The Community Police Advisory Board Development Task Force provided recommendations to create a Civilian Oversight Board during a Government Operations Committee meeting yesterday evening. This effort is intended to improve relations between the police department and the community.
During the meeting, task force members Mokah Johnson and Shane Sims laid out a detailed plan for the creation of a civilian oversight board, which will improve transparency and reduce police misconduct or abuse.
Mokah Johnson said the oversight board will be effective due to the unbiased nature of its structure.
"Because a civilian oversight agency operates outside of the overseen law enforcement agency, and reports to local stakeholders outside of its chain of command, the findings and reports of an oversight agency are free from the real or perceived biases that are often the source of mistrust in a law enforcement agency's internal systems."
To execute this, the task force recommends an auditor-focused and review-board structure model comprised of 13 members who will review police conduct, make budget and policy recommendations, and conduct community outreach.
The full presentation can be viewed on the Athens Clarke County YouTube channel.