In recent years especially, many Greensboro residents have had issues, concerns and suspicions about the oversight – or lack thereof – of some actions carried out by the Greensboro Police Department.
Well, now those who do have those concerns will get a chance to interact directly with the nine-person council charged specifically with oversight of the police department.
Made up of nine Greensboro residents appointed by the Greensboro City Council, the Greensboro Criminal Justice Advisory Commission has a designated mission to provide “impartial oversight of Greensboro Police Department conduct, practices, and policies to enhance accountability, inform the public to increase transparency, and create sustainable partnerships throughout the community.”
The City of Greensboro’s Office of Community Safety is inviting community members who want to learn about the oversight committee to come out to a meet and greet with the Greensboro Criminal Justice Advisory Commission that will run from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, August 10 in LeBauer Park at 208 N. Davie St. in downtown Greensboro.
At the event, advisory commission members will hand out information about the commission’s purpose and its role in the community and members will inform the public of the commission’s role in promoting public safety while engaging in “transparent discussions” with attendees regarding the policies that affect the public’s interaction with law enforcement.
Following the meet and greet, those who stick around will enjoy a free City Sunsets concert in Center City Park, which will include food vendors and live entertainment.
Those interested can also attend meetings of the commission.
The city’s Justice Advisory Commission meets at 6:30 p.m. on the third Thursday of every month.
The commission, which reports directly to City Council and the City Manager’s Office, is tasked with a wide range of objectives across the justice continuum, including the following:
- Identifying, addressing and monitoring police issues
- Educating the public – and advocating for residents’ concerns – by hosting forums on a variety of justice-related topics and examining trends in policing strategies within the Greensboro Police Department
- Providing perspective on policies that affect the public’s interaction with law enforcement.
The Police Community Review Board is a subcommittee of the commission. The purpose of that board is “to review complaints filed against a member of GPD after those complaints have been investigated and ruled upon by the police department’s Professional Standards Division.”
Neither the board nor the commission investigates any complaints against the police department.
More information about the commission and police department oversight in the city can be found at www.greensboro-nc.gov/GCJAC.
Does this group encompass residents from all of Greensboro or just the “Eastside”, high crime area’s of Greensboro? What law enforcement training or experience do they have? Does council listen to this group when they present questions, OR is this another GIVE our tax dollars to “Friends of the City Council “ with NO accountability, again?
Where is the ‘Cure for Violence” leadership and employee’s during this rise in crime?
Where are the videos from the night of Dec. 28 involving Taiwo Jaiyeoba, former City Manager, the police chief, police officers, Nancy Vaughn, and others? If this nine-person council wants to demonstrate oversight, demand the release of the videos.
I don’t believe the majority of the problem is with the rank and file in the GPD. Just look at the previous incident with the ex-City Manager and how that was sandbagged by the upper levels of the department. Let’s bring them before this PUBLIC board and see what happens
I think the chief should make his cell phone public so anyone in Greensboro can call him personally anytime they’re having a domestic issue and he can personally send out the watch commander to calm the situation down and no one will be arrested. If it’s good for one it should be the same for ALL
Yes sir, it does kind of smell.
A “whole lot of nothing”. Raise the pay and standards to attract and keep officers. Enable them to do their job without political interference.
Arrest, prosecute, and jail felons.
This uninformed and basic lack of knowledge about law and police work “commission” acts on pure feeling alone and does not examine things as it should be, though the eyes of the individual officer. Instead, they hear complaints from the “my feelings got hurt” community, who also do not know much of anything.
They want real change? Teach the citizens of Greensboro how to act in a civilized manner, work on their own issues, take ownership of their community, and not get mad when an officer tells them, no.
From one of my sources, the PCRB is composed of 9 individuals, each appointed by one of the 9 council members. They get no specific training and have no specific experience in law enforcement or oversight. It’s basically an unvetted, untrained group of people tasked with trying to provide oversight on something they know nothing about. Luckily, they do not have subpoena power and cannot, on their own, overturn anything. All they can do is make recommendations to the police chief about a complaint when the citizen appeals it to them. So they kind of suck because they are untrained and political, rather than highly trained and neutral, but luckily their negative impact is minimized by their lack of power. It appears to be one of those things that is a good idea theoretically but becomes corrupted by the political side of things almost immediately.