Lansdale mayor: Commemoration march set today

Borough police to review policies

Lansdale Mayor Garry Herbert said during his Mayor’s Report to borough council Wednesday night that he plans to take part in a Juneteenth commemoration march along with borough police and the Ambler branch of the NAACP.

The march is scheduled to start at 5 p.m. today at Borough Hall, 1 Vine St., and peacefully proceed from there, down Main Street and back.

“Juneteenth, for those who do not know, is the day that Texas found out about the Emancipation Proclamation, and this represented the last state in the union to hear the news about emancipation,” Herbert said.

Hundreds of local residents have gathered in town twice in recent weeks to protest racism and police violence, and Herbert told council Wednesday night that he has attended both.

“These events were peaceful, appropriate, and necessary to help bring attention and change systemic racism and racial bias that does exist in every community in our country,” Herbert said.

He added that he and police Chief Mike Trail have begun to review the department’s use-offorce policy and intend to add language limiting chokeholds when force is necessary and said the two plan to ask for funding in the department’s 2021 budget for body-worn cameras for local officers.

“This request is not, and should not be, taken lightly. However, we must continue to be accountable and transparent as a police department, by evolving with technology as it becomes reliable and available,” he said.

“This technology will enhance our department through improved training opportunities while also illuminating our departments’ interactions with residents.”