Tag: police

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Police, Fire Residency Question to Remain on November Ballot

CREDIT: Memphis Police Department/Facebook

Memphis Police Department/Facebook

Voters will get to decide if police and fire personnel should be able to live within 50 miles of the city.

The Memphis City Council voted 7-5 Tuesday to not rescind a decision made by the previous council to place the referendum question on the November ballot.

Ahead of the vote, Councilman Jeff Warren, who voted in favor of keeping the question on the ballot, encouraged council members to let the voters decide.

“We’ve heard from the police and fire chief,” Warren said. “There is wisdom in what they’ve said.”

Warren said there is also validity in the concerns from community leaders who are wary about having police officers not living in Memphis police their community. But, Warren said he is ”counting on the police academy to weed people out who don’t need to be here.”

Also voting in favor of the referendum was Councilman J. Ford Canale, who addressed another concern voiced by council members throughout the month-long conversation — how much money would the city lose if the employees in question could live outside of the city?

Canale said that the estimated $7.3 million loss in property tax that would result from all 4,000 public safety employees moving out of the city is much lower than the combined $39.5 million that the police and fire departments estimate spending in overtime this year.

Council Chairwoman Patrice Robinson told officials that the departments and the council need to work together to remove other barriers that stymie recruitment, such as grooming policies. She suggested forming an ad hoc committee led by Councilwoman Jamita Swearengen to come up with recommendations for the departments to remove other barriers.

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“Even after we vote on this and allow citizens to vote on it or not have it, we still have that same issue,” Robinson said. “How do we make this a more attractive position in the community?”

The issue of reforming the departments’ grooming policies was first brought up by Councilman Martavious Jones and echoed by Councilman JB Smiley Jr., who said in order to hire more officers, the police department should consider changing it’s grooming requirements related to tattoos and facial hair. He said it’s “something we need to start talking about sooner than later.”


“Our generation makes up a large bulk of the population,” Smiley said. “If we truly want to have new officers willing to serve, it’s almost apparent that we have to make ways for that group of people to feel comfortable.”

To that, Michael Rallings, Memphis Police Department director, told the council that he will “make a deal with you. I’ll allow facial hair and tattoos if you let the voters vote on residency.”

Rallings said the department is currently working on drafting a new grooming policy, but that is it a process.

Rallings also added that the department isn’t “able to pick and choose what we do. I think we need to do all of it,” naming a take-home-car program, the residency requirement, and grooming policies as just a few examples of ways the department can increase recruitment.

After the vote, Swearengen said she will move forward with forming a task force to access other ways to reduce barriers for potential hires.

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News News Blog

Webber’s Shooting Called ‘Boiling Point For Community’

CREDIT: Facebook


Civil rights groups say the community’s response to Wednesday’s fatal shooting of Brandon Webber at the hands of U.S. Marshals officers goes beyond the events of this week and is the result of years of injustice.

Just City said in a Thursday statement via Twitter that the neighborhood’s response is based on “decades of sustained over-policing and entrenched policies that criminalize poverty.”

“The loss of another young life was but a spark on the smoldering ashes that exist in so many neighborhoods in our community,” reads the statement from Just City. “Every single day in Memphis, young and old alike encounter oppressive systems, which are nearly impossible to avoid or escape.”

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Just City said the courts demand more time and attention from the poor than the wealthy, so “even simple traffic tickets can cause a crisis.”

“Hefty” court costs and fees, which if not paid result in driver’s license suspensions, is one way that Just City said those living in poverty are unfairly treated by the system.

“Law enforcement and courts demand accountability for the slightest misstep,” Just City said. “Yet when a life is taken in a hail of gunfire, we wait for days, weeks, or years for a simple description of what occurred, and officers are rarely, if ever, held accountable.”

Webber’s Shooting Called ‘Boiling Point For Community’

Hedy Weinberg, director of the ACLU of Tennessee, shared similar sentiments Thursday, saying that the community’s response was “clearly one of pain, of frustration, of anger.”

“While we in no way condone violence against police officers, the boiling point reached by some individuals in the crowd last night is the consequence of decades of injustice, discrimination, and violence against black people in Memphis and beyond,” Weinberg said. “Of course people in Frayser are upset and angry. We should all be angry.”


Weinberg continues saying that to ignore the pain of protesters and instead to respond with “a militarized show of police force, only illustrates and reinforces the problem.”

