The City Council’s Legislative Matters Committee is following up on its stated commitment to establish some form of police oversight.

By Joe Creason

The Legislative Matters Committee held a special meeting on Wednesday, March 24, the first of several scheduled community discussions on establishing a system for civilian oversight of police.

Present at the meeting were City Councilors, city staff and community organizers who wished to share their perspective on how to improve civilian-police relations.

The discussion was opened with a presentation from City Council Legislative and Policy Analyst Ayerim Decena, who was hired to research civilian oversight of police departments and how other municipalities have handled this issue.

“Discussions around reimagining police and community relations have happened in Somerville before including the ‘Welcoming City Ordinance,’ stating a citizen’s immigration status will have no bearing on their treatment by city agencies and law enforcement,” Decena said. “Overhauling the police confirmation process and formally rescinding the ‘Gang Ordinance’ have all been within just the past couple years.”

Decena further outlined how the City Council and Administration have recently taken steps to address concerns from the community around policing, including increased oversight of surveillance technology use by police as well as a 7.7% of the proposed 2021 SPD budget to other social services.

According to Decena, who cited a November 2020 Tufts University survey, 81% of Somerville residents support establishing a board of civilian oversight on police. “The process of creating this civilian oversight committee is the process we are in now,” Decena said.

Decena continued her presentation by laying out several methods for the civilian oversight of law enforcement which are currently being implemented across the United States.

The main variations of civilian oversight which she discussed include:

• A Review-Focused Model, one in which a civilian board reviews the reports of internal affairs investigations, and one in which a civilian may file complaints with the review committee instead of directly with the police department.
• An Investigative Model, in which the board is comprised of civilians as well as professional investigators who have the authority to open an investigation that is independent of any which has been conducted but the police department.
• An Auditor/Monitor Model in which boards with ongoing monitoring and auditing authority over the police, receive complaints directly from the community and are focused on systemic reform of the department.

There are also Hybrid models, such as the one used by the city of Boston, which take into account the social, cultural, economic and political uniqueness of the various municipalities that implement them. Somerville is searching for an approach that best aligns with the interests of the community, Decena says.

 The City Council began a discussion concerning the civilian oversight of police as a response to the extensive protests this past summer in light of the murder of George Floyd.

A number of organizations and perspectives were present at Wednesday’s community meeting.

Tracey Pratt spoke on behalf of Just Us Somerville, a group which emerged on June 7, 2020, with a rally against police violence towards the Black Community and a list of demands. Included on that list was the implementation of a diverse board of paid civilian representatives from the community that would play an oversight role with regards to police conduct and power over the Somerville Police Department confirmation process.

Pratt says the demand to end racial inequality is a demand to end police brutality, and Just Us  Somerville will continue to advocate for their perspective until their demands are met.

Matthew from Defund SPD, the Somerville movement started by a petition signed with over 4,000 resident signatures in light of the murder of George Floyd, spoke on the issue of a civilian board for oversight of police and the demands made by the organization he was representing.

Defund SPD demands the formation of a board of civilian representatives who have no ties to or conflicts of interest with law enforcement, and that are also paid livable wages which match the median salary for Somerville police officers, says Matthew.

“The board must have the right to reject all proposed new hiring if they feel that additional police officers are not required for the safety of the community,” Matthew said. “They also must have the power to eliminate entire divisions of the police department, including the department as a whole, and redistribute responsibilities to non-law enforcement professionals if necessary.”

The discussion concerning a board of civilian oversight on police while continue in the Legislative Matters Committee.