The remaining five three-hour meetings of the the Tempe Public Safety Advisory Task Force will be available to the public live, the city announced.
The initial meeting on Oct. 13 was closed to the public and available to stream only after the fact. Concern was raised by some members of the public that not making the meetings available live is a violation of Arizona open-meeting law since these meetings are being conducted virtually with panelists scattered at remote sites and no spectators may attend.
A Tempe spokesman said the city was advised by its Attorney’s Office that there was no meeting-law violation at the initial meeting since it was an orientation and no conversations took place about recommendations for reform of the Tempe Police Department. Baseline information was provided to task force members, such as basics about the Police Department. Panel members gave staff a list of the types of statistics and data they will need to in order to delve deeply and make meaningful recommendations about the Police Department. No group discussions took place during the informational orientation format.
Video and other information from the first meeting is available at tempe.gov/PublicSafetyAdvisoryTaskForce.
All five remaining meetings may be livestreamed. The next is 4-7 p.m. Oct. 28, to be followed by meetings on Nov. 4, Nov. 10, Dec. 2 and Dec. 21. Video recordings also will be available after each meeting on Tempe 11 and at tempe.gov/PublicSafetyAdvisoryTaskForce.
The aim of the task force is to produce and recommend to the City Manager a strategic plan that builds upon the trust, accountability and dialogue between the community and the Tempe Police Department.
The Tempe Police Department has suffered negative public feedback the past couple of years over its aggressive response to several high-profile incidents. Last month, Police Chief Sylvia Moir agreed to resign. New Tempe Mayor Corey Woods said shortly after his July inauguration that he believed some reforms were needed within the department and he convened this task force to study what might be changed.
Completion of a strategic plan is expected in January 2021. Community members may then comment on the draft plan during public meetings in early 2021.
During the remaining task force meetings, participants will focus on policies, hiring, use of technologies, training, data and how the city engages with people who are Black, Indigenous, people of color, people experiencing homelessness and those with mental health challenges.
During the inaugural meeting, the panel wanted to know about basic operations of the Police Department.
“The great thing was that there were lots of conversations about hiring and recruitment,” Woods said. “We talked about some baseline data from our community surveys, how we collect data, what data we collect, how our training is done and how we attract a diverse applicant pool. The task force would like more data on what kinds of training our officers get, and how often that training is given again or reinforced. What kind of support are we providing our officers in terms of emotional well-being, because they see traumatic situations on a regular basis? What are we doing to assist them?”
“I am so grateful to and impressed by the community members who have agreed to serve our city in this vitally important work,” Woods said. “These individuals are invested, credentialed and ready to roll up their sleeves to create meaningful change. This is incredibly detailed work that affects real people at every turn. They are clearly interested in substance and producing tangible results. It is humbling to serve with them.”
Task force participants include Keisha Acton, Dr. Robbie Adler-Tapia, Arlene Chin, Suzanne Durkin-Bighorn, Melody Elkin, Hassan Ellsaad, Pam Goronkin, Dr. Raquel Gutierrez, Viri Hernandez, Patti Hibbeler, Alana Chávez Langdon, Shereen Lerner, Jacob Moore, Jon Mulford, Randy Perez, Jacob Raiford, Sue Ringler, Rabbi Dean Shapiro, Michael Soto, Roy Tatem, Jr., Genevieve Vega and Janelle Wood.
They were selected for their contributions to Tempe or regional organizations, businesses or affiliations, according to the mayor. They represent diverse values and opinions that are reflective of the community.
Also on the panel are Tempe Vice Mayor Randy Keating, Council member Lauren Kuby, City Manager Andrew Ching, Interim Police Chief Jeff Glover, Asst. Chief Michael Pooley, Tempe Officers Association President Rob Ferraro and city staff.
Information about future meetings, including agendas and video viewing opportunities, is at tempe.gov/PublicSafetyAdvisoryTaskForce. Future meetings will include discussions about recommendations. Community members can provide ideas and ask questions by emailing PublicSafetyAdvisoryTaskForce@tempe.gov or by calling Mayoral Aide Brianne Fisher at 480-350-8959.
