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WELCOME, LADIES[Police Chief Candidate Review Meeting on October 17, 2023.]
AND GENTLEMEN, TO THE FIRST MEETING OF THE POLICE CHIEF SELECTION COMMITTEE.AT THIS TIME, WE'RE GONNA HEAR FROM OUR MAYOR, PRESIDENT WHO'S GONNA GIVE US SOME DIRECTIONS AND MAKE SOME INTRODUCTIONS.
MAYOR, PRESIDENT SHARON WESTERN.
UM, IT IS, UM, WITH GREAT GRATITUDE THAT I AM, UM, THANKFUL TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU ALL TO HEEDING THE CALL TO SERVE ON THE POLICE CHIEF, UH, COMMITTEE.
UM, MANY OF YOU ALL HAVE, UH, BEEN ON THIS COMMITTEE BEFORE AND I THOUGHT IT WOULD CERTAINLY ADD VALUE TO ASK, UH, SEVERAL OF YOU TO JOIN THIS EXPERIENCE ONCE AGAIN.
UH, BEFORE I GET INTO THE SPECIFICS OF THE MEETING, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE WHERE THIS CITY IS WITH RESPECT TO SAFETY, CRIME, AND LAW ENFORCEMENT.
OF COURSE, MAKING BATON ROUGE SAFER IS A TOP PRIORITY FOR ME.
AND FOLLOWING THE SPIKES IN VIOLENT CRIME THAT WE SAW DURING THE PEAK OF THE C OVID 19 PANDEMIC, I'M HAPPY TO SAY THAT WE ARE EXPERIENCING THE SECOND YEAR IN A ROW WITH MORE THAN A 20% REDUCTION IN HOMICIDES.
SAFETY SHOULD NEVER BE A PRIVILEGE.
IT'S A FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT THAT EVERY RESIDENT DESERVES.
AND SO TODAY I CAN'T HELP BUT REFLECT ON THE VALUES AND PRINCIPLES THAT HAVE GUIDED OUR COMMUNITY'S PURSUIT OF SAFETY AND JUSTICE SINCE 2017.
THE JOURNEY STARTED, UM, BACK IN 2017 WHEN WE AIMED AT MAKING BATON ROUGE A PLACE WHERE EVERY RESIDENT, REGARDLESS OF THE COLOR OF THEIR SKIN, THEIR GENDER OR ZIP CODE, UH, COULD LIVE IN A SAFE AND SECURE COMMUNITY.
TONIGHT MARKS THE FIRST ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING OF THE POLICE CHIEF COMMITTEE, A GROUP OF DEDICATED INDIVIDUALS, INCLUDING IMPORTANT COMMUNITY FIGURES WHO WILL HELP AS YOUR MAYOR.
PRESIDENT SELECTS THE NEXT CHIEF OF THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT BACK IN 2017.
WE RECOGNIZED THE IMPORTANCE OF TRANSPARENCY, THE IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, AND A DIVERSE GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS LIKE YOURSELVES WORK TOGETHER TO HELP MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS.
IT WAS A TIME THAT WE BELIEVED IN THE POWER OF THESE PRINCIPLES, AND WE STILL DO.
OUR COMMUNITY HAS BEEN ON A JOURNEY OF HEALING AND RECONCILIATION SINCE THE TRAGIC SUMMER OF 2016.
THOSE WOUNDS WERE RECENTLY REOPENED WITH ADDITIONAL INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
WE MUST BUILD BACK THE MUTUAL TRUST AND RESPECT THAT WE HAVE WORKED SO HARD TO ACHIEVE OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS.
IT IS DURING TIMES LIKE THIS THAT WE RECOGNIZE, UH, THE INSEPARABLE CONNECTION BETWEEN PEACE AND JUSTICE.
WE UNDERSTOOD THEN, AS WE DO NOW, THAT CHOOSING THE NEXT POLICE CHIEF IS A DECISION THAT REQUIRES SERIOUS COLLABORATION.
IT'S ESSENTIAL TO BUILD UPON THE MUTUAL TRUST AND RESPECT THAT WE'VE WORKED SO HARD TO ACHIEVE BECAUSE NO POLICING MODEL OR POLICE CHIEF CAN SUCCEED WITHOUT IT.
THE CHIEF OF POLICE OVERSEES NEARLY 600 MEN AND WOMEN WHO ARE SWORN TO PROTECT AND SERVE OUR FELLOW RESIDENTS.
OUR COMMUNITY CONSISTS OF MANY DEDICATED OFFICERS, AND I CONTINUOUSLY THANK THEM FOR THEIR TIRELESS SERVICE.
BUT WE ALSO RECOGNIZE THAT THERE WILL ALWAYS BE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PROGRESS WITHIN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT, AND IT'S OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE THAT OUR POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ALIGN WITH NATIONAL BEST PRACTICES AND STANDARDS TO BENEFIT BOTH LAW ENFORCEMENT AND THE COMMUNITY.
TO PUT IT SIMPLY, THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE DESERVES A POLICE FORCE THAT CONSISTENTLY COLLABORATES WITH COMMUNITIES AND PARTNERING LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES TO STRENGTHEN TRUST AND TRUE COLLABORATION WHILE CONTINUING TO REDUCE CRIME.
THROUGHOUT MY ADMINISTRATION, WE HAVE MADE SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENTS IN NEW TRAINING, AND WE HAVE WORKED TO PROVIDE OFFICERS WITH THE BEST EQUIPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY AVAILABLE.
WE HAVE SET HIGHER STANDARDS FOR PROFESSIONALISM, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND TRANSPARENCY.
THESE PRINCIPLES FORM THE FOUNDATION OF PUBLIC SERVICE, AND OUR UPCOMING POLICE CHIEF MUST BE PREPARED TO CONTINUE THE REFORMS THAT BEGAN UNDER CHIEF MURPHY.
PAUL REFORMS THAT HAVE, UH, EMBRACED
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NATIONAL BEST PRACTICES AND ONE NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT.I WOULD LIKE TO REITERATE THAT WE HAVE GREAT OFFICERS WITHIN OUR FORCE, AND POLICE REFORM IS NOT A REJECTION OF OUR DEDICATED OFFICERS.
INSTEAD, IT IS A COMMITMENT TO CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT.
WE'VE MADE SIGNIFICANT STRIDES UPDATING USE OF FORCE POLICIES, AND ENSURING THAT ALL OFFICERS ARE EQUIPPED WITH BODY CAMERAS.
COMMUNITY POLICING AND COLLABORATION HAVE CONTINUED TO BE AT THE FOREFRONT OF OUR EFFORTS.
AS CITY PARISH WORKERS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS WORK TOGETHER TO REDUCE BLIGHT, INVEST IN NEW CRIME FIGHTING TECHNOLOGY, AND FOCUS ON IMPROVED RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR NEIGHBORHOODS MOST AFFECTED BY VIOLENCE.
WE HAVE 21 CANDIDATES SEEKING TO BE THE NEXT CHIEF OF POLICE.
YOUR TASK AS MEMBERS OF THIS COMMITTEE IS TO DILIGENTLY REVIEW THEIR APPLICATIONS, INTERVIEW THE CANDIDATES, AND SEND ME A LIST OF THE TOP FIVE INDIVIDUALS THAT YOU DEEM ACCEPTABLE TO ASSUME THE ROLE.
I MUST EMPHASIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF OBJECTIVITY AND AN ACUTE AWARENESS OF THE VITAL ROLE THAT THE POLICE CHIEF PLAYS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
IT'S IMPERATIVE TO CONSIDER THE NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITY AND COMMIT TO SUPPORTING THE NEXT POLICE CHIEF NO MATTER WHO THEY ARE.
