Burlington weighs further community role in police oversight

BURLINGTON — A resolution to appoint a community task force that would help define the responsibilities of the Burlington Police Commission was sent back to the drawing board Monday as city councilors and other officials disagreed on its efficiency.

In a vote of 7 to 5, the council referred the resolution back to the Public Safety Committee for a rewrite.

“The goal of this resolution is to seek out communities, historically and presently, that don’t have a good relationship with police,” said Councilor Sara Giannoni, P-Ward 3, who wrote the resolution. “Some people in these communities see the Police Commission as close to the department and not accessible necessarily to them.”

The commission is a seven-member volunteer board. Two seats were added after a March vote where 70 percent of Burlington residents supported the increase from five members. The commission’s primary role, however, is unclear.

The proposed task force came in response to a resolution passed in 2015 that called for a review of the commission’s formal role. The task force would include representatives from the Police Department, organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union, and specific communities.

According to the draft resolution those include but are not limited to communities of color and the LGBTQ, immigrant, homeless and mental health communities.

Council President Jane Knodell, P-Central District, and other Progressives were in staunch support of the resolution. According to Knodell, the city’s diversity and equity plan seeks to address problems by using citizen oversight, and a resolution for a diversified task force was in line with the plan.

“I supported this resolution because it opens the door for marginalized communities to weigh in on the role of the Police Commission,” she said.

The resolution met opposition from Mayor Miro Weinberger, who suggested the city administration propose a formal outline of the commission’s goals and actions to provide more community oversight.

“This specific idea has been on the table for years,” he said in an interview. “I’m in favor of more oversight, but this resolution just created more process, not action.”

Councilor Max Tracy, P-Ward 2, expressed strong disappointment with the mayor’s response to the proposal and said historically marginalized communities should have a seat at the table.

“We are in the midst of a new civil rights movement in this country,” Tracy said. “What the administration is suggesting is not Burlington, and is a step backward to those looking at our city as a source of change.”

Police Chief Brandon del Pozo said the resolution would create distrust between the community and police force.
He cited several efforts by the Police Department aimed at increasing diversity on the force and maintaining transparency when it comes to police action, including the quarterly publication of car stop data and an upcoming workshop to teach officers tactics to protect civilians’ lives in a dispute.

“We’ve done all of this and we need a task force to show us the way forward?” he said.

The move to refer the resolution back to the Public Safety Committee was seen as an attempt at compromise.

“We agree on the goal,” Knodell said. “The committee is now tasked with blending the community engagement of Councilor Giannoni’s proposal and the get-it-done stance of the mayor.”

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