Item B: Annual Meeting with Police Commission

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I. Introduction This staff report is submitted to the Eugene City Council to document the activities of the Police Commission during Fiscal Year (FY) 2007. The annual report describes how the commission has met the expectations of the City Council, as delineated in its work plan, has responded to issues of community concern, and has furthered its mission and objectives. The charge of the Police Commission, described in City Ordinance 20136, can be distilled into three main components: 1)improve communication between the police and the community, thereby decreasing misunderstandings about policies and practices and helping to build consensus around preferred policing alternatives for the city; 2)identify policy and resource issues related to preferred policing alternatives, and to assist the City Council in balancing police resources with community priorities; and 3)provide input on police policies and procedures that reflects community values. The City Council approved the FY07 Police Commission work plan on August 14, 2006. On- going activities included supporting the City’s efforts to launch the civilian oversight system and monitoring the department’s progress in strategic plan implementation. New projects selected for the year were to: 1) participate in a multi-year effort to update the department’s policy manual, and; 2) develop a foundation for a strategic response to family violence incidents. In January, the commission initiated two new projects in response to an emerging community concern around police response to people in crisis. A separate committee was convened to focus specifically on model policy review and subsequent modification of department use of force policies, and included a re-examination of less lethal weaponry options. Another committee was formed to review training models and best practices for police response to people experiencing mental health crises. When coupled with the existing work plan commitments, these new activities added a significant workload to the group. The commission’s ability to meet the responsibilities delineated in the FY07 work plan and address new obligations are described in the following sections. II.Accomplishments and Challenges A. Improving Communication and Understanding of Police Practices and Resource Issues One of the most important Police Commission functions is to provide a forum for discussion on a range of policing issues in a public meeting setting. This year’s meeting schedule provided numerous opportunities for community involvementin the commission’s work. In addition to the eleven regular monthly police commissionmeetings, in FY07, the commission sponsored twenty-three committee and task group meetings and participated with City Council members in