WHEN EVALUATING THESE CANDIDATES, CONSIDER THEIR EXPERIENCE, THEIR CAPACITY FOR FORWARD THINKING AND OPEN-MINDEDNESS, ASSESS WHETHER THEY WILL PROMOTE TRANSPARENCY AND INTEGRITY, AND UNDERSTAND HOW TO IMPLEMENT A 21ST CENTURY MODEL OF POLICING.
THAT INCLUDES COMMUNITY POLICING AT ITS CORE.
CONSIDER THEIR APPRECIATION FOR THE ROLE OF DATA IN THE DEPARTMENT AND THEIR VISION FOR EXCELLENCE.
ONE THAT IS BOTH BOLD AND CHALLENGING AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
LET'S REMEMBER THE VALUES AND PRINCIPLES THAT HAVE GUIDED US FROM 2017 TO TODAY.
WE ARE COMMITTED TO CREATING A SAFER, MORE INCLUSIVE BATON ROUGE FOR ALL ITS RESIDENTS.
YOUR DEDICATION TO THIS ENDEAVOR IS ESSENTIAL, AND I HAVE EVERY CONFIDENCE THAT WE WILL SUCCEED IN THIS IMPORTANT MISSION.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE COMMITMENT AND LET'S GET TO WORK.
MAYOR PRO TEM COLE, I THANK YOU FOR ASSUMING THE, UH, ROLE OF CHAIRING, UH, THIS, UH, COMMISSION AND YOUR VICE CHAIR, JENNIFER CARLE, AND I WANNA SAY TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU, WAL GREEN, DRAKE BRINK NECK, KATHY VICTORIAN, MIKE MCCLANAHAN, TOMMY GIBSON, CHARLES DEGRA, EUGENE COLLINS, AND JA MATH.
JESSICA MATTHEWS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR INVESTING YOUR TIME IN THIS VERY, VERY CRITICAL ISSUE, UH, AROUND POLICING IN SELECTING THE NEXT CHIEF OF POLICE.
I KNOW ALL OF YOU ALL HAVE YOUR OWN ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES, BUT TO VOLUNTEER AND BE WILLING TO SERVE, UH, SPEAKS VOL VOLUMES AS IT RELATES TO YOUR COMMITMENT, UH, TO THIS COMMUNITY.
SO WITH THAT BEING SAID, I KNOW THAT THIS IS THE ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING AND THAT YOU HAVE, UH, RECENTLY RECEIVED.
WE HAVE, UH, BINDERS AND, UH, DANTE BIDWELL, CHIEF OF STAFF.
WHY DON'T YOU COME UP NOW AND SHARE THE NEXT STEP WITH THE BINDERS? THANK YOU.
UH, AND THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE.
UM, WE'VE BEEN HOLDING ONTO THESE UNTIL THE, THE FIRST MEETING BECAUSE WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT MAYOR HAD A CHANCE TO ADDRESS THE GROUP, ADDRESS THE COMMITTEE, AND REALLY PUT FORWARD THE CHARGE.
SO IN A MOMENT, WE'RE GONNA HAND OUT ALL OF THESE BINDERS, WHICH INCLUDES EVERY PERSON WHO PASSED THE CIVIL SERVICE EXAMS, UH, APPLICATIONS, AS WELL AS RESUMES.
THERE'S INFORMATION ABOUT SPECIALIZED TRAINING, EDUCATION, EVERYTHING, UH, THAT YOU COULD KIND OF GATHER FROM A PERSON ON PAPER.
UH, BUT AFTER THIS MEETING, WE'RE GONNA START BRINGING THESE FOLKS HERE IN FRONT OF YOU SO THAT YOU CAN HEAR FROM THEIR OWN MILES WHAT YOU CAN'T GET OFF PAPER, RIGHT? SO AS WE, UH, MOVE FORWARD, WE'RE BRINGING FOLKS IN FOR IN-PERSON INTERVIEWS AND PRESENTATIONS.
I WANT TO, UM, JUST STRESS TO THE MAYOR'S POINT, THE GRAVITY OF WHAT
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WE'RE UNDERTAKEN.AND AGAIN, THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE.
SO WE'LL BE HANDING THESE OUT MOMENTARILY.
COUNCILMAN, I'LL BE GLAD TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.
IF ANY OF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS HAVE ANY, SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE FOR A WHILE DOING THIS JOB, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DO THIS LIKE A COUNCIL MEETING.
WE DON'T HAVE THE SCREEN FOR YOU TO PUSH THE BUTTON TO SPEAK, BUT, UH, IF YOU WANT TO SPEAK, RAISE YOUR HAND AND I'LL ACKNOWLEDGE YOU, AND THEN WE'LL GO FROM THERE.
MS. CALWELL, UH, I WAS ON THE COMMITTEE THE LAST TIME, AND I KNOW WE, UM, WE SUBMITTED QUESTIONS AND THEN WE ALL, UH, WERE KIND OF ASSIGNED A QUESTION SO THAT WE WERE SURE TO ASK THE SAME QUESTIONS TO EACH CANDIDATE.
ARE WE DOING THAT AGAIN THIS TIME? I BELIEVE THAT PROCESS WAS, UH, VERY, WORKED VERY WELL, AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE SAME PROCESS.
WELL, MAYOR, FIRST, LEMME SAY THANK YOU, UH, FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE ON THIS COMMUNITY.
AGAIN, UH,
UH, AND I WANT TO THANK ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO DO SO.
I THINK THE TASK OF SELECTING THE NEXT CHIEF OF POLICE IS ONE WE SHOULDN'T TAKE LIGHTLY.
AND, UH, THINK ABOUT A PROCESS THAT IS FAIR, THAT IS TRANSPARENT, UH, THAT WE, UH, CAN BE PROUD OF IN TERMS OF WHAT THE COMMUNITY CAN PARTICIPATE IN, UH, HEAR THE CONVERSATION HERE, THE QUESTIONS THAT ARE ASKED, AND HEAR THE PRESENTATIONS FROM, UH, THE CANDIDATES WHO HAVE OFFERED THEMSELVES UP FOR SERVICE.
AND SO, WITH THAT BEING SAID, I THINK WE SHOULD OPEN A DISCUSSION AS TO HOW WE'RE GONNA PROCEED, UH, WHEN WE'RE GONNA START INTERVIEWING CANDIDATES.
UH, HOW MANY CANDIDATES WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW, UH, PER DAY.
UH, MAYOR HAS GIVEN US THE CHARGE OF SELECTING FIVE CANDIDATES TO SUBMIT TO HER.
AND SO I THINK WE HAVE TO THINK VERY CAREFULLY ABOUT THE PROCESS WE WANT TO USE.
UH, DOES THAT MEAN WE LOOK AT ALL OF THE CANDIDATES RIGHT NOW AND NARROW DOWN, UH, TO THOSE WE'RE GOING TO INTERVIEW, LOOK AT THE CANDIDATES, AND THEN DISCUSS THEIR QUALIFICATIONS, UH, THEIR EXPERIENCE, UH, SOME OF THE ROLES THEY SERVED IN, HOW MANY, UH, MEN AND OR WOMEN THEY'VE BEEN ABLE TO SUPERVISE DURING THEIR CAREER, AND WHETHER OR NOT WE FEEL THOSE CANDIDATES ON PAPER MEET THE, THE NEED OF WHAT WE WANT TO SEE IN THE NEXT POLICE CHIEF HERE, UH, IN THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE? UH, WELL, DOES IT MEAN WE INTERVIEW ALL 21 CANDIDATES? UM, I'M OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS, MAYOR.
I THINK WE'LL TAKE SOME DIRECTION FROM, FROM, FROM YOU IN TERMS OF WHAT YOUR, UH, PLEASURE WOULD BE.
