City officials’ responses to police oversight board’s recommendations lag

2025 annual report highlights accomplishments, challenges

Akron’s Independent Police Auditor, Anthony Finnell, joined other officials to deliver the Citizens’ Police Oversight Board’s 2025 Annual Report at a community meeting May 13 at the Highland Square Branch Library.

Finnell, who works in the Office of the Independent Police Auditor (OIPA), shared data showing the city’s response time to use-of-force recommendations lagging behind a pledge made by Mayor Shammas Malik. In 2024, Malik promised to respond to OIPA’s recommendation reports within 45 days.

During his presentation, Finnell said that in 2025, the city responded to 17.95% of recommendations within 45 days. And, as of Feb. 9, 43.59% of reports had no response.

Delayed responses weaken the accountability loop, Finnell said.

At the onset of the CPOB, he said, no one from the city knew what to do with reports because the rules didn’t exist in the charter. Finnell said the board and the rules are still being built. 

Meeting is first public presentation of board’s annual reports

• Current members of the board:
  • Chair Kemp Boyd (present)
  • Vice Chair Donzella Anuszkiewicz (present)
  • Shawn Peoples (present)
  • Ericka Burney-Hawkins (present)
  • Duane Crabbs (present)
  • Juanita Elton (present)
  • Christopher Weems (present)
  • Jennifer Boswell (new-present)
• Two OIPA staff members were also present –  Finnell, the independent police auditor, and Keysha Myers, the deputy independent police auditor. 
• There were about 27 people in the meeting, which started at 5:59 p.m. 
• Other people present included NAACP Akron President Judi Hill, Akron’s Chief of Public Safety, Craig Morgan, and Ward 1 Council Member Fran Wilson 
• Boyd started the meeting and introduced the board members and other leaders. Boswell is a new board member who was appointed two days before the meeting. Boyd said the board has produced an annual report every year — this is the first public presentation of it. 
• Finnell had a PowerPoint presentation outlining the annual report. Many people were engaged and asked questions throughout the meeting. Finnell said he appreciated working with Morgan and it has been a good relationship, even if they do not always agree. 
• On June 1, OIPA will begin to build its database case management system. 

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310 police use-of-force reviews conducted in 2025

• Finnell outlined these accomplishments in 2025:
  • 310 use-of-force incidents and complaints reviewed.
  • High concurrence rate with APD investigations (over 90% of the time, OIPA auditors concurred with the APD process used to investigate use-of-force cases). OIPA also tracked concurrence with recommendations.
  • In 7.5% of cases, OIPA agrees with APD but sends the reports to the mayor and City Council with further recommendations. 
  • In 2.7% of cases, Finnell does not agree with the APD investigation. OIPA will provide recommendations and an alternate disposition.
  • Expanded constitutional-policing analysis. 
• Boyd said 310 reports are very impressive and there is no longer a lag time for reports. Boyd also said that when OIPA says they concur or do not concur, it doesn’t mean the police are bad. 

Accomplishments include more accountability

Finnell highlighted these accomplishments:

• Use-of-force proportionality and necessity improvements.
• Juvenile encounter guidance.
• Restraint safety and CEW (taser) review.
• Enhanced supervisory accountability.
• Improved documentation and BWC (body-worn cameras) compliance.

Finnell said there are incidents where an officer stopped a pursuit because the person being chased almost caused a crash and the officer stopped to check on the bystander. The person being pursued was later caught. The public does not tend to hear these stories. Finnell suggested it is time for APD to better tell their story.

Accountabilty Circles engage commmunity

• Myers shared this information about community engagement:
  • Accountability Circles have been launched with community members. Myers said this is a process to bring together the community with law enforcement. She said that they find common ground in these meetings. Finnell wants to integrate what’s learned from these meetings into the agency’s feedback loop and processes. 
  • Clergy, residents and APD officers participated in these forums and generated insights about ways to reform policy. Myers said this was a way to expand community voice in oversight. 

