Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
RESIDENTS DEMAND ANSWERS ON REFORM
Residents who attended a community police partnership forum in Coatesville Wednesday night hosted by Rep. Dan Williams, D-74th, of Coatesville, told officials they are angry and they want to see criminal justice reform and racial equity.
Livestreamed on Facebook, the forum featured local police chiefs, Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan, Chester County Sheriff Fredda Maddox, and Chester County Commissioner Josh Maxwell.
“I need healing because I am very angry,” one woman told the panel. “if you are an elected official, we will hold you accountable. It is not OK for a fourth-grader to be arrested.”
Carmen Campbell, who was born in Coatesville, said she has been shot at and raped, and has had bad experiences with law enforcement.
“The last time I called the cops I said I will never call them again,” she said. “Five or six police cars showed up for a person who was intoxicated severely. I should have handled the situation myself.”
Gary Lewis, a local pastor, said police should not hassle people who are just standing around.
“Just a little dialogue can save the whole community a lot of anguish,” he said.
Elgin Bailey, who told the panel his brother was killed
by a police officer, said there is a disconnect between the police and the community that needs to be mended.
“Until we have a conversation on how the disconnect began, there will never be reconciliation,” he said. “There must be repentance and acknowledgement of the sins. The moment most black people see a officer there is one of two emotio0ns — fear or distrust. We didn’t create that. You all did.”
Maddox, a lawyer in her first term as sheriff, told the audience that her office has implicit bias training. “Once a year, for me, it begins with having an interaction with people who are different than you,” she said.
Caln Township Police Chief Joe Elias said the key is police training standards.
“Unless training standards are strictly enforced with a zero tolerance policy toward bias or racial profiling, it fails,” he said.
Kevin Pierce, South Coatesville police chief, blamed the media for some of the problems.
“White Americans are
shot by police officers but you don’t hear about that,” he said. “That’s a problem. “It’s frustrating because we are talking about a few bad apples who are ruining an entire profession. I pull someone over for a legitimate violation, and as soon as I approach that vehicle, I get aggression directed at me simply because of my profession. We have to open a line of communication. Police officers are part of your community, not against your community.”
Brian Newhall, Valley Township police chief, also put the blame on the media.
“On average police officers kill about 1,000 people per year,” he said. “And 45 percent are white males, 23 percent black and 16 percent Hispanic. The media is not telling you this, and these stats do not come from law enforcement. Media is the problem, but the bigger problem is communication. It’s our fault that we don’t tell the public why we do certain things.”
Ryan, who recently defeated Tom Hogan in the district attorney race, told the audience that her office started a Chester County Law Enforcement Task Force on Race and
Justice which involves community members and law enforcement.
“From what we are hearing, we have to treat each other with respect,” she said. “We’re working toward red flag reform laws critical in vetting out police officers who should not be on the force, and working with others in respect to training. We need to ensure the hiring of right people and constantly train them, and work on de-escalation techniques. We are working toward these reforms.”
Community policing seemed to be the buzzword at the meeting, and the Coatesville Police Department, under the direction of Chief Jack Laufer, got high marks. Officers routinely interact with youngsters, and reward good behavior.
“Coatesville is doing a great job,” Maddox said. “Exactly what they are doing is what needs to be done in other communities.”
Laufer, whose department adopted the use of body cameras six years ago, becoming the first in Chester County, said body cameras are necessary to build confidence in the department and to increase transparency.
“We are firmly committed to our body camera policies as the number
of complaints against officers decrease,” he said.
Pierce said he personally reviews every single body camera video.
“If I think the officer comes on too strong, he gets told about it,” Pierce said. “I try to counsel officers and train them to do a better job next time.”
Said Williams: “I hope men and women of good will will keep pushing this conversation forward.”
A police reform bill sponsored by state Rep. Dan Williams, D-74th, of Sadsbury, that would bring about the most significant changes to Pennsylvania policing in at least 40 years unanimously passed the state House last week. The bill will now head to the state Senate for consideration.
Williams’ H.B. 1910 would update police training in several areas, including recognizing and reporting child abuse; deescalation and harm reduction techniques; interacting with individuals of diverse racial, ethic, and economic backgrounds; and appropriate use of force. House Bill 1910 is one of 19 bills that members of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus urged be considered by the House. The bill was unanimously approved by the House Judiciary Committee.