Agenda Packet 6-19-19 Work Session

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Work Completed in FY 2018 The Police Commission had 23 areas of focus to choose from on their FY 2018-19 work plan. At the completion of FY 2018 or half way through the biannual plan, the commission completed 8 and performed work on 14. The Police Commission completed review of the following policies: De- escalation, Armed Barricaded Subjects, Unmanned Aerial Devices, and Body Worn Cameras. De-escalation was one of the Police Commission’s first priorities. Some commissioners received feedback from community members stating they believed De-escalation and bias training has been successful and has gone a long way toward developing trust. In addition to these EPD policy discussions, the Commission conducted the following work in FY 2018: Received update on EPD staffing levels and relayed findings to the Budget Committee and City Council: Interim Executive Director David James brought a presentation that showed the population growth from 2014 through 2017 and the corresponding increase in call volume for the same time period. Further Police Commission discussion and questions revealed that staffing levels for the department did not grow with the community. The commission learned that many calls go unanswered because there are not enough officers to respond, and felt there should be further discussion about the length of acceptable wait time for calls, after learning that the average response time per call had nearly doubled in 2017 from where it was in 2014, from 22.5 to 41.8 minutes, on average. Discussion about modern day policing methods, including de-escalation and 21st Century Policing, showed that employing these methods require officers to spend more time on calls. This is impactful if this is the type of policing we want as a community, because we will need to have appropriate resources and staffing levels to sustain current policing criterions. The culmination of these discussions led the Police Commission to recommend a more in-depth look at staffing. Implemented an ambitious outreach strategy to encourage and invite public participation: This work was in line with the Police Commission’s first goal to, “Increase communications between police and the community, leading to greater understanding of the preferred policing alternatives for the city.” In September of 2017 the Police Commission unanimously approved and appointed an outreach subcommittee charged with identifying outreach needs and resources, with a plan to report back to the Police Commission. A plan was developed that included an organized outreach to as many of the 26 City neighborhoods, as well as 15 currently identified groups including: the Asian Council, NAACP, League of Latin American Citizens, Trans*Ponder, and many more. This work continues. Increased communication between the commission and the department: The Commission added two non-voting department members to the table. They continued the invitation to be a liaison and attend monthly meetings to the police union, the Eugene Police Employee’s Association (EPEA), and invited the Policy Sergeant to the table, to provide more insight into current police policy. Developed stronger relationships between the Commission and the City Manager and the Council: Through discussions with the City Manager, the Police Commission Chair and Vice Chair, the Commission set up quarterly meetings to discuss current issues that the Commission is working on. An open discussion with the two council liaisons clarified they are the primary contact with Council but the commission could send information directly. June 19, 2019, Meeting – Item 1