BUT, UH, I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE A VERY, VERY FAIR AND TRANSPARENT PROCESS.
AND AGAIN, I'M NOT OPPOSED TO US NARROWING DOWN THE 21 TO A NUMBER WE ARE GOING TO INTERVIEW.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WHATEVER WE DO, UH, THAT WE HAVE TO USE THE PROCESS OF VOTING.
WE HAVE 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 ON THE COMMITTEE.
I KNOW WE HAVE TWO ALTERNATES, BUT I THINK THREE.
SO THERE ARE 11 PEOPLE TOTAL, RIGHT? 10.
10 PEOPLE WITH THREE ALTERNATES OF SEVEN WHO ARE ACTUALLY ON THE COMMITTEE.
SO OF THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE ALTERNATES WILL BE AT ALL THE COMMITTEE MEETINGS AS WELL.
SO FOR TODAY'S PURPOSE, I THINK ALL 10 OF US SHOULD HAVE A VOTE IN TERMS OF, UH, WHAT WE DECIDE.
MR. BETO, YOU WANT TO ASK THE QUESTION? NO, I BASICALLY, HELLO? YES.
I JUST WANTED TO, UH, AGAIN, ECHO WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT THANKING THE MAYOR FOR, UH, SELECTING ME TO BE ON THIS, UH, COMMITTEE.
IT'S A VERY IMPORTANT ROLE, UH, UH, THAT THE CHIEF OF POLICE PLAYS IN OUR PARISH.
AND MY, I WOULD JUST SAY THAT WHAT'S ON PAPER, I HOPE WE JUST ARE ABLE TO COME TOGETHER COLLECTIVELY AND PICK THE BEST PERSON TO SERVE EAST BATON RIDGE PARISH IN THAT ROLE.
UM, MAYOR PROAM, I WOULD, UH, LIKE TO REITERATE THE DATES OF THE, UM, MEETINGS, UH, THE 17TH, THE 23RD, THE 26TH AND NOVEMBER 1ST.
WE'RE SUPPOSED TO HAVE THOSE NAMES SUBMITTED TO YOU BY THE END, BY THE FIRST.
I WILL SAY THAT, UH, LOOKING AT THE LIST OF CANDIDATES, UH, WE MIGHT HAVE TO ADD ANOTHER DATE ON THAT.
UH, BUT RIGHT NOW I BELIEVE WE CAN MAKE IT THROUGH, UH, WITH THOSE FOUR DATES.
UH, DANTE AND MS. CARDWELL DOES NOT HAVE A BINDER, ACCORDING, I SEE YOU'RE HERE.
ARE THERE ANY LEGAL INSTRUCTIONS THAT YOU NEED TO GIVE US RELATIVE TO WHAT I JUST,
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UH, TALKED ABOUT? CAN WE NARROW THE LIST DOWN TO THOSE WE JUST WANT TO INTERVIEW? UH, CAN WE DO THAT OR DO WE HAVE TO INTERVIEW ALL 21 CANDIDATES? WELL, I'M ASSUMING YOU'RE THE YES, HE'S OKAY.UM, I, I THINK, UH, MS. UH, CHAMBERS JUST, UH, POINTED OUT THAT THE ROLE WAS NOT CALLED.
AND, UH, OH, I THOUGHT MS. UH, MAYOR, PRESIDENT DID THAT WHEN SHE CALLED OUT.
UH, BUT WE CAN CALL, WE'LL START OVER HERE.
PRESENT ALL 10 MEMBERS AND TWO, ALL 10 MEMBERS ARE HERE.
I JUST WANNA REMIND EVERYBODY, BECAUSE THIS IS BEING AIRED TO THE PUBLIC, MAKE SURE YOUR MICROPHONES ARE ON.
OTHERWISE, UM, IT WILL, THE PUBLIC OR WHOEVER'S WATCHING, WON'T WON'T BE ABLE TO HEAR YOU.
IF YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO WORK YOUR MICROPHONE, UH, COUNCILMAN COLE WILL DEFINITELY SHOW YOU WHICH BUTTON TO TO PRESS.
SO YOU GOT ANSWER FOR ME ON THAT QUESTION, COURTNEY? REPEAT THAT FOR ME.
COUNCIL, THE QUESTION WAS, DO WE HAVE TO INTERVIEW ALL 21 CANDIDATES OR CAN WE NARROW IT DOWN TO A NUMBER WE ARE GOING TO INTERVIEW? UM, IF YOU DON'T MIND, I'M GONNA ASK, UH, OUR PERSONNEL ATTORNEY THAT WHILE IF I STEP ON THE SIDE, I'LL, I'LL ASK FOR THAT TO, TO, UM, GET SOME CONFIRMATION ON THAT.
UM, OTHER THAN THAT, ARE, ARE THERE ANY OTHER, 'CAUSE I KNOW I'M ON THE AGENDA TO TALK ABOUT PROTOCOLS FOR THE MEETING.
SO JUST VERY QUICKLY, Y'ALL COULDN'T HAVE, HAVE HAD A BETTER PYRAMID.
HE'S PROBABLY, HE'S PROBABLY MORE FAMILIAR WITH THE PROTOCOLS THAN I AM, UH, BECAUSE HE'S, UH, MAYOR PRO TEM.
UM, AND SO THE, THE PROTOCOLS OF THE MEETING ARE JUST GONNA FOLLOW THE BASICS OF ROBERT RULES OF ORDER.
UM, IF YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THAT, THE, THE BASICS ARE JUST WHAT YOU USUALLY SEE HAPPEN WITH, UH, COUNCIL MEETINGS.
UM, I'M TALKING ABOUT Y'ALL SPEAKING INTO MICROPHONE.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, A MOTION CAN BE MADE BY SOMEONE.
I'M NOT SURE HOW THIS IS GOING TO FLOW.
UH, THE CHAIRMAN, CHAIRMAN COLE, IS GOING TO RECOGNIZE THE MOTION, PROBABLY REPEAT IT, UH, SO THAT EVERYBODY HAS UNDERSTOOD AND HEARD IT.
UM, I DON'T THINK THAT YOU ALL ARE GONNA HAVE USE OF THE SCREENS FOR THE VOTE.
I DON'T THINK IT'LL, IT'LL BE THAT.
BUT, UM, USUALLY WHAT THEY DO IS ONCE THE VOTE IS, IS CALLED, THERE'S USUALLY A ROLL CALL OF WHO IS VOTING WHAT.
UM, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, IF THERE MIGHT BE SOME OTHER THINGS THAT COME UP IN THE MEANTIME, UH, SUCH AS RECONSIDERATIONS OF THINGS OF THAT NATURE, I DON'T KNOW THAT Y'ALL ARE GONNA GET THAT, UH, INTO IT.
IT'LL PROBABLY BE VERY, UH, BASICS AS FAR AS THE ROBERT RULES OF ORDER ARE CONCERNED.
BUT IF ANYBODY HAS ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT IT, UM, I THINK I SEE SOME FAMILIAR FACES.
SO SOME OF YOU ALL ARE ALREADY FAMILIAR WITH HOW, YOU KNOW, UH, THESE KIND OF THINGS ARE, ARE DEALT WITH.
BUT DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? UH, CHAIRMAN.
UM, OTHER THAN THAT, I'M GONNA GET THAT ANSWER FOR YOU.
DOES ANYBODY ON THE COMMITTEE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? GO AHEAD.
I'M SORRY, MAYOR, I'M INTERESTED IN YOUR DEADLINE AND, AND, UM, IS THAT PRETTY HARD IN YOUR MIND, THAT WE NEED TO WRAP IT UP BY THE END OF THE MONTH? UH, THAT IS A, THAT IS MY GOAL, UH, BECAUSE OF THE, UM, IMMINENT DEPARTURE OF, UH, CHIEF PAUL.