Facebook

Brandon Webber

“To adapt the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., unrest is the language of the unheard,” Weinberg said. “To stem the erosion of trust between the community and law enforcement, it is incumbent on Memphis leaders to start listening. This means acknowledging the community’s legitimate pain and anger.”

Weinberg also questioned if there were any attempts made by the officers to de-escalate the situation before shooting Webber: “Was shooting Mr. Webber over a dozen times, if reports are accurate, really necessary?”

There should be a “swift, thorough, and transparent” investigation into the shooting and a “prompt” release of any footage or evidence related to the incident, Weinberg said.

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The Memphis branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) also wants answers surrounding Webber’s death.

In a Thursday statement, Deidre Malone, president of the Memphis branch, said the group is “very interested” in determining whether or not the U.S. Marshal officers that shot Webber were wearing body cameras and if there “was a better way to engage Mr. Webber once he was located.”

“Unfortunately for our citizens, Memphis is again in the spotlight over a shooting of an African American,” Malone said. “The NAACP Memphis Branch will continue to ask these questions until we obtain a response.”


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News News Blog

Strickland Asks For Trust On Banks’ Shooting

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said he “completely backs” Memphis Police Department (MPD) director Michael Rallings’ decision to involve the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) in the investigation of Martavious Banks’ shooting.

Strickland said at a Friday press conference that the administration is pledging its full cooperation with the investigation into the officer-involved shooting of Banks.

“The notion that cameras were turned off before the shooting is disturbing to me,” Strickland said. “It’s unacceptable, inexcusable, and it will not be tolerated.”

While TBI is investigation the shooting itself, MPD is leading an internal investigation on the violation of the body-camera policy.

Typically, TBI will only step in when an officer-involved shooting is fatal. But when MPD realized there was a violation of department body-camera policy, Strickland said it was the right call to turn the investigation over to TBI.

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At this point, Strickland said it is still unclear whether the officers never had their cameras on or if they were turned off. When asked if this was the result of a lack of officer training, Strickland said it’s not, but rather a lack of following the policy. He said the department needs to “double down” to ensure all of the policies are being followed.

The names of the officers involved have not been released yet. Strickland said releasing the names is now up to TBI and that he can’t give a detailed description of them as it might interfere with the bureau’s investigation. However, Strickland did said they “weren’t seasoned” and were “relatively new” officers.

Strickland said the community should “trust this full, honest investigation that’s going to go on both at MPD and the TBI.”

“We will get to the bottom of this,” Strickland said. “I’m directing our entire city hall staff and all of our resources to get the answers to the questions that we all have.”

Moving forward, some city officials want TBI to investigate all officer-involved shootings, not just the ones that result in death. Memphis City Councilman and Shelby County Commissioner Edmund Ford Jr., along with Commissioner Tami Sawyer, announced Wednesday that they would introduce a joint resolution asking TBI to respond immediately to officer-involved shootings that are both fatal and non-fatal.

Ford said people shouldn’t have to die in order for a thorough investigation to take place.

“I get tired of hearing about officer shootings locally and nationally,” Ford said. “Hopefully, the joint legislation will be one step of many to get justice for those who end up in this situation.”

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Ford said he will present the resolution to the council on Tuesday, September 25th along with a list of questions for law enforcement, such as what the disciplinary measures are for an officer who turned off their body camera.

“I hope my colleagues will unanimously support this legislation,” Ford said. “I hope it’s not a polarizing issue. Any issue like this should be investigated and justice should be served.”

Mayor Strickland said he is “totally open” to the legislation, but that the TBI would have to be invited into that conversation in order to make sure they have the resources to be able to do that.

In a statement released Thursday, council member Patrice Robinson said she believes “we need to allow the system to work.”

Here’s her full statement:

“It is an unfortunate situation and my heart goes out to Martavious Banks’ mother and family. I pray that Martavious heals quickly.

I am personally watching this process and at this point, I believe we need to allow the system to work. We will review the contract with the Memphis Police Department and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation as well as the Memphis Police Association’s Memorandum of Understanding as it relates to disciplinary actions.

As representatives of the citizens of Memphis, it is our responsibility to ensure the fair and adequate treatment of all Memphians.

It is my desire that the citizens of Memphis will be patient and show concern for one another by forming more neighborhood watch groups and resolving to support one another by demanding respectful actions by all.”

