same stance that cause and effect rules, and I think that's what needs to be promoted, and like I say, I think the Police Chief and the overwhelming majority of the police officers do an excellent, outstanding job, but there are these certain little incidents and we have to protect it, and that's what your job is there for, and I appreciate it. Thank you. Larson/ Thank you. Sure. Opstad/ My name's, uh, Galen Opstad. Larson/ I'm sorry? Opstad/ Galen Opstad, and um, I've been a member of, uh, citizen of Iowa City from 2003. I'm a super - senior, um, my first incident with, um, and only official one with the University, or with the police, was I received a PAULA from an officer when I was 19, and it turned into about a 20, 25- minute ordeal and I'm still friends with that officer today. It was a very pleasant conversation, um, had about two sips of my drink and it was the most expensive beer that I've ever had in my entire life! But, um, fortunately enough I've worked at enough downtown establishments that I've gotten to know other officers, and I ... I must say that I think Iowa City is a great town and from, uh, one of the reasons I just chose to speak is because nobody else my age has, and so I don't think you guys are aware of what goes on downtown, um, after 10:00, 12:00 at night. Um, I'm a political science major and social studies, and I also ... so I talk with, um, a lot of counselors and stuff and the amount of inebriations coming into, uh, clinical assessments, the, uh blood alcohol levels, the consistency of the levels are up. It used to be a. 15. A .3 is not uncommon these days, and there's been all these talk, this talk lately, editorials in the Daily Iowan's about these defenseless people that are trying to walk home drunk. When you're walking home with a .3 BAC, that's... that's when crime occurs. Maybe not that person, but something's going to happen to them, and that's proactive police work in my opinion. Um, that officer is saving that person from something terrible happening to them, and there's, they're not targeting anybody, um, and I would invite any of you to go downtown, um, on a Friday, Saturday night and see what ... what goes on just there, because it's a madhouse. It really is, but um, I've been fortunate, again, to know a couple guys and um, I really would like to say that this is a great down. So, um, I think you really should check out what goes on downtown and what they deal with, because it's ... it's not pretty. So... This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 18 Larson/ Okay. Thank you. Okay. Item number six, consider a motion to accept correspondence and/or documents. Consider a Motion to Accept Correspondence and/or Documents: King/ So motioned. Larson/ Motion by King. Roth/ Second. Larson/ Second by Roth. All in favor say aye. All opposed same sign. Motion carries. Any discussion? (mumbled) Has everyone read it? Okay, discussion? (several talking) Correct. Braverman/ I don't see why not. Is this the correspondence you were talking about? Um, is your—what's your friend's name? (unable to hear) Yes. Would you like to read it? Or did you want one of us to? (unable to hear) Sure. I'd be happy to do that. To Police Citizens Review Board forum input, please accept this letter as input for your September 6th hearing. I will be out of town and cannot attend. I would like to suggest that the Iowa City Police Department undertake a public information and enforcement campaign regarding state law on pedestrian rights. The trends in transportation toward increased use of public transportation, bicycles and walking, already popular in Iowa City, are being accelerated by the high cost of gasoline. The City of Iowa City and the Johnson County Council of Governments have recently adopted a complete streets policy which calls for planning all new or substantially rebuilt streets to accommodate bicycles and pedestrians. Yet, the majority of automobile drivers seem to be unaware of state laws, setting forth conditions under which pedestrians have the right of way. At any rate, most disregard these laws if they are aware of them. There is a fine stipulated for violation of these laws, yet I have never seen announcements of any citations or fines listed in the press. Iowa City has seen instances of pedestrian deaths due to disregard of these laws by motorists. I often feel that I am taking my life in my hands when attempting to cross streets legally at intersections. Some recent signage attempts by the City are a step in the right direction; however, motorists will not change their habits unless there is a consistent public information campaign, underscored by consistent police enforcement with imposition of fines for violations. This is not an unrealistic idea. There are other states in which this has become a statewide habit, and the pedestrian is regularly seated right of way when crossing legally. Chapter 321.327 of the Iowa Code provides that pedestrians have the right of way at "any-marked or unmarked crosswalk at an intersection." In addition, Chapter 321.353 provides that "drivers must stop at the sidewalk" when exiting or entering driveways. Chapter 321.329 provides that motorists must "avoid colliding with pedestrians." Let's begin to enforce these laws in Iowa City. Resources devoted to this will benefit many This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. September 16, 2008 Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum Page 19 more people than some other enforcement campaigns now underway. Thank you for your consideration. Carol Spaziani. Larson/ Thank you. No discussion then? All right, item number seven, consider a motion to adjourn. Adjournment: Yoder/ So moved. Larson/ Motion by Yoder. King/ I'll second. Larson/ Seconded by King. All in favor say aye. All opposed same sign. Motion carries. Thank you everyone. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City Police Citizens Review Board — Community Forum of September 16, 2008. POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD A Board of the City of Iowa City 410 East Washington Street Iowa City IA 52240 -1826 (319)356 -5041 November 19, 2008 Iowa City City Council City of Iowa City 410 E Washington St Iowa City, IA 52240 To Whom It May Concern: On September 16, 2008, the Police Citizens Review Board held its first formal community forum. Loren Horton (former member of the PCRB) presented a History and Summary of the PCRB. Greg Roth (current member of the PCRB) presented the PCRB Complaint Filing Process. Captain Rick Wyss (Iowa City Police Department) presented the ICPD Complaint Process. The PCRB then heard numerous citizen comments. One of the most notable occurrences at the forum was the support of the public for both the ICPD and the PCRB. We commend the ICPD for its continuing efforts to foster its good relationship with the public and are pleased to be a part of that effort. While a transcript of the community forum is available on the City website, the PCRB would like to summarize comments made by the public and to add its recommendations to the City Council. The public comments fell into three general categories. Tracking of Complaints. There was a fairly lengthy discussion of the process by which the PCRB tracks complaints, in which the public asked questions and members of the PCRB responded. The main concerns appeared to be whether the PCRB knows the identity of complainants (we do), whether the PCRB knows the identity of officers who are the subject of complaints (we know them only by Anonymous Officer Number unless a complaint is sustained), and whether the PCRB tracks that information (we do not, although ICPD does). Chief of Police Sam Hargadine also responded, in his letter dated September 22, 2008 (a copy of which is enclosed), that ICPD does have a Personnel Early Warning System that tracks this information. Pursuant to 8 -8 -2 D.1., the PCRB is charged with overseeing "a monitoring system for tracking receipt of formal complaints lodged against sworn police officers with either the board or the Iowa City police department." PCRB Recommendation: The PCRB is examining the issue of a monitoring system to track by Anonymous Officer Number those complaints which are sustained by the PCRB. The PCRB may make additional recommendations to the Chief of Police and /or the City Council regarding this matter. 2. Reduction of Arrests. Multiple members of the public commented, from different perspectives, on: the perceived need for anew jail; the need to reduce demand for a new jail (and to reduce the need for space in the current jail) by reducing arrests; a request to refocus ICPD attention from so- called victimless crimes (such as PAULA or simple possession of marijuana) to crimes against persons and property; proactive police work in arrests of those too intoxicated or otherwise impaired to be safe; and whether the ICPD targets or harasses particular bars in downtown Iowa City. Chief Hargadine's letter addresses those concerns: correcting a misperception that Ames, Iowa, has no arrests for Public Intoxication; explaining "indictable offenses" and the state law requirement that the offenders be arrested; citing Iowa State Code and public safety as reasons for transporting certain defendants to jail; and explaining that booking (i.e., fingerprinting and taking mug shots) occurs presently only at the jail. Chief Hargadine went on to say that he supports a "'Cite and Release' policy that would allow for an officer to release an arrestee on his or her signature promising to appear in court for some offenses." PCRB Recommendation: The PCRB also supports a "Cite and Release" policy. The PCRB would also support any appropriate alternative site and process for booking that would help to alleviate the overcrowding at the current jail site. 3. Pedestrian Safety. The PCRB received a letter, which was read into the record, suggesting that the ICPD undertake a public information and enforcement campaign regarding State law on pedestrian rights, with imposition of fines for violations. PCRB Recommendation: The PCRB supports the recommendation that the ICPD undertake an enforcement campaign, including imposition of fines for violations. