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Charlotte Safe Communities Committee meeting happening now. Should be one worth watching. Watch here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=939135406497075
#ncpol #cltcc
#ncpol #cltcc
The community input committee representative is giving a rundown of their last meeting, while noting that due to the complexity of the events that occurred over the past two weeks in Charlotte they will be speaking about protests and police reaction more at their next meeting.
The group was debriefed by a legal expert on the rights of protesters as well as how and to what extent the government can regulate protests, including that it cannot crack down in a non-neutral way against certain groups but not others.
The legal expert shared that police officers showing they are sympathetic to the concerns of protesters it goes a long way to deescalate. "One of the biggest problems is that there are not enough consequences for misconduct, he shared."
There is now a request for more clarification around the 8 Can't Wait initiative, on the intervening portion, arbitrary profiling, association, and body cam.
There is nothing in policy, a rep for the input group is noting, saying body cams have to remain on. CMPD officers were seen turning them off during kettling incident, as well as covering them.
Also calling for mental health screenings as well as more information on how officers who have been disciplined for abuse of power are promoted or moved across the department.
Councilmember @DimpleAjmera is question why the only person disciplined for the kettling incident was the "Wave goodbye" sergeant. Jennings is saying he was disciplined for conduct unbecoming and that the rest of the issue is a possible excessive use of force concern.
Chief Jennings just said quite a few words and also said very little.
Councilmember Winston just told Jennings it is possible to store footage, and that it is not a tech issue but a budgetary and size issue. Winston works as a cameraman, so this is rather in his wheelhouse.
That really was a weird argument from Jennings, glad it got called out. Oh, now he's "not saying it's impossible." Changing his tune. He's "not sure what the cost implications are." Y'all got money. Who are you kidding? Not us.
Oh, the officers who were involved in the kettling got a talking to? Phew. That solves that. They really want to let everyone get away with this, don't they?
Now we're negotiating on how many hours we can get them to record? Maybe 5 out of 8? Lol, what?! Just hope you don't end up getting arrested or assaulted during off-camera-hours. This is getting silly.
Jennings tells Councilmember Johnson that it would make more sense to have policy around when the camera has to be on, not number of hours.
Councilmember Johnson says she saw video of a man being pepper sprayed where it looked like all he was doing was expressing his concern. She wants to know what the line is when it comes to use of force. Jennings says an act of aggression can include pushing a bike or confronting.
Jennings said someone once stole a police officer's bike. When did that happen? Also worth noting, when bikes are pushed it's generally because police are violently shoving them into protesters. Jennings is really spinning like mad out here.
A representative with My Brother's Keeper is talking about the importance of CMPD working in communities and local organizations to show more than just "symbolic engagement."
When Jennings said someone stole a police officer's bike, is he referring to when CMPD lied and claimed someone tried to steal a bike when they were pushing it away? And also lied about pepper spraying just one person? Is this the new version of the lie? https://twitter.com/jefftaylorhuman/status/1287143221336903686
City Manager Marcus Jones said he thinks CMPD does more for the youth in the community than most other city departments.
Councilmember @DimpleAjmera asked for an external audit of CMPD's budget. Seriously, how is that not already happening? Glad she brought it up.
Every time @Larken calls the city manager "Mr. Manager" I think of that scene in Arrested Development.
"We just say manager."
"But you just said--"
"Doesn't matter who."
"We just say manager."
"But you just said--"
"Doesn't matter who."
Councilmember Winston said he is surprised to hear Chief Jennings say there is an insignificant amount of resources from the operating budget allocated for programming. He says he has heard CMPD claim in the past that it was significant.
Councilmember Winston is asking for the city to divest from the DOJ funded CMPD programming in order to push for systemic change and have other departments offer funding and provide the programming instead. Councilmember Graham disagrees.
He believes CMPD should be engaged in such programming, as part of its role "and responsibility" within the community it polices.
We are now hearing some copaganda from CMPD about how much people like them when they show up to work with the youth.
