Birmingham Public Safety Advisory Committee

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The Birmingham Civilian Review Board is an appointed board, created by Mayor Randall Woodfin in 2021 and given the authority to investigate complaints of misconduct by the Birmingham Police Department. Developed in coordination with the Birmingham Office of Peace & Policy, it is the first such board to be established in any Alabama city.

Background

Calls for citizen oversight of police misconduct have been raised several times.

While serving on the Birmingham City Council, Richard Arrington pushed for a formal investigation of the shooting of an African-American suspect in police custody. The hearing was inconclusive, but opened the door to a more serious look at police procedures. The shooting death of Bonita Carter in 1979 highlighted mayor David Vann's unwillingness to make serious changes, and opened the door for Arrington to become the city's first Black mayor. Among his efforts as mayor, Arrington expanded the role of community resource officers to reach out to neighborhoods, and hired Arthur Deutsch, a veteran of the New York Police Department, to modernize the city's crime-fighting apparatus.

Several incidents contributed to renewed calls for civilian oversight of the department in the Spring of 2011. District 6 representative Carole Smitherman suggested that the Birmingham City Council hold hearings with the goal of establishing a police oversight committee. Activist Frank Matthews and Anthony Johnson of the Birmingham NAACP also called for such a committee. Council president Roderick Royal argued that no steps should be taken without consulting with the department first. Chief A. C. Roper did not support creating an oversight board, but instead favored better public relations efforts from within the department, starting with a commitment to professionalism in every interaction.

Nationwide protests following the death of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida; Eric Garner in Staten Island, New York; and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri fueled the emergence of a Black Lives Matter movement. The murder of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota in May 2020 set off a major wave of protests and a growing call for "defunding" police, or moving public resources away from armed responses to crime, and toward social and economic crime reduction programs.

In Birmingham, mayor Woodfin and chief Patrick Smith promised to review department policies, specifically with regard to Campaign Zero's "#8CANTWAIT" recommendations for reducing direct harm caused by police. On July 14 Woodfin immediately adopted a ban on chokeholds and a requirement that other officers intervene and report incidents of excessive violence. Other policy changes were recommended for further evaluation by a Birmingham Public Safety Task Force which was created for the purpose. Their recommendations, published in December 2020, included creating a Citizens' Review Board, expanding the role of social workers in domestic violence calls, making police procedures more transparent, and holding quarterly roundtables with advocacy groups.

Implementation

Woodfin announced the creation of a Civilian Review Board on April 19, 2021, along with the inaugural members: Victor Revill, Joyce Vance, Annetta Nunn, Lawrence Conaway, and T. Marie King. The board was expected to begin its work in July.

The board is empowered to investigate complaints of misconduct submitted by residents, with limited subpoena power under Alabama law. A complaint to the Birmingham Office of Peace & Policy opens a 30-day review period, during which staff from that office can assist in gathering information. At the end of the review, the board can publicize its finding in a public hearing, and submit a report with recommended actions to the chief of police. Recommendations can take the form of disciplinary actions against officers implicated in misconduct, or they can relate to department policies and practices in a more general sense. The department is not obligated to implement the recommendations of the Civilian Review Board.

Incidents relating to matters already under active investigation by the Birmingham Police Department's Internal Affairs Division, the Birmingham Department of Human Resources, the Jefferson County District Attorney, the Jefferson County Personnel Board, or the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (which investigates all police-involved shootings) are not under the board's jurisdiction.

On July 20 2021 Woodfin announced further changes to police policies, disallowing most "no-knock" warrants in which officers could enter a premises without announcing themselves. The policy establishes a risk-assessment and debriefing to accompany each warrant served.

References

  • Bryant, Joseph (May 25, 2011) "Birmingham leaders scrutinize Police Department, consider review board." The Birmingham News
  • Robinson, Carol (September 14, 2015) "Birmingham police body cameras bring drop in use of force, citizen complaints." The Birmingham News
  • Robinson, Carol (June 10, 2020) "Birmingham police will take look inward, but say their training, tactics already strong." The Birmingham News
  • Sims, Bob (July 14, 2020) "Birmingham mayor bans chokeholds, gives initial results of police review." The Birmingham News
  • Robinson, Carol (December 10, 2020) "Randall Woodfin: No defunding Birmingham police but more accountability, training coming." The Birmingham News
  • Robinson, Carol (April 19, 2021) "Birmingham mayor announces Civilian Review Board to investigate complaints of police misconduct." The Birmingham News
  • Robinson, Carol (April 21, 2021) "Birmingham’s police Civilian Review Board: What it will and won’t do." The Birmingham News
  • "Birmingham Police Revise Policies to Disallow No-Knock Warrants." (July 20, 2021) BirminghamWatch
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