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, KT (UL i aka. "J I Michael Larson, Chair Police Citizens Review Board cc: Chief Sam Hargadine, ICPD encl: Police Chief's letter dated 09/22/08 September 22, 2008 Mr. Michael Larson Chair, Police Citizens Review Board City of Iowa City Dear Mr. Larson and PCRB members, All of the citizens that spoke at Tuesday's hearing time you and the board take out of your busy sc sentiments and thank each of you for your service Iowa City. 410 E. WASHINGTON IOWA CITY, IA 52240 -1826 PH: 319 - 356 -5275 FAX: 319- 356 -5449 �l J ,' ry w made comments appreciative of the hedule. I would like to echo those and commitment to the citizen's of Recently the Iowa City Police Department was CALEA reaccredited for the Td straight time. Our policies & procedures meet the "Best Practices Standard" of all of the departments from across the nation. This in part is because of the role you play on the Police Citizen's Review Board. An investigative team traveled to Iowa City to inspect the ICPD and each policy is reviewed. Just having the policy isn't enough, we have to prove and document that we comply with our own policies. The accreditation committee that reviewed the inspection report was very supportive and complimentary of Iowa City's Police Citizen's Review Board. Your mere existence helped the reaccreditation process. would also like to thank the citizens that spoke at the hearing. It is important that the citizens have a trusting relationship with their police department and I heard nothing at the hearing that can't be worked out and discussed. I felt it very rewarding that even those that have philosophical differences with certain policies still spoke appreciatively of the Iowa City Police Department. Time and space prohibits me from commenting on all that was discussed but I would like to comment on a few of the highlights. Some concern was mentioned that the PCRB does not track the number of complaints against one particular officer. The ICPD does have a PEWS system or Personnel Early Warning System. This is a requirement of CALEA accreditation and a subsystem of our Internal Affairs process. The PEWS system is complex but it does track the behaviors, complaints and incidents that allow supervisors to intervene when possible triggering events occur that do not reach the level of a complaint. It was suggested that ICPD does not cooperate with `jail alternative initiatives' and that Ames PD had 0 arrests for Public Intoxication. Neither of these assertions is correct. There was a reporting glitch to the FBI that ICPD staff caught in time and corrected however Ames did not. If you check with Ames directly you will find that Ames has many Public Intoxication cases and is no better or worse than Iowa City. The assertion that ICPD takes too many people to jail is also incorrect and actually is a statement of perception. The fact of the matter is that cases like simple possession of marijuana are "indictable offenses." All Iowa peace officers are required by state law to book offenders of indictable offenses. To book means to fingerprint and mug shot and this occurs presently only at the jail. Some arrestees go to jail because their condition makes it unsafe to release them on their signature. I am very supportive of a "Cite and Release" policy that would allow for an officer to release an arrestee on his or her signature promising to appear in court for some offenses. It is not by ICPD policy that we transport these types of cases to jail. It is because of Iowa Code or public safety that we transport these types of defendants to jail and I would be the first to agree with you that many arrestees do not need to be incarcerated any longer than it takes to book them, assign a court date and if necessary take their bond. Lastly, it was asserted that ICPD harasses certain bars. The level of alcohol enforcement conducted by ICPD in the downtown area is a controversial issue. I frequently hear from both sides, that we're down there too much or we're not down there at all. The Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division abdicates all enforcement to the local level retaining administrative licensing authority. This puts local police departments and city code inspectors in the position of ensuring compliance with every law and ordinance on the books. This is a monumental task that would keep a team of full time inspectors busy. At the same time we have responsibility for keeping the peace throughout the rest of Iowa City. We receive tips on establishment abuses from a variety of sources and many times the complaints come from other liquor establishments. We have to take those tips where they lead and if an establishment is found to be violating state law then the next time there is an inspection they are likely to be re- inspected. The department tries to balance time spent in the downtown business district with the needs of the rest of the City. It is a vibrant area and when we are not present violent unprovoked assaults frequently occur along with vandalism and property damage. In closing I would like to reiterate that issues brought up in the forum are ofter6imes issues that I and my staff agree with however you have to look deeper at why3ae,do r . what we do. It's dialog and openness that creates public trust and on behalf 5,,afl of rt ,he a officers I appreciate your service and assistance with building that trust. �= nn Sincerely," '- r > sv S muel E. adine Chief of Police