Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission reelect chairwoman as 15-day video release policy took effect immediately
The Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission reelected Miriam Horwitz chair of the board at a meeting Thursday night and Commissioner Bree Spencer was named vice chair.
Horwitz addressed the board's new video release policy, which will require the Milwaukee Police Department to release footage from "critical incidents" within 15 days. The family of those killed in the incident, like during a police shooting, should be shown the video within 48 hours.
"I intend to review current committee assignments and make potential adjustments during the August recess, which will be effective in September," Horwitz said after being reelected unanimously by the board.
"I think we also kinda need to look at whether or not we need certain committees anymore because they don't seem to be necessary," she added.
Horwitz has been on the board since December 2022. She is an employment attorney who was also Deputy City Attorney from 2014 to 2020.
Video footage policy will begin for new incidents
The board was provided an update Thursday about its video release policy by executive director Leon Todd.
The policy was passed in April 2023, but about three weeks later a Milwaukee County judge blocked the 15-day release policy from taking effect after the Milwaukee Police Association, the department's officer union, filed a lawsuit.
The union dropped the suit last week, the case was dismissed, and therefore the policy will be activated. Before, the department would release the footage within 45 days, which was a department goal.
The change comes as the community waits for footage from a recent police shooting.
According to police, in June, teens connected to an armed carjacking in downtown Milwaukee led police on a chase onto Interstate 43, which ended in an officer firing shots into the suspected vehicle with six teens inside, striking two of them, and ending one's pregnancy. Police said the vehicle came close to hitting an officer standing nearby after the driver entered a construction zone. Four of the teens face charges in adult court.
Last week, the Columbus, Ohio Police Department released body cam footage the same day as the fatal police shooting of 43-year-old Samuel Sharpe Jr. in Milwaukee.
He had been living in a tent surrounded by others at King Park, where he died nearby. Five police officers opened fire on Sharpe as he held two knives during a street fight. The shooting took place during and near the Republican National Convention, which is why out-of-state police were in town. The incident sparked outrage in the community and garnered national attention.
Todd said the new 15-day video release policy was implemented on July 17, the day the suit was dismissed, but police said it will not be retroactive for prior incidents, such as the Interstate 43 police shooting.
"(The policy) is designed to promote transparency, public trust while at the same time balancing the need to protect the integrity of criminal and administrative investigations, as well as privacy interests," Todd said.
He added that the suit's dismissal is "a reflection of the fact that the board acted lawfully in its authority."
Horwitz said she was pleased to see an end to the litigation. "I think procedurally that matter lingered far longer than it was necessary," she said. "And I'm glad it's behind us.
"And since the RNC is also behind us, we will be seeing that policy in effect, but hopefully we won't have to use it very often."
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Fire and Police board reelect chair; 15-day video policy now
