Calling it a “matter of life and death” and “the most significant issue facing our city,” Akron Mayor Shammas Malik made a last-ditch effort on Monday to convince Akron City Council to fund a $640,000 review of the Akron Police Department’s use-of-force policies by a New York law firm and Chicago policing consultants.
“We’ve had too much bad news in the city,” Malik told Akron City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Monday afternoon. “… The best we can do is take proactive steps to make sure we have the gold standard of what we should do when officers have to use force.”
The mayor’s pleas didn’t work.
More than two months after Malik introduced the legislation in the wake of Jazmir Tucker’s killing and other high-profile incidents, the mayor is back to the drawing board to figure out what to do next.
Akron City Council voted 9-4 to reject Malik’s proposal to hire what he said was the most qualified firm to help the city’s policing efforts and enact the lasting change within the APD that he says has been his priority, even before he took office.
The legislation would have funded a team from the Paul, Weiss law firm, led by former Attorney General Loretta Lynch, to pair up with consultants from 21CP Solutions to review and, in theory, improve the APD’s use-of-force policies. Currently, the APD essentially permits all use of force if supervisors feel an officer’s force could have been viewed as “objectively reasonable” in the moment, regardless of how bad it may seem later on.
The proposed use-of-force policy review was “not to unfairly scrutinize the police,” Malik told Signal Akron on Monday night after the legislation was rejected. “But it’s to say that in this life-or-death issue, we ought to bring focus and attention to it and seek to have the best possible system. To me that’s systemic change, and if council wants to stand in the way of it, we will continue working at it with other means.”
Council unwilling to pay ‘New York prices’ for law firm
In the end, the price tag was the hurdle that the legislation couldn’t get over. Malik initially sought approval to spend up to $768,000 for the review but, after pushback, said he would cap it at $640,000. On Monday, he proposed cutting other things like the purchase of a public safety mobile command truck to offset the cost. That didn’t work.
“We’re not paying New York City prices,” Council member Jeff Fusco said on Monday, in reference to the headquarters of the prestigious law firm. “… I don’t hate New York, mayor, I just hate New York prices in the Midwest.”
Council members Brad McKitrick and Fusco said Akron will be heavily impacted by cuts coming from the Trump administration and claimed the money will be needed elsewhere.
Council President Margo Sommerville was initially listed alongside Malik as a sponsor of the legislation but changed her stance shortly after it was introduced, saying the policy could be reviewed for much less money. That sentiment was echoed by council members Bruce Bolden and Johnnie Hannah.
Council member Phil Lombardo, a staunch critic of police accountability measures, said he would have rejected the proposal even if it would only cost $100.
“It’s not about the money,” Lombardo said. The council member has frequently expressed his belief that scrutiny of police officers is dangerous to the community. “… Be careful what you wish for.”
Council member Donnie Kammer shot down funding the use-of-force policy review and indicated that Akron’s police oversight system is in his crosshairs.
“We’re already shelling out a lot of money” to the Citizens’ Police Oversight Board and the Office of the Independent Police Auditor, he said. He added he plans to address that spending in upcoming operating budget hearings.
Members in favor cite need for outside perspectives
Only council members Tina Boyes, Eric Garrett, Jan Davis and Linda Omobien voted in favor of the review, arguing the price is worth it if it leads to improved policing and fewer lawsuits.
“We do need outsiders to come in and help,” Boyes said during Monday afternoon’s Public Safety Committee meeting. The review is “sorely needed here” to address division within the city.
Malik told Signal Akron shortly after City Council’s vote against the policy review that he wants to still address the issue but that he doesn’t know how yet. He’s not going to immediately pursue the other firms the mayor’s office was in contact with in recent months as possible options.
“I definitely want to take some time to think about the next steps,” the mayor said. “… At the end of the day, if this is worth doing, it’s worth doing right.”
