The Way Forward: Police Accountability in Rochester (August 1, 2018)
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The Way Forward: Police Accountability in Rochester (August 1, 2018) published by the Police Accountability Board Alliance (see PDF link below) is their response and way forward to the City establishing a Police Accountability Board. The document reviews the recent history, offers a legal analysis of the both the Harris Beach legal opinion on the question of discipline and the Rebuttal from the City's attorney. In the end, Rochester City Council needs to amend the City Charter and delegate disciplinary authority to the PAB! For more info, check out PABNOW.com.
1 Introduction
Since February 2017, activists have pushed with renewed vigor for the passage of legislation that has been needed for well over a half century in Rochester, NY. Police have evaded re- sponsibility for far too long. Rochester needs and demands a powerful Police Accountability Board (PAB). True accountability requires the power to make decisions and enforce them. Thus, the following five pillars are essential:
The PAB will be an independent agency of city government, separate from the RPD;
The PAB will have independent investigative authority;
The PAB will have subpoena power to compel the production of evidence and witnesses;
The PAB will have disciplinary authority using a disciplinary matrix; and
The PAB will have the power to evaluate systemic patterns, practices, policies, and procedures of the RPD to recommend changes and prevent misconduct.
In addition to the five pillars, sufficient funding is required so that complaints of misconduct are resolved efficiently and effectively in, 90 days. To handle the volume of complaints that are filed in Rochester, the PAB will require a funding equal to 1% of the Rochester Police Department (RPD) budget, one million dollars, a reasonable cost of true accountability, and an investment which will result in far fewer costly lawsuits concerning excessive force against the city.
City Council has the power and legal authority to establish a strong Police Accountability Board. Neither state law, nor the police union contract, nor the City Charter, nor the City Code are obstacles. We call on City Council to pass the PAB now.
