Document of Interest Provided By Councilmember Hamann on Civilian Review Boards

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• Not sustained: 41 (28 percent). • Sustained: 23 (15 percent). The commission also reviewed 24 cases of discharge of firearms and found them all to be justified. The commis- sion found a policy failure in two cases. The review process Exhibit 2–14 displays the citizen review procedure in St. Paul. Intake The St. Paul administrative code requires the commission to review all completed IA investigations related to: • Alleged acts of excessive force. • Use of firearms (regardless of whether there has been a citizen complaint—see “The Review Commission Hears All Discharge-of-Firearms Incidents”). • Discrimination. • Poor public relations. • Other complaints the chief or mayor chooses to refer to the commission. (The chief sometimes refers internal complaints, particularly sexual harassment cases.) C HAPTER 2: CASE S TUDIES OF N INE O VERSIGHT P ROCEDURES 52 THUMBNAIL SKETCH:ST.PAUL Model: citizens review cases (type 2) Jurisdiction: St. Paul, Minnesota Population: 259,606 Government: strong mayor, city council Appointment of chief: mayor nominates, council approves, mayor may remove only with council approval Sworn officers: 581 Oversight funding: $37,160 Oversight staff: one part time A seven-person commission that is part of and fund- ed by the St. Paul Police Department meets monthly to review cases investigated and decided by the department’s internal affairs unit.The commission- ers, two of whom are St. Paul police officers, make their own findings and, in sustained cases, recom- mend discipline to the chief.The IA unit makes no disciplinary recommendations.The chief is free to disregard the commission’s disciplinary recommen- dations but not its findings. THE REVIEW COMMISSION HEARS ALL DISCHARGE-OF-FIREARMS INCIDENTS By statute, the review commission hears all cases in which an officer discharged a firearm, regardless of whether a citizen filed a complaint. Most of the cases involve euthanizing injured animals, especially deer. Others involve accidental discharge. An officer had drawn her sidearm while searching a warehouse for a reported burglar. She had left the building to climb a grassy hill next to the warehouse to continue the search when the man ran out of the building.The officer yelled at the man to stop. She then slipped on the wet grass and fired her gun acciden- tally.The man, thinking she had fired a warning shot, stopped running and was arrested by another officer. The officer reported the entire incident fully,but the department forbids the accidental discharge of weapons. As a result,IA found her guilty of misconduct,and the commission did,too.The commission recommended she receive additional firearms training.