UH, BUT I BELIEVE THAT IF WE FEEL THE NEED, IF YOU FEEL THE NEED TO HAVE A MORE EXTENSIVE, UH, PROCESS TO ADD SOME ADDITIONAL DATES, I BELIEVE ALL OF THAT CAN BE WORKED OUT.
I WILL STILL BE, UM, IN MY 60 DAY, UM, MODE.
SO THAT IS ONE OF THE MAJOR ISSUES THAT WE'RE FACED WITH.
AND WE DO HAVE TIME AS IT RELATES TO THE 60 DAYS.
BUT I'M MORE CONCERNED ABOUT THOROUGHNESS IN THIS PROCESS.
I DON'T WANT TO, YOU KNOW, I DON'T WANT IT TO BE A RUSHED PROCESS.
I WANT IT TO BE A THOROUGH, THOUGHTFUL PROCESS.
MS. VICTORIAN, MAYOR PRO, UH, TIM, UH, THE PRESS RELEASE THAT WENT OUT ON THE 11TH, IT STATES THAT WE WILL, UM, THE COMMITTEE WILL REVIEW THE CANDIDATES APPLICATION PACKET, INTERVIEW CANDIDATES AND RECOMMEND FIVE.
SO IS THAT A, IS THAT THE MAYOR ASKING
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US TO INTERVIEW ALL 21? WELL, I, I THINK I, WELL, MAYOR BROOM, YOU ANSWERED THAT QUESTION.WELL, YOU KNOW, I WOULD, UM, I WOULD BE SURPRISED IF THE CANDIDATES DID NOT WANT TO INTERVIEW.
UM, THE LAST TIME IN THE PROCESS, WE HAD APPLICANTS WHO SAID THEY DIDN'T WANT TO INTERVIEW.
UH, BUT THE VERY FACT THAT MOST OF THESE CANDIDATES HAVE SUPPLIED US WITH INFORMATION, UH, THEIR APPLICATIONS AND THEIR RESUMES, SAYS TO ME THAT THEY'RE INTERESTED IN BEING INTERVIEWED.
UH, SO I WILL SAY IT WOULD PROBABLY, UH, BE ADVANTAGEOUS TO GO DOWN THAT ROAD AND ALLOW THEM AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE INTERVIEWED.
SO I THINK FIRST, IF WE ARE GONNA INTERVIEW EVERY CANDIDATE, WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT HOW MANY WE WANT TO INTERVIEW PER DAY.
I THINK, UH, 30 MINUTES PER INTERVIEW, UH, HAS BEEN SUGGESTED.
AND THEN OF COURSE, I KNOW THROUGHOUT THE TIME WE'LL PROBABLY NEED A BREAK IN BETWEEN.
SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PERHAPS 40 MINUTES PER INTERVIEW.
IF WE WERE TO TAKE A 10 MINUTE BREAK IN BETWEEN.
UH, SO HOW MANY DO YOU ALL WANT TO DO PER DAY? THAT COULD BE 3, 5, 7.
AND I THINK, UM, JUST A LITTLE BIT TO TALK ABOUT THE LAST EXPERIENCE.
UM, ONE OF THE CONCERNS CAME UP LAST TIME WAS, UH, CANDIDATES, UH, HAVING THE QUESTIONS PRIOR TO BEING INTERVIEWED AND BEFORE WE STARTED THE PROCESS, WE WANTED TO KEEP THAT OUT OF THE HANDS OF CANDIDATES.
BUT AGAIN, THIS IS BEING TELEVISED.
SO AS SOON AS THE FIRST, UH, CANDIDATE, UH, INTERVIEWS, EVERYONE WILL HAVE ACCESS TO THE QUESTIONS.
AND THEN AT THAT POINT, WE HAVE TO ASK ALL CANDIDATES THE SAME QUESTION.
UM, THE ONLY PERSON IN THAT PROCESS WHO, UH, SEEMS TO HAVE AN UNFAIR EXPERIENCE AS THE FIRST CANDIDATE.
SO I WOULD SUGGEST THAT WE DECIDE ON THE QUESTIONS AND MAKE SURE ALL CANDIDATES HAVE THE QUESTIONS THE DAY BEFORE THE FIRST INTERVIEW, JUST TO BE FAIR TO THE ACTUAL FIRST, THE FIRST CANDIDATES WHO INTERVIEW.
'CAUSE I THINK IT'S UNFAIR FOR THE FIRST FEW CANDIDATES TO NOT HAVE THE QUESTIONS PRIOR TO, AND THEN EVERY CANDIDATE AFTERWARD TO HAVE THE QUESTIONS PRIOR TO.
I THINK IT GIVES THEM AN ADVANTAGE IN TERMS OF KNOWING WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE ASKED, AND THEN PREPARE THE ANSWERS AND PREPARE THEIR ANSWERS.
AND SO I THINK WE OUGHT, AS BEST WE CAN GIVE EVERY CANDIDATE THE SAME ADVANTAGE OF HAVING THE QUESTIONS PRIOR TO BEING INTERVIEWED.
UH, AND AGAIN, IF THEY, YOU KNOW, PREPARE, COMING IN AND DO YOUR VERY BEST, THAT'S WHAT WE WANT TO SEE.
UH, THOSE WHO ARE GONNA DO A GOOD JOB ARE GONNA DO A GOOD JOB REGARDLESS.
AND THOSE WHO WON'T, YOU KNOW, UH, NEED A LITTLE BIT MORE SUPPORT, A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME IN THE POSITION THEY'RE CURRENTLY SERVING THERE.
UH, MAYOR PRO TIMM, I WOULD LIKE TO, UH, ADD THIS COMMENTARY.
AND THAT IS, UH, BECAUSE THIS IS A PUBLIC MEETING, UH, YOU MAY HAVE CITIZENS WHO, UH, WILL COME UP WITH QUESTIONS THAT THEY WOULD LIKE, UH, TO PRESENT TO THE CANDIDATES OR HAVE YOU ALL, UH, VET TO THE CANDIDATES.
SO, UM, I BELIEVE THAT GIVES ANOTHER LEVEL OF, UH, ADDITIONAL, UM, COMMENTS, UH, WITH QUESTIONS THAT MAY ARISE FROM, UH, CITIZENS WHO PARTICIPATE.
AND BASED ON YOUR LAST EXPERIENCE, I DO THINK THAT THERE WAS COMMENTARY AND THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN A FEW QUESTIONS THAT SOME OF THE CITIZENS, UH, HAD FROM THE AUDIENCE.
WELL, I THINK THE LAST EXPERIENCE WE HAD, WE HAD AN EMAIL SET UP MM-HMM.
AND THEN ONCE WE RECEIVED ALL OF THE QUESTIONS FROM THE EMAIL, WE THEN, UH, DEVELOPED THE QUESTIONS FROM THOSE, FROM CITIZENS IN OUR OWN.
AND THEN WE PUT TOGETHER THE QUESTIONS.
AND MY, THAT'S NOT WHAT I, I, IN MY MEMORY, I THOUGHT PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO COME UP TO THE PODIUM AND ASK QUESTIONS.
BUT I, I'VE BEEN TO SO MANY METRO COUNCIL MEETINGS, I MIGHT BE JUST BLENDING THAT IN MY HEAD.
I THINK THOUGH, THAT, PAUL, DO YOU REMEMBER, I BELIEVE THAT WE, I BELIEVE THAT WE DID HAVE THE QUESTIONS SENT IN, BUT I DO REMEMBER CITIZENS ALSO MAKING COMMENTS AT THE END OF THAT EVENINGS.