It was just seconded. I'm not sure by whom. The city manager is seeking clarification about which council committee should be making such a motion. Ajmera is arguing for it being done in this committee.
Mayor Lyles is saying it was given over to the Budget and Effectiveness Committee, which is led by Councilmember Ed Driggs, one of the two Republicans on council.
Councilmember Driggs is speaking about what his committee has been told, and it sounds like it was vague and he doesn't sound like he is interested in digging deeper. He says he is "wary" of an external audit. I couldn't be less surprised that he's saying all this.
Driggs is complaining that it would take too long to go through each line, including every time a tire is replaced. So there's no room between a vague rundown handed to you by CMPD and going through it with a fine tooth comb to the point of absurdity? Give me a break.
Graham agrees with Driggs. So does Eiselt. Lyles just agreed to, I think? (She is good at being vague.)
Smuggie speaks for the firs time, says he's confused as to why they are talking about the audit when it was in another committee. Ajmera already explained that. She's going to have to explain it again, apparently.
Driggs says the motion is out of order, for starters. Now he's trying to scare them about the implications of an audit and questions the value of it. Again, not surprised. I could have written this script for him. You watch these enough you start to know what they'll say.
Winston says he is aware an audit would take a long time, but that there is great value that has come out of it, in places like Ferguson.
CMPD's budget is 40 percent of the overall budget. Councilmember Johnson is noting that it seems reasonable as a result to audit their budget. She asked why an external audit would take away from staff time, after Graham said he didn't want them spending all their time on it.
There has been a lot of this meeting now taken up by talking about what else they are supposed to be talking about right now.
Ajmera's motion for an external audit of CMPD is not successful. Councilmembers Mitchell, Watlington, and Eggleston all vote no. Councilmembers Ajmera and Johnson vote yes. (The other members present are not actually part of this committee: https://charlottenc.gov/CityCouncil/Committees/Pages/SafeCommunities.aspx)
CMPD is talking about officers being hit with frozen water bottles. Not saying I know that hasn't happened, and this is purely anecdotal, but even cold water out there is pretty rare, let alone frozen.
CMPD notes that three or more people "committing disorderly or violent conduct" constitutes a riot, which can result in a dispersal order.
When a dispersal order is given, says CMPD, not everyone has to hear it in the group, it just has to be loud enough for the group to reasonably be able to hear it.
Councilmember Eggleston is noting that if counterprotesters wanted to shut down a peaceful protest all they would have to do is show up with three or more and act disorderly or violent and then the event could be called a riot. This is a state statue, btw, not city or state.
Eggleston is asking if there could be an Amber Alert style notification given in areas where a dispersal order has been placed, or perhaps put up on a display board owned by private entities who might partner with the city. I'd like to hear a lawyer's thoughts on that idea.
CMPD is mentioning that counterprotesters showed up at a Marshall Park rally and they kept the groups separate. I believe they're talking about the Resist RNC event, when they pepper sprayed RNC protesters. They didn't declare it a riot but did use chemical weapons on folks.
Councilmember Winston asking about the constitutionality of individuals or government departments using social media to disseminate lies to the public, especially concerning events taking place as part of First Amendment activities.
Winston asking Jennings about CMPD's social media policies around conveying accurate and truthful information regarding incidents and policies. Jennings says his expectations is that they're putting out accurate information.
Jennings tells Winston if they are putting out misinformation intentionally there would be an internal investigation.
Councilmember Winston is trying to get CMPD to answer whether any behavior from officers during the "Project Anvil" kettling incident on June 2 would rise to the "manifest injustice threshold" necessary to trigger duty to intervene. CMPD is noting that wasn't policy yet.
Chief Jennings says if that was policy then no officers would have been in violation of that policy.
The Safe Communities Committee will meet again in two weeks with more recommendations from the community input committee.
If you took out all the time spent during this meeting talking about what they were or weren't supposed to be discussing or voting on it probably could have wrapped by now, just saying.
Councilmember Winston: "I definitely want staff to get smarter about these things, these specific programs that are on the list."
Me:
Me:
