Cleveland City Council's committee hearing over Justice Department findings: 5 observations

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Cleveland City Council's public safety committee met Wednesday to discuss the recent Justice Department findings.

(Plain Dealer file photo)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland City Council on Wednesday held the first of a slew of public meetings about a U.S. Justice Department investigation that concluded city police routinely use excessive force against citizens.

Little new information came out of the three-hour hearing attended by Steven Dettelbach, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

But here are five observations from the session:

1. Dettelbach: We shouldn't be back here

Dettelbach noted this is not the Justice Department's first trip to Cleveland. In 2004, the city and the department entered into a one-year, voluntary agreement negotiated under then-Mayor Jane Campbell to address Cleveland police's use of deadly force.

"We were very conscious of is it's not normal for the department to be back to the same place twice in a decade," Dettelbach told council members.

So why are federal investigators back so soon? Dettelbach offered a guess. He said the previous review focused exclusively on the use of deadly force, while the latest investigation looked at use of non-deadly force, among other issues.

"I think looking back in retrospect, maybe the time frame wasn't long enough for things to take root, and the scope of the work was maybe too limited," he said.

2. An absence of police brass

Several Jackson aides attended the session, coming two days after Jackson administrators walked out of en masse from council meeting as Councilman Jeffrey Johnson called for City Safety Director Matthew McGrath's resignation.

But neither McGrath, a former chief of police, nor current Chief Calvin Williams made an appearance though the agenda dealt entirely with criticism of city police officers.

The council agenda carved out a portion of the meeting for the Jackson administration to sketch out its response to the Justice Department report. City Law Director Barbara Langhenry served as the administration's sole representative before council.

Langhenry reported that initial meetings between city and federal officials will take place next week. She also said the city doesn't agree with all of the allegations contained within the report, but provided no specifics.

"We acknowledge there are important issues raised," she said, 'and I don't think anybody is burying their heads in the sand about the importance of addressing these issues head-on."

3. Questions over federal monitoring

Dettelbach made a point of saying the federal government will not take over the Cleveland police department. The city will continue to manage day-to-day affairs, he said.

But eventually, the city and the federal government will select an independent monitor to make sure the city follows through on the terms of an eventual legal agreement between the two sides to address issues raised in the report. The monitor might be a lawyer, but also could be an organization, he said.

The city will be responsible for paying for the monitor, and will help develop the metrics used to track the city's progress.

As an example of a recent local case involving a federal monitor, Dettelbach cited a 2013 case involving the Canton-based Diebold Inc.

Diebold agreed to monitoring as part of a $25.2 million agreement to settle federal allegations that the company bribed foreign officials to get business.

4. Tamir Rice's shooting delayed release of the Justice Department report

Dettelbach said the report was substantially done on Nov. 22, when 12-year-old Cleveland boy Tamir Rice, who was playing with a realistic-looking toy gun, was fatally shot by a rookie Cleveland police officer.

While the shooting wasn't part of the federal investigation, Dettelbach said, the ensuing community discord influenced the timing of the report's release.

"We didn't want to sit on it," he said. "But at the same time, we didn't want to throw gasoline on a volatile situation either."

5. Councilman predicts unrest

In contrast to the anger in the streets and even in City Hall earlier this week, Wednesday's meeting proceeded mostly without raised voices.

But some council members had sharp words for the administration and the police department over the report's findings.

Councilman Mike Polensek said city police have failed to provide community policing. He said residents have reported that officers don't return waves. And most officers and police commanders don't live within the city, he said.

"Some people have categorized this report as an embarrassment. I categorize it as outrageous," he said.

Perhaps the most pointed remarks came from councilman Zack Reed, who predicted civil unrest, comparable to rioting in Ferguson, Missouri if community concerns with the police department aren't addressed.

"What happened in Ferguson is going to be a skirmish compared to what's going to happen here," Reed said.

The Public Safety Committee hearing will meet again on Thursday, Dec. 16 at the Harvard Community Center, 18240 Harvard Ave., launching a "listening tour," according to councilman Matt Zone, the committee's chairman.

A second session is scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 30, at Sagrada Familia Church, 7719 Detroit Ave.

Zone, in a written statement, promised council members would listen to the public.

"This process is going to be very transparent and in the end, council will put together a public document detailing our findings," he said.

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