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MINUTES <br />Eugene City Council <br />Virtual Work Session <br />Eugene, Oregon 97401 <br />June 8, 2020 <br />5:30 p.m. <br />Councilors Present: Betty Taylor, Emily Semple, Alan Zelenka, Jennifer Yeh, Mike Clark, Claire <br />Syrett, Chris Pryor, Greg Evans <br />Mayor Vinis opened the June 8, 2020, work session of the Eugene City Council. <br />1. WORK SESSION: Police Chief Briefing <br />City Manager Pro Tern Sarah Medary and Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner provided a briefing on <br />recent protests, reflection and review of actions taken, and commitment to reform and policy changes. <br />Council Discussion: <br />• Mayor Vinis - thanked staff and expressed appreciation for their work; spoke of the trauma <br />experienced by the Eugene Police officers and community members; supported the creation of <br />better policies and trainings. <br />• Councilor Syrett - thanked staff for the briefing; expressed appreciation for how the May 29 <br />situation was handled; thanked the Black Lives Matter organizers and Eugene Police <br />Department officers for their conduct during the demonstrations. <br />• Councilor Evans - expressed appreciation to staff; spoke about trust in the community; talked <br />about his personal experiences with local police, the need for police reforms; spoke about local <br />oversight mechanisms and the need to investigate recent police actions. <br />• Councilor Semple - talked about the witnessed events of Friday night; expressed sympathy for <br />all involved, asked about alternatives to the use of chemical agents in crowd control; shared <br />view about what was witnessed at events on Sunday night. <br />• Councilor Clark - thanked staff for actions taken regarding events and curfew, including <br />communications with the Mayor and councilors' asked about the wellness of Police Department <br />employees and their families; expressed appreciation for the leadership of the local African - <br />American community; spoke of the events and the actions of the police. <br />• Councilor Pryor - thanked staff and talked about the need for self -reflection; supported efforts <br />to improve local policing and other institutions by tacking systematic issues. <br />• Councilor Zelenka - thanked staff and expressed support for their actions on Friday night; <br />regretted the removal of paper hearts at police headquarters by demonstrators; expressed <br />appreciation for the City Manager, Councilor Evans and BLM leadership; spoke about the need <br />for police reform. <br />• Councilor Syrett - thanked Councilor Yeh for responding to emails; discussed the use of tear <br />gas, crowd control policies and curfews; talked about the importance role of journalists, holding <br />police accountable; spoke about calls to defund police and address institutional racism; <br />recommended an article authored by a University of Oregon professor. <br />• Councilor Taylor - talked about the role of the police auditor, civilian review board and Police <br />Commission; sympathized with police employees, their families, and the injured journalist; <br />spoke of policy changes with council involvement. <br />• Councilor Evans - talked about police reforms, recruiting and desire for a diverse police force; <br />spoke of systemic racism and the need to build community relationships. <br />MINUTES - Eugene City Council June 8, 2020 Page 1 <br />Work Session <br />