Transparency dashboard is in the works

• Transparency advancements include:
  • Regular public meetings: Finnell said they want to make as much information as public as possible because people cannot fix what they don’t know.
  • Publication of reports and summaries.
  • Dedicated data analysis.
  • Future transparency dashboard development with new case management system.

Council member raises police use-of-force concerns

• Wilson asked about the police use-of-force report, or PERF report (Police Executive Research Forum), that was released in early May. They asked if Akron would still need to have these reports every couple years, given that the cost topped $300,000 for this one. 
• Wilson also asked how residents can be assured that recommendations by the board are actually being processed and listened to so taxpayers don’t have to pay another third party.
  • Finnell said the cost is not indicative of something gone wrong. This is a normal process for cities that want an oversight system. Most cities don’t realize the cost and process involved when they ask for an oversight system. Akron has had an auditor for several years, but this person didn’t have the support to do the job well. Finnell said he hopes to institutionalize oversight so it is in place going forward. A third-party review like PERF is often better for the community, he said. 

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Concerns raised about police union support

• One community member said there is an “elephant in the room” — the police union. They asked if Finnell had noticed any softening from the FOP toward working with OIPA. Finnell said he is moving forward. The union is not moving in the same direction as OIPA, but they are doing their job to protect police officers. Finnell said he works well with Morgan, the safety director, and said it would be great if the union could see the benefit of the oversight committee. He said he gets calls from members who want to meet. There are people in uniform who believe in what OIPA is doing, Finnell said, adding that there is a need for safe policing for everyone.

Finnell said other challenges include structural constraints, such as:

• 120-day disciplinary time limit.
• Oversight not fully reflected in the city’s collective bargaining agreement with the FOP. There are limited arbitration reforms. 
• No restrictions on officer body-worn camera review before statements.

Opportunities for police reform exist

Finnell listed several areas for reform including:

• Use-of-force policy overhaul with PERF.
• Data modernization and dashboards.
• Enhanced crisis intervention responses.
• Strengthened youth policies.
• Improved supervisory standards.
• Officers need to take training and apply it.

2026-2027 goals include review of critical incidents

• Finnell outlined these goals for the upcoming year:
  • Independent review of critical incidents (including Jayland Walker).
  • Trend analysis across cases.
  • Stronger accountability follow-up.
  • Community-involved oversight methods.
  • Comprehensive APD policy review.
  • Best practice alignment.
  • Case-based insights integrated into policy.
  • Monitor implementation and training outcomes.

• One meeting attendee asked if there was follow-through on updating those policies from recommendations given by OIPA.
  • Finnell said he didn’t have the numbers, but there have been updates on policies that were already in the works.
• Finnell would like to have a mechanism in place for high-risk policies where OIPA makes recommendations.

More public forums, education sessions planned

• Public forums and educational sessions explaining oversight processes and findings.
• Collaboration with community organizations and civic leaders. 
• Feedback mechanisms to assess public understanding and trust.
• Finnell invited the public to attend meetings and get an agenda packet. If he has an email address, he will include it.

Call to action and community input

Finnell closed with these thoughts before opening the meeting up to others:

• Commitment to constitutional policing.
• Independence and objectivity in oversight.
• Transparency and public trust.
• Continued collaboration toward reform.

Anuszkiewicz said the board receives a lot of pushback from the FOP. She used to work for the police department. She asked Myers about the new recruits. Myers said that with the community engagement forum (Accountability Circles), which were diverse and included new recruits, she felt APD was being intentional about rebranding itself.

Anuszkiewicz said she has hope for a new vision moving forward, and it is refreshing to see the intention behind the new recruits. 

A community member spoke about a ballot initiative petition in the works to strengthen the CPOB. She said the proposal would strengthen the board by changing how members are selected. The proposal would change how new members are selected by giving CPOB members, the mayor, and City Council three choices each. The proposal would also tighten up the response timeline by the city. She said any Akron resident registered to vote can sign the petition to get the proposals on the November ballot. 

Finnell said the OIPA subcommittee meets the second Wednesday of every month. Community members have the opportunity to speak to case incidents. 

The meeting ended at 7:19 p.m.