(From left to right, Mayor Kevin Johnson, Sacramento, Mayor Michael Nutter, Philadelphia, and Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Baltimore) Mayors from 3 major cities answer questions about policing policy from the task force.
WASHINGTON—A task force, named by President Obama in the aftermath of the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, met for the first time Tuesday to generate recommendations aimed at strengthening community policing and building public trust towards law enforcement.
Policy experts and mayors offered testimony relating to the best practices for police departments.
The task force is co-chaired by Charles Ramsey, commissioner of the Philadelphia Police Department and Laurie Robinson, professor of criminology at George Mason University in northern Virginia. Community organizers, members of law enforcement and civil rights activists have also joined the task force.
“We need to think about ways in which police can be more effective in doing their jobs and reaching out to the community,” Ramsey said.
The group is comprised of members with differing interests and perspectives but all saythey hope to reach recommendations beneficial to both the safety of police and the community they protect.
“[Police] should not look at our little black boys and see an arrest stat.” said civil rights attorney, Constance Rice, a member of the task force. “When they look at our little kids in the ghetto, they should see their sons.”
Member, Susan Rahr, director of the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission, believes the goal of the task force should be to change a police culture from that of warriors to guardians.
A panel of three mayors fielded questions on policing methods in their cities. Mayors Michael Nuttter of Philadelphia, Kevin Johnson of Sacramento and Stephanie Rawlings-Blake of Baltimore, highlighted policing strategies that they enacted to build community trust toward their police.
“Despite the similarities in the challenges we face, each challenge must be dealt with in the context of the cities we serve.” Johnson said. “We cannot pretend there is a one size fits all model.”
The task force has a March 2 deadline to provide recommendations that the president hopes will rebuild some of the trust in police following the nationwide protests over the shooting of Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and the death of Garner in Staten Island, N.Y.
