CFLCA - Public Meeting Report to Crime Committee

Public Meeting Report to Crime Committee - December 2006

Report to the Council of Fort Lauderdale Civic Associations
Crime and Public Safety Committee
By Genia Duncan Ellis
December 1, 2006

On Thursday, November 30, 2006, I responded to a notice of a “Town Hall Meeting – Police Shooting” at the Mizell Center, 1409 NW 6^th Street and attended this public meeting on behalf of the Council of Fort Lauderdale Civic Associations and additionally, my neighborhood.

This is the third such meeting that I have attended over the last year. Recurring observations are as follows:

Each public meeting has been scheduled within the week of the event, too early in my opinion for a public meeting, since in each event, the investigation was incomplete and the Police Department was not at liberty to disclose many of the facts.
The level of media involved provides a scenario where the public plays to the camera, deviates from the current event, and uses the forum as a means to air other issues – not necessarily related to the City or the Police Department.
The location of these meetings moves from event to event, the agenda varies and needs to be consistent and the ground rules should be adhered to at all times by the public and the staff.
At each meeting another recurring comment has been that the family had not been contacted directly by the Police Department or notified of the event in a timely manner. The recurring feeling was that the family of the slain has been disregarded. Whether this is correct or not, the perception is that the Department should be doing a better job of connecting with the families and be sensitive to their loss.

Specific observations from this meeting are as follows:
·        The meeting was announced via an e-mail and a newspaper notice however at no time did either identify who called the meeting or an objective. It used “Town Hall” as its identifier but no other explanation.
·        The location was inadequate in size, with very limited space, very few chairs, inadequate air conditioning and no PA system. There was no local staff from the Mizell facility on site to address those issues or assist in resolving them and it was told to us that they were advised not to be present for this event.
·        Even after 35 minutes, the city and its senior staff was still unable to provide a PA system or additional chairs to a very vocal and upset audience. All of which encouraged a bad situation to be worse.
·        The inadequacy of the location and its amenities and the lack of response from the city in resolving it in a reasonable time were inexcusable. The piece that was most disturbing is that the staff was not aware that these could be issues or had a point of contact to quickly fix the problem. Every city facility of this kind should have this type of equipment available on site or it should be readily available for any public meeting and the facilitator of that meeting should be held responsible for arranging for this to be addressed.
·        The problem of the PA system was resolved by a resident tracking down some equipment and the generous loan by a local businesswoman who delivered her personal equipment to help address an escalating situation.
·        All actively participating presenters in the briefing from the City should be identified and introduced and only those people should be on the stage or dais.   Other city staff or elected officials should not be on the dais but should be present in the audience as were the Mayor and Commissioner Rodstrom during their time in attendance. Creating a show of force is intimidating and only adds to the “them vs. us” attitude. The Mayor and Commissioner engaged with the public and the press and expressed interest in the case.
·        Police Officers at the doorways did not interface with anyone entering or exiting but again gave the appearance of intimidation when a simple hello or opening of a door would have been a great step in reaching out to the community – one that was already feeling abused.
·        The crowd present came with the intent of being heard, getting answers, and expressing their continuing concerns for the treatment of the young in their specific district. Also among the crowd were individuals that had the objective of being disruptive, insulting and threatening. Unfortunately, the latter received the most attention and distracted from the intent of the meeting.
·        One of the biggest problems with the crowd was the amount of media present asking for interviews and leading the public into discussions that didn’t relate to just this issue but prevailing contempt for local Police.

In an area that is struggling to improve, the northwest continues to be plagued with crime, code violations and a level of poverty that only allows a meager existence. The Police presence in this area is visible and consistent and is an asset in cleaning up some of the on-going crime issues. It is my belief that the majority of the community appreciates this presence and supports the department on that level. They do not, however, feel that they are treated with the same level of respect as others in the city nor are their cases handled in the same manner. The concern for retribution by some of the officers if complaints are filed against them says that the current system is flawed and needs to be reviewed and fixed. There is a very difficult balance in this area between being pro-active and aggressively addressing crime. The community wants crime cleaned up – unfortunately – it many times involves someone that they know and they are torn by what is best.

In conclusion, Commissioner Moore asked for each of these public meetings over the last year to be held by the Police Department. I believe that if we continue with this approach to public meetings on Police Shootings, there needs to be one specific central location in the city, adequately equipped with media needs, seating and climate controls and available to the entire city for comment. It needs to be held after there is adequate information available that will not impact any potential court case and will allow the Department to provide the public with some details that will tell the story of the event….not just pieces of it.

Police have a very hard job every day and every call is a judgment call based on the training provided by our City. If there is a failure in that training or a need for additional training, it impacts the entire city. Officers that do not follow allowed procedures or use unacceptable methods should be removed from active service immediately and prosecuted accordingly.

Lastly, inflammatory questions do not provide any useful result nor do they inform the public. To allow the unfettered venting of emotion, in front of cameras, and with an audience only encourages people to make a bad situation worse. It is my hope that in the future, separate, respectful and private meetings are held with the family immediately. Next, a separate privated informational meeting is held with the local neighborhood association presidents and community leaders to inform and to pass along the information in an orderly fashion. Lastly, that a Police PIO or officer be placed in a neighborhood location on a fixed schedule for a few weeks after the event for an hour at a time so that anyone in the area can stop by and get an update. If this is made known, those that genuinely have an interest will inquire.

We can’t lose site of the fact that serious crimes were committed that led to this. These two young men made some very bad decisions that set in motion a chain of events that led to a consequence. Responsibility for the outcome should be reviewed, measured and accepted by all of the affected participants.

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