I DON'T THINK THEY ASKED ACTUAL QUESTIONS.
'CAUSE WE HAD TO ASK EVERY CANDIDATE THE SAME EXACT QUESTION.
I THINK THEY MADE COMMENTS, AND I THINK, UM, IN THE SECOND ROUND, WE ALLOWED CANDIDATES TO RESPOND TO SOME OF THE COMMENTS THAT WERE MADE IN THE, IN THE SECOND ROUND, BECAUSE I THINK WE HAD TWO ROUNDS OF APPLICATIONS LAST TIME.
SO, UM, JUST OFFERING UP PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE ACCORDING TO, LIKE, YOU DYING TO SAY SOMETHING OVER THERE? OH, PARTICULARLY, OH, OKAY.
HAVE I HAVE THE ANSWER? OH, GO AHEAD.
SO THE PERSONNEL ATTORNEY IN OUR OFFICE, UH, DID RESPOND AND SAID YOU ALL ARE NOT REQUIRED TO INTERVIEW ALL OF THEM.
AND I HAVE SOME OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT,
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I'M SORRY, COMMENTS ABOUT THE PROTOCOL, BUT IT, GO AHEAD.I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE, ALSO, SINCE THIS IS A PUBLIC MEETING, YOU ALL ARE GONNA BE, UM, HELD TO THE STANDARD OF OPEN MEETINGS LAW UNDER THE STATE STATUTE.
UH, JUST BRIEFLY, IS SOMEONE HERE TO TAKE MINUTES? YES.
IS SOMEONE, SOMEONE TAKING MINUTES? AND THAT'S MS. CHAMBERS.
SO MS. CHAMBERS TAKING MINUTES.
UH, THERE'S, IT'S A 10 MEMBER.
SO YOU ALL WILL MEET SEVEN ACTIVE THREE ALTERNATES THOUGH.
BUT THE THREE ALTERNATES ARE GONNA BE HERE FOR EVERY MEETING.
BUT THE THREE ALTERNATES ARE GONNA BE HERE FOR EVERY MEETING.
THEN YOU'RE, THEN YOU MAKE SURE YOUR QUORUM NUMBER IS BASED ON WHO IS PRESENT, BASED ON WHO'S PRESENT OR ACTIVE.
WELL, BASED ON WHO IS GOING TO BE SITTING AND, AND VOTING, IF YOU MAKE A MOTION.
SO IT'LL BE THE SEVEN MEMBERS.
AND THE QUORUM OF THE SEVEN WOULD BE FOUR, CORRECT? MM-HMM.
SO JUST MAKE SURE YOU ABIDE BY THAT.
I, I KNOW THAT EVERYBODY SIT, IT LOOKS LIKE EVERYBODY'S SITTING UP HERE.
SO YOU WANT TO BE MINDFUL OF THAT, OF, OF YOUR QUORUM NUMBER.
UM, AND, UH, AND THEN I THINK YOU ALL KIND OF HIT ON COMMENTS.
USUALLY AT THE METRO COUNCIL MEETINGS, COMMENTS ARE TAKEN, UM, AFTER THE MOTION IS HA HAS BEEN MADE.
UM, I'M NOT SURE HOW YOU ALL WANT TO DO THAT, BUT JUST BE MINDFUL THAT IF THE PUBLIC IS HERE AND THEY WANNA MAKE CON COMMENTS AT SOME POINT IN TIME, YOU WANT TO ALLOW THEM TO MAKE COMMENTS EITHER PRIOR TO YOU ALL TAKING ACTION ON A MOTION OR IT SOUNDS LIKE AT SOME POINT COMMENTS WERE MADE LAST TIME AFTER WHAT? I'M NOT SURE.
COMMENTS WERE MADE AFTER EACH CANDIDATE.
WHAT WAS INTERVIEWED? SO, I, I WOULD, UH, SAY BASED ON OUR LAST EXPERIENCE, WE DIDN'T HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF MOTIONS.
UH, IT WAS JUST AFTER THEY DID THE INTERVIEW PROCESS THAT THE CITIZENS WERE ABLE TO COME UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT.
AND, AND THOSE COMMENTS WERE TAKEN UNDER ADVISEMENT.
SO BASED ON ALL OF ALL THAT YOU HEARD, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR SUGGESTIONS? MY SUGGESTION IMMEDIATELY WOULD BE THAT WE, UM, ASK OUR IT DEPARTMENT TO ESTABLISH AN EMAIL SO THAT GENERAL PUBLIC CAN SUBMIT QUESTIONS.
UH, THEY MAY WANT TO SEE US ASK PRIOR TO THE 23RD, WHICH IS GOING TO BE MONDAY OF NEXT WEEK.
AND THEN DURING THAT TIME, WE CAN LOOK AT THOSE QUESTIONS AND THEN, UM, WE NEED TO ADD ANOTHER DATE, MAYOR, IN BETWEEN THE 23RD, IF WE'RE GONNA ACTUALLY START INTERVIEWS ON THE 23RD, WE'LL NEED TO ADD A DATE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF THE ACTUAL QUESTIONS.
UH, THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THAT THE COMMITTEE NEEDS TO MEET, BUT IT DOES MEAN THAT WE NEED TO HAVE A DATE TO SUBMIT THOSE QUESTIONS AND THEN COMPILE WHAT QUESTIONS WE'RE GOING TO ASK SO THAT ALL OF US KNOW WHAT QUESTIONS ARE GONNA BE ASKED.
AND THEN IF WE ARE GOING TO INFORM THE CANDIDATES OF THOSE QUESTIONS, UH, THAT THEY CAN GET THOSE QUESTIONS ON THE 22ND.
I DO SUGGEST WE GO IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER.
UH, AND, AND, AND THE CANDIDATES HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO US IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER, AND SO WE CAN GO THAT WAY.
UH, I THINK WE'VE MADE THE DECISION THAT WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW ALL 21, IS THAT CORRECT? WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW ALL 21 CANDIDATES.
HAVE WE DECIDED ON HOW MANY, UH, CANDIDATES PER DAY? SAY AGAIN? THE 23RD IS WHEN WE'RE GONNA START THE INTERVIEWS.
IS THERE, IS THERE A BEGINNING TIME FOR THE MEETING AND THE ENDING? YES.
THAT TIME IS INDICATED ON EVERY, UM, DATE HAS A SPECIFIC TIME.
SOME OF FOUR O'CLOCK, ONE OR TWO, MAYBE FIVE O'CLOCK.
BUT ALL OF THAT INFORMATION ALSO, EXCUSE ME, WILL BE POSTED FOR THE PUBLIC.
AND IT HAS BEEN SENT OUT ALREADY PUBLICLY, UM, SO TO THE PRESS.
SO ALL OF THOSE DATES, UH, THAT WE'VE ESTABLISHED AND THE TIMES ARE, UH, LISTED, AND WE CAN REVISIT THOSE, UH, WITH YOU ALL AS WELL.
WHERE IS, UH, IS ERIC ROMERO HERE? NO, BUT I WILL TALK TO ERIC ROMERO ABOUT ESTABLISHING THAT.
I THINK WE CAN GET UP A, A EMAIL SYSTEM.
UM, CERTAINLY TODAY IS TUESDAY.
UH, WE CAN CERTAINLY DO THAT, I WOULD BELIEVE NO LATER THAN FRIDAY.
UH, AND WE CAN ALSO POST THAT INFORMATION AS WELL.
AND SO WE'LL TAKE EMAILS, UH, MAYOR, SEE IF ERIC CAN DO THAT BY FRIDAY MORNING.
AND WE CAN SEND EMAILS ALL DAY ON FRIDAY.
