A community policing forum Jan. 22, billed as a way to provide awareness and transparency around policing in Akron as well as answer residents’ questions, was also an opportunity for Akron City Council members to criticize what they said is a lack of progress by Mayor Shammas Malik in the area of police reform.
Council member Eric Garrett (at large), who hosted the event at Buchtel Community Learning Center along with council members Jan Davis (Ward 4) and Margo Sommerville (council president, Ward 3), is a frequent critic of the police department and Malik and told those in attendance that the mayor asked to attend the forum.
“I told him he wasn’t invited to our Thanksgiving dinner unless he wanted to bring something” showing that the mayor had addressed many concerns, Garrett said. He added that he is disappointed the mayor has not done more regarding police reform during his first two years in office. “Hopefully, at the next meeting, he’ll bring us something.”
While Malik didn’t attend, key members of his administration and police officials promoted under his watch were present and spoke during the meeting, including Public Safety Strategist Tony Ingram, Director Esther Thomas and Deputy Police Chief Michael Miller.
Two more discussions about community policing, each from 6 to 8 p.m., will be held on Thursday, Feb. 5 at Mason CLC, 700 E. Exchange St., and on Thursday, Feb. 19 at the Ed Davis Community Center, 730 Perkins Park Dr.
Garrett distributed a packet with a caricature illustration of Malik wearing headphones and ignoring “police reform” signs held up by key city officials. Garrett later listed those officials’ email addresses. The packet listed the budget for the police department, lawsuits filed against it and payouts from those lawsuits.
Garrett: Eight police reform actions the mayor could put into effect
Garrett listed eight items he said Malik could put into effect on his own — some are already in effect but some would need actions beyond Malik alone to be put in place, like union or council approval.
They are:
- Ensuring officers do not use head strikes on low-level offenses. Independent Police Auditor Anthony Finnell has long criticized the APD for allowing head strikes and wants the department to ban them in circumstances where deadly force wouldn’t also be appropriate.
- Extending the automatic look-back period on officers’ body-worn cameras. Right now, when police officers hit the record button, an automatic buffer also records the 30 seconds prior to its activation (with no audio). Garrett wants that buffer period to be two minutes, to capture more of what officers see prior to incidents.
- Not providing long guns and AR-style rifles to patrol officers. Malik is looking into reversing a policy that allows officers to use their own rifles while on duty — such as what Officer Davon FIelds used to kill Jazmir Tucker in 2024 — in favor of standardized department-issued rifles. Details on that proposal, including how many officers would receive them, have not been publicly discussed.
- Refraining from disrespectful command intensifiers, like using swear words during incidents.
- Refraining from high-speed pursuits through the community for low-level offenses. The police department changed its vehicle pursuit policy in 2024 to ban pursuits for equipment violations alone, though vehicle pursuits still do occur. The pursuit policy allows for officers to engage in pursuits if they believe doing so is less dangerous than not engaging in it.
- Allowing the police oversight board to apply meaningful disciplinary actions to misconduct by police officers. This is barred by the collective bargaining agreement with the police union, which was signed in the fall. The mayor’s office could have negotiated to include it, but didn’t.
- No longer allowing APD Officer Davon Fields and Lt. Brian Simcox to police Akron’s communities. Simcox is on paid terminal leave until he retires.
- Conducting officer “park and walks” on weekends during youth football games. The Akron Police Department says it has been emphasizing so-called “park and walks” — where officers walk the streets intending to interact with people in a low-stakes setting — since Malik became mayor and Brian Harding became police chief in 2024. The APD lists 1,702 encounters in 2023, 5,465 in 2024 and 6,547 in 2025, although it’s unclear how many of those “park and walks” were at youth football games such as Garrett suggested.
“I need the community to reach out to [the mayor], reach out to his cabinet and his advisers to let them know that these are some of the things he could do if he really wanted,” Garrett said, later adding that he thinks the police union “has a bigger hold on the mayor.”
Communicating strategically about community
Sommerville encouraged participants to subscribe to City Council’s Legislative Spotlight email. The information is sent every Wednesday to share highlights from that week’s committee and council meetings.
“We talk about important things in terms of policing, but City Council cannot do this work by ourselves,” she said. “And I’m saying this in the position of the person who actually sponsored the No Chokehold [legislation].”
Under Akron’s previous mayor, Daniel Horrigan, City Council unanimously passed legislation to hold police officers criminally liable if they use a chokehold, stranglehold or other neck hold, or if they witness unlawful use of force and do not intervene or report it.
“We will provide you with the information tonight so that we can make sure that we hold Mayor Malik accountable and be able to help us in this partnership of addressing important issues,” Sommerville said.
During his portion of the forum, Ingram told attendees APD may soon follow the example set by another city’s law enforcement department.
“We’re involved in looking at the Baltimore Police Department and how they do some internal reviews with respect to use of force, and thinking how we can incorporate some of those best practices,” he said.
During the forum’s Q&A session, Esther Thomas, director of the city’s Office of Opportunity and Engagement, said if residents want answers about things happening in the community, they need to communicate strategically.
“Make your voice matter and ask the right people the right question,” she said. “Otherwise we’re just making noise.”
Editor’s note: Signal Akron Government Reporter Doug Brown contributed to this reporting.