How residents would reform the Milwaukee Police Dept.

Draft of stalled federal review serves as guide

Community groups have begun reviewing the findings of a stalled federal analysis of the Milwaukee Police Department — part of a continuing effort by city officials to bring about reforms.

On Saturday, about 60 people gathered in the gym of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School to review what the U.S. Department of Justice found when it was invited by Police Chief Edward Flynn in 2015 to conduct a “collaborative reform initiative” amid a public outcry over the fatal shooting of Dontre Hamilton by an officer in Red Arrow Park.

The draft, written in 2016, was highly critical of the department, saying it fails the community and its own officers by not communicating clearly, making too many traffic stops and applying inconsistent standards when disciplining officers.

Even though the DOJ review was halted after Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the collaborative process would shift to focus more on crime reduction tactics than accountability and police reforms, the draft report showed that the department needs changes, leaders at Saturday’s meeting said.

“It seems like maybe 20 years from now we’ll be having this same conversation again, but I think the way we can avoid being in that position is simply to stop just asking the Police Department and city leaders to do something about the problem and actually start demanding that they do something about the problem,” said Reggie Jackson, head griot of America’s Black Holocaust Museum, who talked about the local history of police violence against blacks.

No final version of the Milwaukee review exists, nor will one be produced. Still, city officials have pressed on and are using the draft report’s 55 findings and more than 100 recommendations as a guide.

Community meetings, like the one Saturday by the African American Roundtable and a similar session attended by about 65 people Thursday night, are part of that process — a six-month series of “community hubs” meant to allow the public to weigh in on the draft and prioritize recommendations

“We’re going to continue to move progress forward and we’re going to make sure things are not forgotten,” said Markasa Tucker, director of the African American Roundtable, which organized the Saturday and Thursday meetings.

Information from the sessions will be compiled and given to the Common Council and the city’s Fire and Police Commission, according to Common Council President Ashanti Hamilton.

In breakout groups at Saturday’s meeting, residents read through a list of concerns the DOJ found with the department, and citizens were asked to make suggestions on how the issues might be solved.

For example, in a session on community-oriented policing practices, one woman suggested that as turnover occurs in police districts, citizens in the district should have opportunities to meet and get to know the new officers. In another smallgroup discussion on the use of force and deadly force practices, citizens said more-precise rules for gathering video evidence are needed.

The plan for how to prioritize the recommendations came from the Common Council, Mayor Tom Barrett, the Police Department and the Fire and Police Commission, with help from community partners.

Although Flynn has said the draft is filled with errors or mistakes, he has repeatedly said he agrees with most of its recommendations.