Councilman Kemp Conrad said in a statement Friday that the officers’ actions were “inexcusable,” but that he trust the administration to handle the investigation.


Here is his full statement:


“First, I want to say that my thoughts are with the family of Martavious Banks. Words can’t describe the horrific nature of this incident. I hope that he makes a full recovery.


While I support the men and women in blue, it is inexcusable that three officers directly involved did not have cameras turned on during this incident. I recognize that officers have a tough job and incidents like this make it even harder, which is why I am a long-time supporter of this tool of transparency. They protect our officers and the citizens of Memphis.


Furthermore, I support the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation investigating officer-involved shootings in the City of Memphis.


I have full faith that our Mayor and his administration will handle this investigation efficiently, swiftly, fairly, and with the utmost care.”

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News News Blog

ACLU Trial Wraps Up, Ruling to Come in September

CREDIT: Brandon Dill

Brandon Dill

Protesters and police officers face off during the 2016 Hernando de Soto bridge protest

Court adjourned Thursday morning in the federal trial over Memphis police surveillance on activists. 

Memphis Police Department (MPD) Major Lambert Ross was the last witness to take the stand in U.S. District Judge Jon McCalla’s courtroom. Ross was the head of the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) during the time of the alleged police surveillance.

The RTCC houses more than 30 large, high-definition monitors displaying live footage from 1,000 cameras around the city. The footage is monitored by both civilian and commissioned officer analysts who can radio officers when incidents occur, Ross said.

Ross said that the RTCC was never used for political surveillance, but to find out where events were being held and how many people were involved. Precincts were then made aware of any large events that were ongoing in their area.

The RTCC began searching social media in 2014, Ross said. Initially, it was used to assist in solving crimes, but after the 2016 bridge protest, searches related to protests were more common. Specifically, Ross said Black Lives Matter was a recurring search term.

“I’m not going to say we chose that term, but it chose us,” Ross testified. “The event picks the search term.”

When asked if searching social media was ever done to find out if specific people would be involved in an event, Ross said no. Ross said as a black man, he “understands the right to protest” and would never interfere. As his MPD colleagues testified before him, Ross said the motivation for the monitoring was public safety.

The city and the ACLU-TN both rested their cases following Ross’ testimony and are required to submit closing briefs in writing to McCalla by Friday, Sept. 14th. Then, both sides have until Friday, Sept. 24th to respond to the opposing side’s brief.

McCalla will release the ruling after both sides have answered each others’ briefs. After court adjourned, one of the attorney’s for the ACLU-TN, Thomas Castelli, said he hopes that the trial will result in court-ordered independent monitoring of MPD, a change in their policies, and better training as it related to the 1978 consent decree.

Additionally and separately from this case, the city has filed a motion to vacate or modify the decree. The ACLU has until early October to that request.

Bruce McMullen, chief legal officer for the city of Memphis, said the city is asking the court vacate the consent decree “because it’s not really relevant today.” It predates any standard technology that law enforcement uses today, he said.

If the court isn’t willing to completely do away with the decree, McMullen said it should “at least be modified and updated so that it’s applicable to the law enforcement best practices that we use today.”

“I want to emphasize that it’s nothing we’re doing today that 155 other jurisdictions do not do in law enforcement,” McMullen said. “It’s basic law enforcement, from Skycops to body cams, which a lot of citizens supported us getting.”

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News News Blog

Rallings Calls Media Coverage of ACLU Lawsuit “Erroneous”

CREDIT: Brandon Dill

Brandon Dill

Michael Rallings with crowd during protest

In response to news coverage of a recent court ruling saying that Memphis violated a 1978 consent decree by gathering political intelligence on protesters, Michael Rallings, director of the Memphis Police Department (MPD), said Tuesday that some of the language in the reports “does not accurately reflect the department’s activities.”

Specifically, Rallings said the terms “surveillance” and “spying” are “erroneous.”

Rallings also said the city’s goal has been to be transparent about the issues involved in the case, ACLU of Tennessee, Inc vs. City of Memphis.

“In fact the only reason many of the articles were printed in the first place is because we voluntarily unsealed documents and posted them on the city website for the world to see,” Rallings said.

