Here's what's happened since Mayor Randall Woodfin created the Birmingham Public Safety Advisory Committee, under a different name, three years ago.
In three years, a citizens review group intended to provide an independent review of police misconduct in Birmingham has heard just three cases.
“The problem with this committee is that it has no authority,” said Florence L. Finkle, vice president of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement. “It doesn’t have any authority to do anything. So what is it supposed to tell the public its authority is? The goals set forth in the mayor’s executive order do not match with the actual authority they have.”
The Birmingham Police Department did not provide data about how many complaints have been filed with internal affairs in recent years. “If our residents know about it and understand, they will have confidence in it,” Bean said. “At this point our only obstacle is the public understanding what’s available to them.”that he believes the committee is in its “embryonic stage,” but said he has faith in its potential for impact.
“The fact that there is a process that’s in place that can be utilized by members of the public is important and helpful, and can serve as a deterrent,” he told. “Not only a deterrent to the use of excessive force, but also used as a means to better improve the quality of training and improve the qualifications for specific law enforcement positions.”
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