HomeMy WebLinkAboutFH Inclusion and Policing Task Force Minutes_2-21-17Page 1 of 3
CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS
Falcon Heights Inclusion and Policing Task Force
City Hall
2077 West Larpenteur Avenue
MINUTES
February 21, 2017 at 7:15 P.M.
1. CALL TO ORDER: 7:16 p.m.
ROLL CALL:
ANDREWS JOHNSON-POWERS X
BALLENTINE X LEEHY-CO CHAIR X
COLOND X THOMPSON X
DEMERATH X WADE X
JOHNSON X
STAFF PRESENT:
MAYOR LINDSTROM
CO-CHAIR/COUNCIL MEMBER GUSTAFSON X
CO-FACILITATOR QUICK
CO-FACILITATOR MORRIS X
ADMINISTRATOR THONGVANH X
Homework before next meeting on Tues. March 7, please review the book, Blink.
Community Conversation meeting on Thurs. March 2 at Falcon Heights Church, 6:30-8:30pm.
I. Call to order
7:16pm
II. Review Agenda
No changes were proposed.
III. Review Meeting Minutes
There were a couple of corrections to the section on Discussion of Community Values for Policing. In
paragraph seven, the first sentence should be a question followed by the sentence, Government has
limitations. The second to last sentence should be, Relationship is critical to making change. All were in
favor of the corrections.
IV. Debrief of Community Conversation on Values on Feb. 16 Approximately 110 people attended
including task force members. Those who participated enjoyed the opportunity and gave positive
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feedback about the meeting. People who had not spoken at other listening sessions were there. The
average age skewed toward the older end of the spectrum. The task force learned that personal
invitations are needed to reach those beyond Falcon Heights. A number of groups were invited and
some did attend. Some hope to attend other meetings. The format was helpful for honest sharing. One
group had a good mixture from outside of FH and within. Some recognized more need for community
involvement. There were questions about the city council and the appearance of inaction. Some people
are invested and want to know where to start. There was frustration with elected officials. Eight months
is too long to address a tragedy.
There were stories of business people and residents manifesting racism. One suggestion was to have
police officers in each group. One was fearful to talk at other sessions but felt this was a safe place to
talk. Facilitators did a fantastic job.
One question was, why wasn't there an apology from the city. This was a difficult event and hard to
manage as an elected official. The job is especially tough when the whole nation is looking at you. Police
work is challenging with being part social worker, part therapist and cop.
Some had seen racial bias in police stops. There are also opportunities for people to learn how to spot
incidents and how to report them.
Notes were taken in each group. Common themes and keywords along with the context will be compiled
for further analysis.
People seemed guarded at first and comfort level went up as the evening went on. One black male
talked about living here three decades. He always feels suspect and this is fatiguing. This was a learning
opportunity others and an example of courage to talk about race.
Recommendations will come at a later date. How do we show progress? People will talk about the
experience whether good or bad. People seemed willing to keep the process moving forward.
V. Translating Values into Policing Operations.
Members assembled in groups of three looking at the community values statements and how they
relate to police operations.
List to work with from the whiteboard:
Life safety
Patrol functions. Passive. Observation. Traffic enforcement.
Active. Call and response.
Administrative- hiring, training, performance review. Communication. Reporting. Internal investigations.
Data collection. Data release.
Community engagement - citizen training. DARE, School resource officer. Crime prevention.
Investigation. External.
Court Duty. Testifying.
The topic of trust building came up. This falls under community engagement but currently there is no
purposeful effort to build trust. Crime prevention, national night out and citizen training are police
initiated. Some neighborhoods don't have many children who have typically been more interested in the
police cars. Regarding the Falcon Heights Community Engagement Commission, police attend and are
looking for ways to engage community.
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If a civilian review board makes sense it would go under administration.
What are police operation priorities?
Patrol
Life and safety
Response to calls
Passive patrol
Reconvene at 9:09pm
There were three groups of three. The exercise was challenging. Some process is needed for providing
feedback after an encounter with the police. Community review is needed. Training the police on
community values would be helpful. Having a known face patrolling FH might add credibility. Include
race or ethnicity data in police interactions. When hiring police, look for people with cross cultural
experience. Ongoing training is also needed. Citizen tips for callers and how to handle situations.
What areas do task force members want to focus on with specificity? A review board? More data? After
this look at things you can do within these areas. Think deeply about what will give the greatest return.
There will be a competing police contract when we get to that point. This will be needed given the
amount of money involved. Think about whatever you might recommend when we reach this point.
Updates and announcements
St. Anthony police did experience a significant leadership change in June of 2016 when the chief and
captain retired. After the shooting, Interims Chief Mangseth and Captain Spiess were officially placed in
their new roles rather than waiting until the fall as originally planned.
9:38pm adjourned