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Set to go to trial Monday, August 20th, the case is the result of a lawsuit against the city for gathering political intelligence on protesters over a two-year period through social media and other mediums. Rallings said he can’t speak at length about ongoing litigation but “feels compelled to explain a few things”:

-The terms “surveillance” and “spying” are “erroneous,” and were never used in the court’s order. “Those words conjure up images of officers in unmarked vans on the street corner listening to tapped phone conversations. This does not accurately reflect MPD’s activities, or its motivation, regarding the monitoring of events which are the subject of this lawsuit.”


-Officers look at social media posts to help us gauge the size and intensity of demonstrations so that we can properly provide for public safety. This is also an effective tool in stopping criminal activity such as sexual predators, domestic violence, stalking, and threats. We also use other technology, such as body cameras, SkyCops, and security cameras in our law enforcement efforts to keep Memphians safe.

-Monitoring of social media posts and the usage of modern technology such as body cameras are considered to be best practices in policing nationwide. Various media reports show that many other cities, such as Boston, Charlotte, Denver, Little Rock, San Jose, and Seattle, use social media monitoring. In the aftermath of last year’s Charlottesville riots that resulted in about 40 casualties, including three deaths, the after-action recommendation said that monitoring social media is crucial to protecting public safety.

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“We feel like we have been complying with the consent decree as it would apply to today’s world,” Rallings said. “We need to be able to read these posts and use them as part of our decisions about how we deploy resources, since we are responsible for the safety of all involved.”

Protest and counterprotest can cause “mayhem and loss of life,” Ralling said, but proper social media monitoring helps the agency prepare and respond to those types of events.

“These tools enabled me to ensure that the 2016 bridge protest was peaceful and without injury,” Rallings said. “Without these tools, I believe that night would have ended very differently We will, however, follow the judge’s order.”

Rallings said if the judge rules in favor of the plaintiff, then the department will “find a way to balance public safety with complying with the manner in which the court interprets the consent decree.”

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Opinion The Last Word

When you’re a minority in a world of majorities.

CREDIT: Maya Smith

Even though I often find myself in spaces surrounded by people who don’t look like me nor share a cultural common ground with me, I try not to feel self-conscious about the color of my skin or the marked differences of our ancestors’ experiences.

I try not to hone in on those truths. I choose not to contemplate these things, not because I am ashamed of who I am or the amount of melanin in my skin, but because over time, realizing you’re a minority in a world of majorities can be overwhelming.

But there are times, when I can’t help but feel the effects of a system built on discrimination trickle down on me.

There are moments when, despite the efforts I make to respect all people or present myself as a productive, contributing member of society, I’m looked at as inferior based on a false notion birthed from either hate or a lack of understanding of individuals whose skin color or background differs from their own.

One of these moments came last week when I was in the midst of reporting on local activists’ fight to remove two confederate statues from the city. I found myself observing a relentless pursuit by a group of distressed people who look like me stand up for what they believe in.

Maya Smith

Health Sciences Park

On the other hand, I also found myself in an uncomfortable space of division and apathy.

I saw police officers standing in packs, laughing off protesters’ efforts, casually chatting among each other. And then there was the one disinterested cop who thought a protest would be a good time to pick his lunch from his teeth with a stick of floss.

At a protest early in the week, I heard one supercilious cop say to another, “I don’t get their point.” Cop #2 then spat, shrugged, and returned to cleaning his fingernails.

I couldn’t help but glare at the cop who made that statement. He was choosing to be ignorant and dismiss the obvious “point” of their actions: the removal of statues honoring two men who represent racism and hate.

When my eyes met his own entitled eyes, I realized this was the same cop who greeted me with the most condescending smirk I’ve ever received, followed by a disapproving head shake as I approached the protest earlier that evening.

As a journalist, I’m charged with reporting the news without bias, and that mostly comes with ease.

However, in that space of tension last week, not only did I become self-conscious about my brown skin, but I was flooded with emotion.

The prevailing emotion at the time, I believe, was fear. I was afraid of not only what could have transpired at that protest, but afraid of the larger divisive state of the city and the country.

I also felt sad. I was sad that those cops, who took an oath to protect and honor the city’s communities and those living in them, couldn’t even muster up enough empathy to understand where the protesters were coming from.

Coupled with that sadness was anger. I was angry at the people who showed up to “protect the statues” that day and all who have tried in the past. They fail to realize that those statues have a completely different connotation for people with brown skin. Or maybe they do realize it but simply don’t care. That possibly is even more disheartening because no one is free until everyone is free.

