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Salt Lake Tribune - Salt Lake
21 May 2007

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Salt Lake City Police Departme

Police panel: Full disclosure

Salt Lake City is looking for a few good men and women to serve on its Police Civilian Review Board. If you volunteer, you'll be part of the only autonomous board of its kind in the state, ruling on misconduct complaints leveled against police officers and providing independent oversight of the department's division of internal affairs.
And you'll be doing your part, as Mayor Rocky Anderson writes on the city's Web site, "to promote greater trust between the police department and the community it serves."
Be warned, you'll have to undergo training, serve long hours, attend countless meetings. And the rewards are, well, here's what you get in return. Zero pay. Zero authority. And zero respect.
Too often, board members' non-binding findings have been ignored, their requests for information have been stymied, their good reputations have been sullied. And their frustration is starting to show, and rightfully so.
Four members of the 14-person panel announced their resignations in the last week. Only five remain, enough to fit comfortably in a single squad car.
According to review board member Scott McCoy, who is also a state senator, the most recent defections stem from the city's probe into a news leak. Somebody told The Salt Lake Tribune that the board upheld a complaint from a 74-year-old Korean War veteran who was manhandled by cops and

filed suit against the city. And the city retaliated by launching an investigation, seeking phone records of board members in an attempt to find the source. "We don't appreciate having our names dragged through the mud," McCoy said.
The review board has the potential to be a wonderful thing. Working with an independent investigator hired by the city, it has heard 230 cases since 2003, siding with police about 54 percent of the time.
In theory, it can ensure police accountability and protect officers who are falsely accused. And it will do exactly that, as soon as the city stops limiting information about allegations of police misconduct.
The city needs to release the review board's complete reports and recommendations, and make the final ruling of the chief of police a part of the public record. That way, the board's work will have meaning. The public will hold Police Chief Chris Burbank accountable for his decisions. Trust will be engendered. And the citizens will be well served.

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Salt Lake Tribune - Salt Lake21 May 2007

Police panel: Full disclosure

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Salt Lake Tribune - Salt Lake
21 May 2007