AND, UM, PERHAPS WE CAN, UH, WE THEN, OR YOU ALL CAN SUBMIT, UH, YOUR QUESTIONS, UH, TO ME BY SUNDAY AFTERNOON MAYBE.
AND THEN WE CAN SHARE THOSE WITH THE CANDIDATES ON MONDAY MORNING.
AND THEN, UH, THOSE FIRST CANDIDATES WILL HAVE ALL DAY MONDAY PRIOR TO COMING HERE, UH, AT 4:00 PM AND THEN WE'LL TAKE THE FIRST
[00:30:01]
CANDIDATE, WHICH WILL BE DARREN I MET AT FOUR O'CLOCK ON, UH, MONDAY AFTERNOON, OCTOBER 23RD.IN ADDITION TO THAT, I THINK WE STILL NEED TO TALK.
SO IT'S, WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT TAKING ONE CANDIDATE, UH, ONE AND A HALF CANDIDATE PER HOUR.
I GUESS IF WE START AT FOUR, WE TAKE A CANDIDATE FOR 30 MINUTES, OR DO WE TAKE TWO CANDIDATES THEN A BREAK, THEN ANOTHER TWO, THEN A BREAK? IT IS UP TO YOU ALL.
I THINK TWO AND A BREAK WOULD BE GREAT.
SO AN HOUR, WE'LL INTERVIEW FOR AN HOUR AND THEN WE'LL TAKE A BREAK AND THEN WE'LL INTERVIEW FOR ANOTHER HOUR AND TAKE A BREAK.
AND IS THAT ENOUGH FOR ONE NIGHT OR DO WE, AND WE INTERVIEW FOR THREE HOURS AND BE DONE FOR THE FIRST NIGHT? IF, IF WE'RE DOING, IF WE'RE DOING THREE DATES AND WE HAVE 21 CANDIDATES, WE HAVE TO DO SEVEN A DAY.
AND THEN IF WE'RE, ARE WE ALLOWING, IF WE'RE ALLOWING PUBLIC COMMENT, THAT'S OUR 30 MINUTES PLUS 10 MINUTES OF PUBLIC COMMENT, OR WHAT, WHAT ARE WE, WE CAN DO THE PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE END OF ALL THE INTERVIEWS.
OR WE CAN DO PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE END OF EACH INTERVIEW.
I THINK WE DO PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE END OF ALL INTERVIEWS.
UM, MR. MAYOR
I, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE DISCIPLINE RECORDS AND THE IA FILES THAT MIGHT EXIST BEFORE WE DECIDE TO INTERVIEW EVERYBODY THAT'S RESPOND.
AND HOW SOON CAN WE GET THAT INFORMATION? QUESTION? ALL OF THESE CANDIDATES ARE INTERNAL, CORRECT.
SO ALL OF THESE CANDIDATES CURRENTLY WORK FOR B R P D OR DO WE HAVE ANY WHO SOME ARE.
I KNOW THE FIRST GUY'S FROM CENTRAL.
SO WE DO HAVE CANDIDATES WHO ARE NOT INTERNAL CANDIDATES, UM, WHICH MEANS, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'RE GOING ALPHABETICALLY, WE MAY HAVE TO GET SOME ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THEIR, UH, FILES.
UM, SO I WOULD ADVISE THAT WE, YOU CAN START ALPHABETICALLY AND WE CAN CERTAINLY, UH, BETWEEN NOW AND MONDAY, UH, GET ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THOSE EXTERNAL, UH, CANDIDATES, UH, AND LOOK AT THE LIST, UM, THAT IS EXISTING.
ALSO, I WANTED TO SHARE THAT THE NEXT MEETING ON THE 23RD STARTS AT FIVE.
THE NEXT MEETING ON THE 26TH IS AT FIVE, AND NOVEMBER THE FIRST IS AT 4:00 PM AND, UM, CERTAINLY IF YOU TAKE SEVEN, UH, INDIVIDUALS A DAY, AND, AND IN ALL DUE RESPECT, MAYOR PROM, YOU MAY FIND THAT YOU UM, MAY WANT TO CUT THAT 30 MINUTES DOWN IN TERMS OF THE INTERVIEW PROCESS ONCE IT GETS STARTED.
BUT I MEAN, YOU CAN CERTAINLY DO, UH, WHAT YOU FEEL IS BEST TO HAVE A THOROUGH, A THOROUGH, UM, INTERVIEW.
UM, I THINK IT'S GONNA DEPEND ON THE NUMBER OF QUESTIONS WE AGREE WE'RE GOING TO ASK.
THAT, I THINK IT'LL DEPEND ON THAT IN TERMS OF THE AMOUNT OF TIME WE TAKE, I THINK WE DON'T, WE DEFINITELY DON'T WANNA GO MORE THAN 30 MINUTES, BUT, UH, THE QUESTIONS ARE GONNA DRIVE, UH, HOW LONG, UH, WE GIVE EACH CANDIDATE IF, IF EVERYBODY THINKS THAT'S APPROPRIATE.
AND AS I SAID, WE CAN CERTAINLY ADD A, UH, WE'RE NOT PROHIBITED FROM ADDING ANOTHER, UH, DATE.
UH, WE'LL MAKE THAT DATE PUBLIC JUST AS WE'VE MADE THE REST OF THESE DATES PUBLIC.
SO WE, IF WE, IF WE AGREE, WE'RE GONNA DO SEVEN A DAY.
THAT MEANS THE FIRST SEVEN CANDIDATES ARE GONNA BE DED T BELLARD, UH, YOU, CLAUDIA M DANIEL A. DAVIS, UH, SS DOUGLAS AND T GLOVER.
THOSE THAT WOULD BE THE FIRST SEVEN.
YOU GOT THAT MIKE FIRST SEVEN.
I'M JUST MAKING SURE THEY KNOW THAT THEY, A, A DAVIS LIVES IN ARLINGTON, TENNESSEE, IT LOOKS LIKE.
SO IT MIGHT TAKE LONGER TO GET THAT PERSON'S RECORDS IF WE'RE LOOKING TO HAVE 'EM PRIOR TO THE INTERVIEW.
THEY OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO BE HERE MONDAY, AND WE OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO HAVE RECORDS MONDAY.
YOU KNOW HOW TO GET A PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST, DON'T YOU?
LITTLE EXPERIENCE WITH YES, SIR.
UH, SO THOSE ARE THE CANDIDATES AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT, UH, MAYOR BROOM, WHO'S GONNA BE RESPONSIBLE FOR NOTIFYING THESE SEVEN CANDIDATES THAT THEY ARE SCHEDULED TO BE INTERVIEWED NEXT MONDAY EVENING.
MY ASSIGNED STAFF, UH, TO THIS PROJECT,
[00:35:01]
OUR, UH, ATTORNEY LESLIE CHAMBERS, THE A C A O AND CHIEF OF STAFF, DANTE BIDWELL.SO THE TWO OF THEM ARE RESPONSIBLE.
MR. BIDWELL, MS. CHAMBER, DID YOU HEAR THE FIRST SEVEN NAMES ARE GONNA BE INTERVIEWED BEGINNING MONDAY AT 5:00 PM YEAH, DED, I THINK IT'S, LET ME GO TO THE PRONOUNCE ALL HER NAME.
DARREN AHMED, TIMOTHY BELLARD.
SHARON DOUGLAS AND THOMAS GLOVER.
OH, I'M SORRY, I MISSED THAT ONE.
HE'S THE CANDIDATE THAT LIVES IN ARLINGTON.
SO LET ME STATE THAT AGAIN FOR THE FOLKS AT HOME.
DARREN AMED, TIMOTHY BALLARD, WILLIAM CLARITA II, MYRON DANIELS, ALVIN DAVIS, SHARON DOUGLAS, AND THEN TIMOTHY GLOVER, EXCUSE ME.
