LETAC Hears Concerns from the Public

The New Law Enforcement Transparency and Accountability Commission Holds Two Town Hall Meetings Where They Opened the Floor to Citizens

After the controversy surrounding the Devon Bailey officer-involved shooting in 2019 and the nationwide racial justice movement last year, citizens of Colorado Springs pushed the city council to form a committee that focuses on transparency and accountability in law enforcement. Last June, the city council voted unanimously to form the Law Enforcement Transparency and Accountability Commission (LETAC) to address citizens’ concerns.

After reviewing several applications, the council picked 11 members and two alternates with diverse backgrounds to form the commission. The group started holding meetings last October and they have now held two town hall meetings to hear opinions and concerns from the public.

“I think that the citizens of Colorado Springs made their voices heard,” said the commission’s chair Janice “JJ” Frazier in an interview on NPR’s Colorado Matters program. “They basically contacted the leadership in our community and demanded that something be done to look into the Devon Bailey case and to more or less form a commission to see about bridging the communication gap between the Colorado Springs Police Department and our different communities. So, as a result, the city council selected 13 citizens out of 800 applications to represent each district in our community to look into these matters dealing with law enforcement and seeing about creating a transparent way of us communicating together and getting information out to our communities.”

The commission’s purpose is to listen to community members and then come up with suggestions on ways to make the police department more transparent. The commission will propose new policies and procedures to the city council.

Citizens Question the Effectiveness of the Commission

During the last town hall meeting on Feb. 13, several community members were present at the virtual meeting and numerous topics were brought to light. However, the commission set up the town hall to only hear feedback from the community and not directly answer most questions.

One concern of those who attended was the fact the commission did not have direct control over anything that law enforcement agencies do. People also said that they felt the commission itself should have accountability to accomplish changes.

The board members responded by stating the city council formed the commission as an advisory committee. The board facilitators said they are focused on creating accountability and transparency through the means they are given. They said they plan to recommend new procedures and policies to the council and then the mayor would have the final say in implementing them.

Others talked about looking into different types of law enforcement training focused on de-escalation techniques. Several training programs were mentioned that would better train law enforcement agents in dealing with people who have mental disabilities. They also mentioned training that focused on alternate forms of restraint that minimize bodily injury.

Concerns About New Police Liability Bill

Colorado Springs resident Dave Nuder shared a story of a friend who is a police officer and said his friend fears that the department may have trouble retaining officers in the future. He also mentioned his concerns with the bill signed into law last year that can make law enforcement officers personally liable for up to $25,000 in civil court.

“I’m really concerned that we may lose members of our police force due to physical, emotional, and the financial burdens that are now being placed upon them,” Nuder said. “The heavy burdens and pressures may decrease the number of people willing to put on a uniform. So, I suggest that you as a commission find funds to pay the premiums for the $25,000 insurance policies for police officers. And ride along with the police officers to see the job they do and find ways to support our police department and discourage the negative criticism. If we don’t have a capable, well-funded, and effective police force, who will we call when there is trouble?”

Mental Health and Homeless Issues

Another resident Maryah Lowrer disagreed with other ideas brought up during the meeting and emphasized that a more specific change is needed in how policing is conducted when dealing with mental health and homeless issues. Lowrer also wanted to make sure that the commission was reaching out to the communities within the city where most of the minorities live.

“It is incredibly inefficient to give police officers more training so they are better prepared to deal with mental health crisis or with homeless response,” Lowrer said. “These are two very big issues that plague our community, but the reality is that we don’t need an armed officer responding to these issues. We have already seen the Denver S.T.A.R. program and early data shows that it is incredibly successful. They have responded to over 2,500 emergency calls and none of them required the assistance of police especially when it comes to homeless outreach.”

Commission Meeting Addresses Racial Bias

During the commission’s last meeting, the topic on the table dealt with racial bias in law enforcement. The meeting started with two representatives from the Colorado Springs Police Department presenting how the agency prevents racial bias within their ranks. The representatives detailed the proactive steps they take with their policies, training, and employee background screening processes.

During the last half of the meeting, comments from the public were heard. However, most of the questions asked will be answered later due to time constraints.

Toward the end of the meeting, the commission discussed how future town hall meetings would be held. The commission members emphasized that they needed a better way to be able to answer questions from the public during the meetings.

The Maverick Observer, or “The Moe” as we affectionately call it, is an online free-thinking publication interested in the happenings in our town. We launched in February 2020 to hold our politicians and businesses accountable. We hope to educate, inform, entertain, and infuse you with a sense of community.