I think some might be missing the argument behind wanting the statues gone. No, a statue itself cannot repress a person, but what it represents can.

Nathan Bedford Forrest, who is memorialized in Health Sciences Park for all traveling down Union to see, was heavily involved with the inception of the Ku Klux Klan. The group was formed solely to violently terrorize blacks, northerners, and others whom they opposed.

The KKK has a history rife with violence, oppression, and cruelty — with hate (or perhaps ignorance) at the core of it all.

So, it’s truly, truly hard for me to understand why in 2017 it is okay for the former Grand Wizard to be honored in such a prominent location in a majority black city.

“It’s a part of history,” they say. Or as some like to put it, “you can’t erase history.”

They are so right. I don’t think anyone is stocking up on erasers and time machines. But I do think that the history lesson could be moved to a more appropriate classroom — perhaps a confederate museum.

People should not have to be reminded of a history that thrived on hate and oppression. Why can’t we move on?

So yes, I believe the statues of KKK Grand Wizard Nathan Bedford Forrest and president of the confederate states Jefferson Davis should be removed from this city. There’s no question about that.

Still, I won’t stand by the belief that removing figures made of stone and concrete will fix the problems in this city.

Even if the statues came down next week, justice and equality for all in this city would not be achieved overnight. The system would still be broken.

When activism falls short, I believe action must pick up the slack. Let’s do what we can with what we have, right now where we are. That means stepping into our city’s communities of color to lend a hand, meet its needs, tutor, mentor, and uplift. There is groundwork that can be done today to rewrite this city’s future — when will we begin?

Maya Smith is a staff writer for the Flyer.

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News

New Officers: Geography v. Competency?

Sure, the mayor’s Clash-like dilemma, and the resulting on-again, off-again mayor’s race, has dominated the news, but other things are still happening.

For instance … the City Council continued its more than year-long struggle Tuesday to employ a full complement of police officers.

Earlier this year, the job of hiring police officers was transferred from the Memphis Police Department to the city’s Human Resources division. The City Council also voted in a resolution that would allow officers to live 20 miles outside the Shelby County line but those officers would have to pay a $1,400 fee.

The Council then said that officers who live inside the city limits should get preference for the positions, which brings it to its current dilemma.

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News

Memphis Police Bust Marijuana “Grow House”

Memphis police officers got a few tips on how to grow pot at a bust near the Galloway Golf Course on Friday.

Eight “how to” books on growing weed indoors were recovered from the home of 58-year-old Marquis Archibald. Apparently, Archibald followed through on his avid reading habits: Police also nabbed 48 pot plants and over three pounds of harvested marijuana.

The bust came after the MPD’s Organized Crime Unit received an anonymous complaint about a possible “grow house.” Archibald allowed officers inside his home, where they discovered a marijuana growing set-up with an irrigation system and heat control in a shed attached to the residence.

Three handguns were also discovered hidden underneath a cat’s play-box.

Archibald was charged with felony possession of a controlled substance.

— Bianca Phillips

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Opinion

Batteries Not Included

Consolidating Memphis and Shelby County is the government equivalent of changing your phone service, Internet service, credit cards, bank, checking account, brokerage firm, home mortgage, termite contract, doctor, car insurance, utilities, club memberships, billing address, will, and marital status.

And it gets really hard if you have children.

Now that Mayor Willie Herenton has been reelected to another four-year term, consolidation is back in the news.

“We need to consolidate,” Herenton told a Memphis Regional Chamber of Commerce audience last week. “We’ve been singing that song, and we’re going to open that hymnbook again.”

In 1993, two years after he was first elected, Herenton floated the idea of consolidation by surrender of the city charter. The New York Times even did a story about it. The mayor appointed a committee to look into it. The committee included some familiar names. The chairman was Mike Cody, a Memphis attorney, former candidate for mayor, and former Tennessee state attorney general. Members included Herman Morris, who ran against Herenton in the 2007 mayoral election, John Ryder, who managed the Morris campaign, Charles Carpenter, who managed Herenton’s campaign, state senator Steve Cohen, who is now a member of Congress, Shelby County attorney Brian Kuhn, and others.

Their conclusion, in short: no way.

“You can say I’m in favor of it,” Cody said in a telephone call from Boston this week. “We tried to find some ways.”