THOSE ARE THE FIRST SEVEN CANDIDATES THAT WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW AT FIVE O'CLOCK ON MONDAY AFTERNOON.
NUMBER TWO, UH, THE GENERAL PUBLIC WILL BE ABLE TO SUBMIT QUESTIONS FRIDAY MORNING, LET'S SAY AT 10:00 AM THEY CAN SUBMIT QUESTIONS.
WE'LL MAKE THAT EMAIL ADDRESS AVAILABLE.
MR. BIDWELL, YOU GOT SOMETHING FOR US? YEAH.
SO WE'RE ACTUALLY COMMUNICATING, STEPPING SPEAKING TO THE MIC FOR ME.
WE'RE COMMUNICATING WITH IS DIRECTOR ERIC ROMERO RIGHT NOW TO ESTABLISH THAT.
UM, WE HOPE BY FIRST THING TOMORROW MORNING WE SHOULD HAVE THAT UP AND RUNNING.
AND ACTUALLY WE CAN HAVE FOLKS SUBMIT PUBLIC COMMENTS BEGINNING, SAY, 9:00 AM TOMORROW UNTIL FRIDAY, WHICH WILL GIVE EVERYBODY A CHANCE TO ACTUALLY REVIEW WHAT'S SUBMITTED.
SO BY MONDAY, WE COME IN THE DOOR AND WE KNOW WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO.
SO WE'RE SAYING BY 10:00 AM TOMORROW THE PUBLIC CAN BEGIN TO SEND EMAILS AND PUBLIC COMMENTS.
SO WE ARE LOOKING FOR QUESTIONS ARE RELATIVE TO THOSE.
WE'RE GOING TO ASK THE CANDIDATES AND THEN COMMENTS ABOUT THE PROCESS AND OR CANDIDATES YOU CAN SEND BOTH TO THAT EMAIL.
SO THE ONE THAT THEY'RE ESTABLISHING RIGHT NOW, AND I CAN TELL YOU.
UH, BPD CHIEF QUESTIONS@B.GOV.
LOOK AT, SO JUST TO SPELL IT OUT, B R P D C H I E F Q U E S T I O N S AT B R L A.GOV.
AND AGAIN, WE HOPE TO HAVE THAT LIVE SHORTLY.
UM, BUT WE WOULD ASK THAT FOLKS CAN BEGIN SUBMITTING PUBLIC COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS BY 9:00 AM TOMORROW MORNING AT THE LATEST.
WE'VE GOT 10 PEOPLE ON THE COMMITTEE.
DID ALL OUR PEOPLE IN THE MEDIA GET THE EMAIL ADDRESS IN THE MEDIA? DID Y'ALL GET THE EMAIL ADDRESS? SPELL IT RIGHT ON TELEVISION TONIGHT.
THAT'S WHY, THAT'S WHY I WANNA MAKE SURE I SPELLED IT.
WAS ABLE TO GET THE INFORMATION AND SEND THE QUESTIONS AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
AND THEY NEED TO BE SUBMITTED BY, WE LIKE TO, NOW THAT THE, THE, THE DAY HAS MOVED UP TWO DAYS, UH, AT THE PLEASURE OF THE COMMITTEE.
WHEN WOULD YOU ALL LIKE TO SEE THE QUESTIONS SO WE CAN BEGIN COMPILING THEM? WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE TO CUT THE DEADLINE? MAYBE THREE O'CLOCK FRIDAY AFTERNOON.
IS THAT OKAY WITH EVERYONE? MM-HMM.
AND THEN MR. BILL, WE'LL MAKE SURE WE ALL GET THE SUGGESTED QUESTIONS.
AND THEN, UM, I WOULD ASK YOU ALL TO SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS BY, UM, MONDAY MORNING AT 7:00 AM BUT IF OUR FIRST IS ON MONDAY, PERSON IS MONDAY AFTERNOON, WE NEED TO, WE NEED TO KNOW THE QUESTIONS TO SEND THEM OUT BY SUNDAY.
NO, WE'RE GONNA SEND 'EM TO THE CANDIDATE SUNDAY MORNING.
WHAT'S YOUR SUGGESTION? UM, I THINK WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW MANY QUESTIONS IN TOTAL WE'RE ASKING.
IF WE'RE ALL ASKING ONE OF OURS AND ONE OF, AND ONE, IF, IF WE'RE ALL ASKING A QUESTION OR ARE WE TAKING, ARE WE NOT TAKING OUR OWN QUESTIONS AND TAKING, 'CAUSE THAT'S SEVEN QUESTIONS.
IF WE GIVE 'EM THREE MINUTES, THAT'S 21 MINUTES.
I'M GETTING MATHY HERE AND I'M AN ARTIST.
THAT'S NOT, UH, A GOOD COMBINATION.
BUT IF WE, IF, I GUESS MY QUESTION IS HOW MANY, HOW MANY COMMENTS ARE WE, OR HOW MANY QUESTIONS ARE WE TAKING IN TOTAL? ANYBODY'S SUGGESTION? YOU MEAN PER CANDIDATE?
[00:40:01]
MM-HMM.I MEAN, WE'RE, WE'RE ASKING THE SAME QUESTIONS TO EVERYBODY.
SO ARE WE ASKING SEVEN QUESTIONS, ONE FROM EACH OF US, PLUS THREE MORE THAT WE GET FROM THE PUBLIC? IN ALL FAIRNESS, I THINK THE SEVEN SHOULD THE SEVEN SELECT, SELECT SHOULD BE ABLE TO ASK EACH CANDIDATE ONE QUESTION, RIGHT? YEAH.
BUT IS THAT IT THEN? BUT IF WE'RE ASKING FOR QUESTIONS FROM THE, FROM THE, UH, PUBLIC AS WELL, HOW MANY EXTRA QUESTIONS? HOW MANY PUBLIC? MY QUESTION MAY BE FROM THE PUBLIC.
MY QUESTION MAY NOT BE MY QUESTION.
MY, SO I'M THINKING WE'LL GET TOGETHER AND, AND HAVE THOSE QUESTIONS AT HAND TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE FAIRLY ASKING THE QUESTIONS OF THE PUBLIC AND THE QUESTIONS OF OURS AND OTHERS THAT MAY HAVE, UH, INPUT.
MY GUESS IS THAT, UH, THERE'LL BE SOME DUPLICATIONS WHEN WE GET TO QUESTIONS.
SO SOMEBODY'S GONNA HAVE TO SORT THROUGH IT, EXCUSE ME.
AND, UM, AND DECIDE WHAT THE FINAL QUESTIONS ARE.
WELL, I'M HOPING MR. BIDWELL YEAH.
THEY'LL LOOK AT THE QUESTIONS AND, UH, THEN SORT THROUGH TO MAKE SURE THERE ARE NO DUPLICATES IN THE PROCESS.
AND, AND ALSO, UH, UH, 30 MINUTES IS NOT A LONG TIME, YOU KNOW, THAT TIDE WILL FLY.
AND SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE GIVE EACH CANDIDATE AMPLE TIME SO THAT ONE WILL NOT FEEL LIKE HE'S BEEN CHEATED OF A MINUTE OR TWO.
'CAUSE THAT, THAT, THAT MINUTE OR TWO MINUTES WILL, COULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
WELL, PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE, WE GAVE EACH CANDIDATE A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF TIME TO ANSWER THE QUESTION OR A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF TIME TO ANSWER THE QUESTION.
AND THEN WE KEPT THE CLOCK ON THEM AND, AND TOLD THEM, YOU KNOW, IF THEY HAD THREE MINUTES TO ANSWER EACH QUESTION OR TWO MINUTES TO ANSWER EACH QUESTION, THEY COULD GO.
