Akron clergy members and civil rights advocates believe they have collected enough petition signatures to place a charter amendment on the November ballot.
If approved, the amendment would dramatically strengthen the city’s civilian police oversight system put in place by voters in the wake of Jayland Walker’s 2022 killing.
The coalition, led by Akron’s Freedom BLOC and prominent faith leaders, has collected petition signatures since late April and plans next week to submit several thousand to Akron City Council’s clerk.
“We see with these signatures that this is what the community wants,” said Robert DeJournett, senior pastor at St. Ashworth Temple Church of God in Christ. He’s also the uncle of Walker, who, four years ago, was repeatedly shot by Akron police in an incident that led to national headlines and protests.
“The community wants to have a voice, and the best way to do that is for it to be implemented in the charter,” he said.
Signature validation is next step in reaching Akron ballot
City Council’s clerk will conduct the initial assessment of signatures before the Summit County Board of Elections’ validation process. Signature validation is not guaranteed, though.
Two years ago, the board of elections rejected 45 percent of the signatures on a petition for a ballot measure that, if successful, would have changed how the city selects its police chief. Officials determined the signatures failed to reach the minimum threshold of registered Akron voters.
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Potential impact of charter amendment
If enough signatures are deemed valid in the coming weeks and a majority of voters approve the amendment in November, it would mean that reviews of police misconduct by the Citizens’ Police Oversight Board and the Office of the Independent Police Auditor could no longer be ignored by the Akron Police Department and the mayor’s office without consequences.
The lack of responses from APD and the mayor have been a significant source of frustration for police-reform advocates since the system began taking shape three years ago.
The amendment would also require that after the CPOB approves the auditor’s recommendations in internal police probes of misconduct, the police chief will be required to respond within 10 days — indicating whether and why the department rejected or accepted the auditor’s recommendation.
Current auditor Anthony Finnell has disagreed a number of times with APD supervisors who cleared officers of wrongdoing in use-of-force incidents.
Under the proposed law, if the police chief doesn’t respond in writing — either way — within 45 days, the auditor’s recommendation will automatically go into effect, akin to a default judgment in a civil case.
As of now, no police or city entity is required to acknowledge Finnell’s oversight recommendations. In many cases, findings have been ignored or rejected with little or no explanation.
The charter amendment would go further still: If the police chief rejects the oversight recommendation, that rejection would trigger a required “meet and confer” meeting with the auditor within 10 days. If there’s still disagreement after that, the decision would fall to the Akron mayor, who will need to issue a determination, either way, in writing. As in the earlier step, the auditor’s recommendation would automatically prevail if the mayor doesn’t respond.
The language would also give the oversight system subpoena power, allowing the auditor to subpoena records and compel witnesses to testify, though it would stop short of subpoenaing officers whose conduct is under investigation while the police union contract bans it.
Proposed amendment’s impact on future CPOB members
The charter amendment would also give the CPOB more say on who serves on it. Currently, the mayor nominates three candidates and Akron City Council selects the other six members.
Under the proposed language, the mayor’s office, City Council and the CPOB — with guidance from local civil rights and social justice nonprofits — would each be responsible for filling three seats.
