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ATTACHMENT B - Public Comments Received <br />Summary of Eugene Police Commission Discussion of Downtown Public Safety Zone <br />January 12, 2012 <br />Bernadette Conover – A copy of the brochure that’s handed out to people who are cited should <br />be included in the information provided to the City Council. There was a great deal of discussion <br />at the public forum about the brochures and the information contained. With the brochure in <br />hand, the Councilors can respond to any public comments that arise about the brochure. One <br />comment we received is that the brochure isn’t being distributed to people cited. I believe it is, <br />but the brochure is not just about the advocacy program, and people may be thinking they’re <br />getting a brochure about the advocacy program. <br />Kaitlyn Lange – How does our exclusion zone differ from other ordinances throughout the <br />Country, and what are the criticisms of exclusion zones? <br />Chief Kerns – Our ordinance has been examined pretty closely by the city attorneys who feel <br />that the ordinance is constitutionally defensible. It hasn't been challenged on constitutional <br />grounds. We also have the advocacy program, although we may be may be able to find a better <br />term for the program, if there is concern over the use of the word “advocate”. In the view of <br />some people, there's an abundance of due process, and in the view of others, there's not <br />enough due process, considering we're restricting someone from public space. The most <br />consistent criticism is that without a criminal due process, where a person has the right to be <br />represented by an attorney, people are forbidden to be in public space. In American <br />jurisprudence, it's unusual to tell a person who's lawfully in a community that they can't be in a <br />place that all other community members can travel through. <br />Tim Mueller - I took three things from the public forum. One person who spoke said that she <br />supported the ban because several people came into her shop and made her and her <br />customers and employees and uncomfortable. One thing I've learned in my experience working <br />with the community of people with developmental disabilities is that people with developmental <br />disabilities can make you uncomfortable. They can talk loud, can look funny, walk funny, and <br />behave socially inappropriately. In my work, I help people be less uncomfortable with behavior <br />they don't think is normal. This exclusion zone encourages people to not do that. If I could talk <br />to the shop owner or anyone else, I would encourage them to allow behavior to occur that <br />maybe they’re not comfortable with. Another thing I took was from the Downtown Eugene <br />Incorporated. He commented that the organization spent 80% of their funding on the red-hats <br />and security. In view of this homeless task force and my general philosophy, public safety or <br />general enforcement is just one arm of how to deal with people with addiction and mental health <br />issues or who are homeless. Maybe their organization could spend some of that money on <br />services that would help the people with some kind of outreach or services, rather than with <br />punishment, enforcement or exclusion. The third thing I took related to the Neil Van <br />Steenbergen, who was instrumental in starting the Police Commission, and currently works with <br />the advocacy program. It was great that he was there. His comments were focused on the <br />advocacy program, and he suggested that instead of changing the term "advocacy" for these <br />advocates, the work they do should be changed to function like real advocates. Perhaps we <br />could move ahead with that somehow. <br />Attachment B - Page 1 <br />