Rose Wibbenmeyer suggested that they include public comments with their
motion in their report to Council. The Board reached consensus to do so.
Xavier Scruggs said that it is his sincerest hope that Columbia was not part
of this new legislation and that he would love for the Board to still be intact.
Jamie Thornsberry said that could be in the cover letter as well. Doug Hunt
suggested that the board, “unless it is learned that it is possible to preserve
the present CPRB structure and duties intact,” to the beginning of the report
and before the words “replace the CPRB with two boards”. All voted in
favor of the motion. No one opposed the motion. No one abstained. The
motion passed.
With the amendments, the motion, approved by the Board, read as follows:
“Unless it is learned that it is possible to preserve the present CPRB structure
and duties intact, Columbia’s Citizens Police Review Board recommends that
the City Council take the following three actions in response to SB751, recently
signed into Missouri law:
1. If allowed by SB 754, replace the CPRB with two civilian oversight boards:
the first concerned with police department policy, the second with the conduct
of individual police officers.
2. To avoid conflict with SB754, make it clear that the Policy Board will never
recommend disciplinary actions against individual officers. Its duties will be
• To host public meetings and educational programs on matters of CPD
policies and practices,
• To review and make recommendations to the police chief and city manager
on police department policies, procedures, and training,
• To educate itself on the practical effects of policies, procedures, and
training by conducting annual reviews of police department records regarding
citizens’ complaints and their resolution if allowed by SB 754,
• To prepare and submit to the city council annual reports that analyze those
complaints and the way they were resolved, including demographic data, but
excluding information that personally identifies particular officers or citizens,
• To prepare and submit to the city council summaries of other public input it
receives, and to suggest ways that the CPD can best address this this input.
3. Make it clear that the Conduct Board’s duties will be consistent with SB754.
Those duties, which will require it to meet primarily in closed session, will be
• To receive, and to investigate the merit of, appeals from citizens who are
dissatisfied with the police chief's preliminary findings on complaints involving
excessive use of force, abuse of authority, discourtesy, or use of offensive
language,
• To submit its findings on these appeals, including any recommendations on
disciplinary action, to the chief of police and (if SB754 allows) to the city
manager, and to do so in a timely way so that all investigations can be
completed within the time limits imposed by state law.