After Akron's Issue 10 passes, Horrigan says he supports Citizens’ Police Oversight Board

After Akron voters on Tuesday approved Issue 10, which will create a permanent Citizens’ Police Oversight Board, Mayor Dan Horrigan on Wednesday morning issued a statement saying he supports the board's creation.

“Akron’s voters have made their voices heard and it’s clear they want a more permanent citizen police oversight board than what was recently established by Akron City Council," Horrigan said. "I respect the will of the voters and support the creation of the Citizens’ Police Oversight Board."

The campaign to create the board was born out of protest in the days after the death of Jayland Walker. With every precinct counted in the unofficial results, 61.7% of Akron voters said yes to Issue 10, which tasks City Council and the mayor with crafting new rules for a more robust civilian oversight board and police auditor next year.

The board will provide independent oversight and review of policing practices within Akron.

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According to Horrigan's statement, the city’s law department "will now take the next steps to determine the best path forward for the creation of the newly passed Board."

Nearly 60 people have already applied to be on the Citizen Oversight Board, which was passed by Council in September. Horrigan said the city will keep those applications on file "as we decide the course of action necessary to implement the will of the voters."

Issue 10 dictates that Akron City Council must pass any required legislation by June 30, 2023, in order to create and implement the Board, "and we aim to meet that deadline," Horrigan said.

"We may have chosen different paths to get here, but as long as we're unified in moving forward, I believe the formation of this Board can and will make Akron stronger," Horrigan said.

The new board must be instituted by the end of July with the rules written into the city's charter by the end of June. Some critics of the proposal say there will be litigation as they believe aspects of the new model of police reform conflicts with the police union contract and the right of officers who use force to remain silent.

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Statement from Jayland Walker family attorneys on Issue 10 passage

In a statement, Bobby DiCello and Kenneth Abbarno of DiCello Levitt, two attorneys representing the Walker family, said the family is "overjoyed" and "humbled" by the passage of Issue 10, which they called Jayland's Law.

"Jayland’s family is proud to belong to the Akron community, a place where Americans used the democratic process to enact meaningful reform in honor of Jayland’s life and others who have lost their lives to police violence," the statement reads. "Today is a day for optimism, though there is much work ahead. This is not the end of our effort to hold the city accountable for Jayland’s death. It’s just the beginning. And still, today Jayland’s family celebrates the fact that meaningful change came to Akron."

Statement from Fraternal Order of Police Akron Lodge #7 on Issue 10 passage

In a statement, the Fraternal Order of Police Akron Lodge 7, said it acknowledged the passage of issue 10, which it said "will create yet another layer of police oversight."

"However, even the biggest proponents of Issue 10 in the days leading up to election day admitted any oversight created must not violate the collective bargaining agreement between the FOP and the City of Akron," the statement reads. "Union leadership and our union attorneys are available to discuss and advise those charged with creating this additional layer of police oversight who may not be familiar with the collective bargaining agreement."

What is Akron Issue 10?

Getting Issue 10 on the ballot in just two months' time was no small feat. Dozens of activists collected nearly 7,000 signatures, many belonging to new or infrequent voters. Supporters of Issue 10, including civil rights activists at the Akron NAACP and The Freedom BLOC, encouraged petition signers and their neighbors to support the police accountability issue since absentee balloting began a month ago.

The civilian oversight board will have powers beyond what the mayor is already implementing and a police auditor who answers directly to the board and not the mayor.

Beyond creating a nine-member civilian oversight board, Issue 10 writes the Office of the Independent Auditor into the city charter, a move that gives the full-time position the power to audit police activity and policies, access records and, if the police union contract or U.S. Constitution don't conflict, the ability to investigate police behavior and subpoena witnesses.

Unlike the mayor's plan for a civilian oversight board, which council passed in September and the mayor is currently working to implement, the civilian board created by Issue 10 does not need council or mayoral approval to hire the next police auditor. Advocates say giving the civilian review board, which unlike the mayor's plan will be mostly appointed by council, sole discretion in picking an auditor would remove politics from police oversight and allow future auditors to disagree with future elected officials without fear of losing their jobs.

Phil Young is the only person to hold the police auditor’s position since it was filled in 2007. He quickly lost his first assistant and, with that position unfilled for most of the next 15 years, has struggled on a part-time schedule to review the nearly 200 use-of-force incidents and 40-plus citizen complaints against officers each year.

He's repeatedly said he needs more help.

After wrestling with police reform following the murder of George Floyd by an officer in Minneapolis, Akron City Council agreed with Young in January 2021. In the operating budget that year, Horrigan upped Young's workweek to 40 hours and gave him an assistant — a position Young said will finally be filled on Monday with the "first person I’ve had since I can remember."

Issue 10 goes further by proposing a full-time deputy in addition to the full-time assistant. And Young's department will be codified in the city charter as the Office of Independent Auditor, meaning Young's duties, powers and staffing cannot be tweaked by a simple majority of City Council or by future mayors.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron Issue 10: Mayor Horrigan supports Citizens’ Police Oversight Board