LR board to review contract for police staffing study

Little Rock elected officials are scheduled to review a proposed contract with a Washington-based organization for the firm to conduct a comprehensive study of the Little Rock Police Department’s staffing and provide recommendations.

Members of the city’s Board of Directors are set to review the resolution authorizing the city manager to enter into the contract, among other items, at a meeting today to set the agenda prior to a March 16 formal meeting.

The proposed staffing study will be conducted by the Center for Public Safety Management, LLC., a group that originated with the nonprofit International City/ County Management Association.

The nonprofit’s website says the Center for Public Safety Management serves as an independent, private consulting and training firm offering technical assistance to local governments with regard to police, fire and emergency medical services departments, plus others.

The firm has worked in more than 135 jurisdictions,

the website says.

According to the text of the proposed Board of Directors resolution, the city received five bids in response to a request for qualifications to conduct the study, and the Center for Public Safety Management was found to be the most qualified.

The request for qualifications was issued last year. The contract is for a maximum of $87,500, according to the resolution.

Funding for the contract will reportedly come from the federal asset forfeiture equitable sharing program.

It’s unclear based on the text of the resolution whether the funding will come from the U.S. Department of Justice, the Department of the Treasury, or a combination of the two.

Both agencies maintain separate forfeiture funds.

According to a Department of Justice guide to the program, the heads of the respective agencies are authorized to share federally forfeited property with participating state and local law enforcement agencies.

The value of the forfeited property transferred to the participating agency is meant to resemble the degree of participation of that agency in the effort that resulted in federal authorities obtaining the property, according to the Justice Department.

A memo from the Little Rock city manager’s office describing the background to the proposed contract says that the staffing study is meant to assess how many personnel should be assigned to each of the Little Rock Police Department’s three bureaus: executive, investigative and operational.

The makeup of divisions, units and sections within the Police Department also will undergo review.

“The staffing Study will include an audit of current staff strength with recommendations to increase or decrease overall strength of the Department, and should also have an emphasis on reallocating manpower,” the memo states.

Additionally, the proposed contract will ask the Center for Public Safety Management to provide recommendations related to the Police Department’s staffing policies compared to other cities, as well as recommendations on how to transfer sworn department personnel to civilian roles.

Last year, the Police Department was the epicenter of significant turmoil in city government, as Police Chief Keith Humphrey weathered accusations of retaliation from several lower-ranking police officials.

Since then, the department’s organizational hierarchy has changed slightly.

Former assistant chief Alice Fulk, who has sued Humphrey in Pulaski County Circuit Court, now serves as the chief of the Arkansas State Capitol Police. She was replaced by Crystal YoungHaskins, whom Humphrey promoted in December.

Humphrey was the subject of a letter to Mayor Frank Scott Jr. and members of the Board of Directors and signed by the department’s three assistant chiefs, including Fulk, and seven of the department’s 10 police captains.

The September 2020 letter claimed Humphrey was responsible for a dysfunctional and hostile work environment.