Good cops, bad bill
Yes to community policing; no to body-cam freeze
Two Friday stories illustrated the challenges of improving police-community relations. One portended a step forward, the other a step back.
The first story explained Mayor Bill Peduto’s plan to assign 18 officers to a new community policing program. Each will focus on a single neighborhood, with the goal of getting to know the merchants and business people there. That kind of visibility deters wrongdoing but also helps ensure that people trust police and come forward with details when crimes are committed.
Some of the 18 will be assigned to neighborhoods where crime is problematic and police-community relations aren’t always good. The officers will need excellent people skills to pull off this mission, and it’s important that early support come from civic leaders and community groups. The program has the potential to reap huge dividends.
The second story concerned a panel discussion that the American Civil Liberties Union organized on access to police body camera footage. The state Senate is considering legislation that would release footage to the public only when police and prosecutors believe it’s appropriate to do so. Many police departments fight tooth and nail to keep their records out of public hands, so the legislation likely would have the effect of severely limiting the public’s access to the video.
State Rep. Dom Costa, D-Stanton Heights, is considering the introduction of a House version of the bill. A former city police chief, he said he wants to solicit the public’s input but views the video primarily as a law enforcement tool. He believes prosecutors should decide when to release it because they “know what they need and don’t need.”
Brandi Fisher, director of the Alliance for Police Accountability, noted that camera footage also can shed light on incidents in which officers are accused of abuse. In those cases, she said, it’s “ridiculous” to let law enforcement decide whether video should be released.
She’s right. There has to be a compromise that balances the needs of police, prosecutors and the public. Neighborhood beat cops are a great way to boost police-community relations. But other tools, such as body camera footage, also should be brought to bear.