Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas last week announced several new oversight measures for the Kansas City Police Department, all of which were approved by the Board of Police Commissioners during an emergency board meeting.
“I have spent significant time listening to Kansas Citians this week, who all share this message: we’re tired of waiting for change,” said Mayor Lucas. “I hear these concerns. We must do better. The measures we’ve announced today are but one step in creating a more equitable community for all our residents. We’ve got a lot of work to do, and we’ll continue working on ways to heal our community today and into the future. Expect further action from my office as we continue to address longstanding concerns within our community and throughout our nation.”
These measures require:
.The Kansas City Police Department to reverse its policy of not sending probable cause statements to the relevant County Prosecutor’s office in officer involved shootings.
.All officer involved shootings and all major use of force complaints to be sent to an outside enforcement agency, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for independent review.
.The Kansas City Police Department to provide weekly updates to the City Council to inform the public about the department’s ongoing community engagement efforts.
.The Kansas City Police Department to review its use of tear gas and other projectiles and determine ways to further restrict their use, and to report within two weeks to the BOPC. The BOPC will provide a policy update proposal related to tear gas and other projectiles at its next scheduled meeting.
.The Kansas City Police Department to make clear that whistleblowers seeing misconduct within KCPD have a codified process through which they can report complaints about other officers to the Office of Community Complaints and the Board of Police Commissioners.
The next regularly scheduled Board of Police Commissioners meeting is Tuesday, June 16 at 9:30 a.m. and is open to the public.
Lucas also pardoned Roderick Reed, a Kansas Citian being prosecuted for failure to obey a lawful order to move his vehicle from middle of the street while recording a video of two Kansas City police officers using excessive force to handcuff and arrest a suspect. This video was used as evidence in a case that in February led to the indictment of the officers.