There were 14 pages of analysis, to be exact.

The Tennessee General Assembly would have to pass an enabling law. If the law was amended to apply to the Memphis city charter, 10 percent of the residents of the city could petition for a referendum. The committee noted, however, that the state constitution apparently only envisions dissolving cities with a city manager and commission form of government.

“No dissolution method is provided by the General Assembly for cities organized as is Memphis,” the committee concluded.

As for legal and practical problems that might arise from charter surrender, the committee suggested a few: Suburban cities such as Bartlett, Collierville, and Germantown might use annexation to cherry-pick prime neighborhoods and pick up residents and/or retail. Or residents of a defined area in the suddenly unincorporated Memphis could hire a smart lawyer, incorporate, and invent a new city.

“Any contracts of the city of Memphis would survive a surrender of the charter and could be enforced,” the report said. Joint boards and commissions “would require some degree of restructuring.” Consolidation “would be further complicated for those authorities with holdings in their own names.” The city board of education would be abolished unless provisions were made to create a special taxing district. Both MATA and MLGW “would cease to exist.”

The committee fell back on the old, safe standby of “functional consolidation” of certain departments, which has been dusted off several times since then.

In 2002, Cohen requested an opinion on charter surrender from the state attorney general. The answer was no way once again.

“The General Assembly may not revoke the charter, the Memphis City Council is not authorized to surrender the city charter, and no statute authorizes the Memphis city charter to be revoked by a referendum election of the voters,” the opinion said.

Case closed? Not quite. Lawmakers can do almost anything if they put their minds to it, witness those lottery tickets on sale at your neighborhood convenience store. But the lottery had popular support, and other states had shown the way.

The city most often mentioned as a model for consolidation is Louisville, which has some similarities to Memphis: river city, big college-basketball town, long-serving mayor, air-cargo hub. The big difference is that Louisville was 65 percent white before consolidation and more than 80 percent white after consolidation, which took effect in 2003 after voter approval in 2000.

You don’t need 750 words to figure out that one.

Categories
News The Fly-By

Serve and Protect

When the Las Vegas Police Department merged with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office 35 years ago, departmental pride kept some officers apart.

“You’d go into a room and the city guys would be on one side and the county guys would be on another side,” said Tom Roberts, director of intergovernmental services for the Las Vegas metro department. “But that problem fizzled out over time.”

Roberts presented an overview of Las Vegas’ consolidated city and county police force to the Shelby County Commission’s law enforcement task force last week. The task force, headed by Commissioner Mike Carpenter, also heard from representatives of the Shelby County Sheriffs’ Association.

“Our investigators and specialists are concerned that consolidation would cause there to be too many people in investigator positions,” said association vice president Dan Chapman. “They’re afraid they’d be put back into patrolmen positions after they’ve worked years to get the jobs they have.”

Other association members are worried that consolidation would concentrate more resources on crime inside the city limits, leaving residents of Arlington, Lakeland, and other unincorporated areas with less police protection.

“Some of our guys have worked in the same areas for a long time, and they’ve developed relationships with the people who live there,” Chapman said. “We’re afraid the people they’ve faithfully served over the years would find they’re no longer enjoying the level of service they’re accustomed to.”

But not all sheriffs’ association members are against consolidation. Association president John Kraemer said he’s heard several members say they wouldn’t mind consolidating the two departments because Memphis police officers get better benefits.

“Many of our members have made it clear to me that they’re all for consolidation, but they don’t want [Sheriff Mark Luttrell] in charge,” Kraemer said.

County police officers have had two significant pay cuts in the last two years, Chapman said. “So our guys think, if we consolidate, at least we’ll get a raise.”

Tommy Turner, president of the Memphis Police Association, said his group will only support consolidation if the Memphis department is the lead agency.

“Our contract is with the city of Memphis and the police department, and we will not relinquish it,” Turner said.

Turner said the agreement with the city provides better compensation when officers have to go to court or work overtime than the sheriff’s office. MPD officers also make higher wages.

The task force has four more meetings before it is expected to make any proposal for or against consolidation. Carpenter says the commission will keep all issues in mind.

“If we decide to go in this direction [toward consolidation], we can balance those concerns,” Carpenter said. “Is everybody going to be happy? No, they never are. But I think we can make sure the officers are taken care of.”