By Emmanuel Vincent

The Legislative Masters Committee Meeting started the new month with a virtual meeting this past Thursday. One of the highlights of the meeting was the staffing level of police patrolmen. It was argued that the City Council should have the responsibility of controlling the staffing of law enforcement in the city.

There was some push back regarding this, suggesting that the Police Department itself should determine the number of patrolmen. The reason given for this is that the Chief of Police has a better understanding of staffing requirements, since they are engaged in the office on a consistent basis.

“We have the power of the police,” said one Councilor. “If we want to cut the police, we can cut the budget. The Chief should be able to determine what the structure of the department looks like.” Nothing was finalized with this topic, as it was agreed to address the matter at a later time, with a formal proposal.

Another item on the agenda for the meeting was the police and fire reserve list. There’s a concern, primarily for those who are already on the list as well as those who were given a conditional offer by the city.

With the history of dealing with this matter, there is no clear roadmap to an outcome that works for all parties involved. “Everybody is unclear,” said City Solicitor Frank Wright. “There’s no precedence or guidance for us to give. It’s just a question of whether the Civil Servant commission would deem them to have any sort of protection.”

The day-to-day salary of police officers would not be negatively impacted if the reserve list is dispensed with. Some feel that there is no urgency for limiting or getting rid of the reserve list. Instead, it was felt that the current list should be exhausted first.

The Chief of the Fire Department expressed concerns about the possible removal of the reserve list as he needs more people on board, as overtime resources are being heavily relied upon. The academy is taking openings in July. This item will stay in committee for the time being.

The banning use of tear gas by law enforcement was also addressed. With language being updated in the ordinance, it was clear as to how this came about. Over the past year, there have been protests across the country in an effort to combat racial injustice. In these demonstrations there have been confrontations between law enforcement and protestors that have escalated.

Using these situations as a reference, high-ranking officers can use tactics to help diffuse matters. It was also announced that pepper spray is not a crowd control agent. However, it is allowed to be used in acts of property damage or violence. Essentially, it would be up to the discretion of the responding officer as to when to use it. It cannot, however, be used in an effort to detain people. It was agreed that the ordinance will go into effective 60 days after passage.