Flynn responds to BBC documentary criticisms

Fielding questions and criticism about the level of access to crime scenes given to a documentary film crew, Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn maintained his department did nothing wrong and followed its policies for media ride-alongs.

The department gave the British Broadcasting Corp. the same access to crime scenes it has granted other media outlets, he said in a letter to Ald. Khalif Rainey.

Louis Theroux’s documentary “Dark States: Murder in Milwaukee,” produced by the BBC, featured interviews with officers, gun-carrying residents and close-up footage of two homicide victims.

Rainey, who represents the area where much of the filming took place, sent a letter to Flynn a week ago with a list of questions about how the film got made.

His letter appears to be only the beginning of public questions about the process. The Common Council’s Public Safety and Health Committee and the city’s Fire and Police Commission, a civilian oversight board, are expected to take up the issue at upcoming meetings.

“We want to get some more clarification as to what the process was and what went into it and who signed off on it,” Commission Chairman Steven DeVougas said.

DeVougas said the board has just begun its “fact-finding” and has received documents from the Police Department and City Attorney’s Office. He anticipates discussing it at the Nov. 16 meeting.

The BBC approached Milwaukee police in March 2016 to propose a documentary about crime, policing and criminal justice, Flynn said in his letter to Rainey.

With input from the City Attorney’s Office, the Police Department decided to enter into an agreement with the BBC and allowed ride-alongs with District 5 officers and homicide detectives, he said.

“During the filming, BBC personnel were escorted by MPD officers/detectives,” Flynn wrote. “Specific and continual direction was given to them to ensure that crime scenes and investigations were not compromised.”

Flynn said his staff raised objec-

tions to the BBC during the editing phase, and he agreed with Rainey that the final version presented an “unfavorable and unfair portrayal of Milwaukee.”

DeVougas said he felt the documentary lacked balance.

“There’s no doubt we have violence in the city,” DeVougas said. “Everyone knows the statistics but I also know, being a member of the community, there’s a lot of people doing a lot of good work in Milwaukee.”

Those statistics are likely what drew the BBC to Milwaukee for a documentary about gun violence.

Last year, when crews were filming, the city’s homicide rate was 23.2 per 100,000 people, maintaining an upward trend from 2015. In the neighborhood where much of the filming took place, the homicide rate was 67.35 per 100,000 people, according to the city’s Homicide Review Commission.

But that same area also has seen an upswing of resident involvement, a new youth center opening and other ongoing efforts to address the violence and lack of opportunities in a place where nearly 48% of people live below the poverty line.

Some city leaders, activists and residents have contended the documentary presents a distorted view of Milwaukee because it showed none of those community-driven efforts, even though the same film crew interviewed people working for positive change.