AND THEN AS THE TIME WAS RUNNING SHORT, THEY COULD SEE IT UP THERE ON THE SCREEN AS TO HOW MUCH TIME THEY HAD TO ANSWER EACH QUESTION.
THAT WAY, UH, EACH CANDIDATE DIDN'T GO, SOME CANDIDATES DIDN'T ELABORATE MORE ON ONE QUESTION THAN THE OTHER.
SO THEY WERE, THEY WERE GIVEN AN AMOUNT OF TIME.
SO I THINK ONCE WE DETERMINED, UH, THE, THE NUMBER OF QUESTIONS WE'RE GOING TO ASK, WE THEN SET A, A TIMEFRAME FOR HOW MUCH TIME EACH CANDIDATE HAS TO ANSWER EACH QUESTION.
SO MINE'S SORT OF A TWO PART QUESTION.
THE FIRST IS, GENERALLY WHAT IS THE NATURE OF OUR RESPONSIBILITY AS ALTERNATES IN TERMS OF PUTTING FORWARD QUESTIONS AND PARTICIPATING ON THE COMMITTEE? BECAUSE THAT LEADS INTO A QUESTION I HAVE RELATED TO QUESTIONS.
WHERE IS THE IDEA TO HAVE A SET OF GENERAL QUESTIONS FROM US AND THE PUBLIC THAT EACH CANDIDATE IS ASKED, AND THAT'S IT.
OR IS THERE A POSSIBILITY TO ASK CANDIDATE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS AS WELL? AND WOULD THOSE BE PRE-MADE OR OCCUR IN THE MOMENT? FOR EXAMPLE, DEPUTY CHIEF DANIELS, I'M SURE WOULD BE GETTING VERY DIFFERENT QUESTIONS FROM THE INDIVIDUALS WHO WORK FOR, UH, PRIVATE COMPANIES.
AND THOSE MAY COME UP IN THE MOMENT AND WOULDN'T NEED TO BE ASKED EVERYBODY.
I WOULD, UH, THAT'S A VERY GOOD QUESTION.
FIRST I'LL TALK ABOUT THE ALTERNATES.
UM, THE RATIONALE BEHIND THE ALTERNATES WAS THAT TO MAKE SURE, UH, THAT FOR EXAMPLE, IF ONE OF YOU ALL HAD ANOTHER COMMITMENT OF THE SEVEN, THAT WE WOULD MAINTAIN, UH, THE SEVEN NUMBER.
UH, BUT BECAUSE YOU ALL HAVE COMMITTED AS ALTERNATES TO BE HERE, WE CERTAINLY VALUE YOUR INPUT AS WELL IN THE PROCESS.
BUT IT HAD TO DO WITH MAKING SURE WE HAD CONTINUITY, UH, IN TERMS OF, UH, INSIGHT AND KNOWING THE PROCESS AND WHAT HAS HAPPENED AND BEING ABLE TO STEP IN, IN CASE SOMEONE ELSE IS NOT HERE.
YOUR SECOND QUESTION ABOUT IN THE MOMENT, WHILE I DO THINK THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE ESTABLISHED PROTOCOLS, I THINK WE WOULD DO OURSELVES A DISSERVICE IF WE DID NOT HAVE AN ORGANIC PROCESS AS WELL.
SO IF THERE'S A QUESTION THAT COMES UP, UH, THAT YOU FEEL COMPELLED TO ASK THAT YOU WOULD THINK WOULD BE VITAL TO GETTING THE ANSWERS THAT WE NEED TO, UH, DECIDE A CANDIDATE, THEN I WOULD SAY, MR. CHAIRMAN, THAT, UM, THEY SHOULD HAVE THAT FLEXIBILITY AS WELL.
MR. MAYOR APPROACH HIM MM-HMM.
UM, ONE, I THINK WE MIGHT SEE SOME THINGS IN THE IA FILES THAT WE JUST, HEY, WE, WE KNOW FOR A FACT WE'RE NOT GOING WITH THIS GUY OR THIS OR THIS WOMAN AND I WOULDN'T WANNA WASTE THEIR TIME.
UM, ANOTHER PIECE I I THINK OF THIS AND MAY, THIS MIGHT WILL WORK ON YOUR TEAM MM-HMM.
UM, I, I WOULDN'T WANT TO WASTE
[00:45:01]
ANYBODY'S TIME AND WE KNOW THAT THEY, THAT'S VALID, HAVE THIS PIECE HANGING OVER THEIR HEAD AND WE JUST NOT GONNA CONSIDER 'EM.OUR ATTORNEY HAS, UH, PARISH ATTORNEY HAS SOME ADDITIONAL INSIGHT ON THAT.
GO TO ADDRESS THE, UM, THE ISSUE REGARDING GETTING THE RECORDS AND IA FILES.
UM, BECAUSE YOU ALL ARE SUBJECT TO, UM, ABIDING BY THE OPEN MEETING LAWS WHERE, UH, PERSONNEL RECORDS ARE CONCERNED, YOU HAVE TO, WELL, FIRST LEMME SAY IT'S ADVISED BY OUR OFFICE THAT YOU GET WRITTEN, UM, APPROVAL FROM THE CANDIDATES TO GIVE THEM THE OPTION OF WHETHER OR NOT THEY WANT THAT INFORMATION DISCLOSED IN PUBLIC OR IN PRIVATE.
IF IT'S TO BE DISCLOSED IN PRIVATE, THEN IT'S GOING TO BE DONE VIA EXECUTIVE SESSION.
AND SO MAKE SURE FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF MEETINGS, I DON'T KNOW WHO'S DOING THE AGENDA, UH, THAT IS NOTED THAT THERE MIGHT BE EXECUTIVE SESSION HELD, UH, FOR THE PURPOSES OF DISCUSS DISCUSSING.
AND I'LL GIVE THAT, UH, SOME EXACT LANGUAGE TO THE PERSON WHO'S DRAFTING THE AGENDA.
UM, BUT THE REASON FOR THAT IS BECAUSE GENERALLY SPEAKING, WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT A PERSON'S, UM, PERSONNEL RECORDS OR THEIR IA FILES IN THIS CASE, UH, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, UM, CHARACTER, UH, THE POSSIBILITY OF DISCUSSING CHARACTER COMPETENCY AND PHYSICAL OR MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.
UM, AND SO THAT'S WHY THAT INFORMATION, THAT PERSON MAY NOT WANT THAT INFORMATION DISCLOSED, BUT THEY HAVE AN OPTION TO DO THAT.
UM, AND THEY MAY NOT WANNA GIVE IT AT ALL.
AND THEN YOU ALL WILL HAVE TO MAKE A DECISION BASED ON THAT.
BUT IF THEY DO SAY, OKAY, YOU KNOW, I'M FINE WITH YOU ALL HAVING MY, MY PERSONAL RECORD AND MY IA FILES, UM, THEN THEY NEED TO LET YOU ALL KNOW WHETHER OR NOT THEY, THEY DON'T MIND IT BEING DISCLOSED IN PUBLIC OR IF THEY WANT IT TO BE DISCLOSED IN PRIVATE.
AND AGAIN, IF IT'S DONE IN PRIVATE, IT WILL BE DONE IN EXECUTIVE SESSION.
UM, WHEN YOU ARE DISCUSSING SOMEONE'S PERSONNEL RECORDS OR YOU KNOW, THEIR IA FILES THAT LEANS INTO, UH, THEIR CHARACTER, THEIR COMPETENCY, MENTAL HEALTH, UH, AND PHYSICAL ISSUES, UM, THEY HAVE TO BE GETTING, UH, GIVEN WRITTEN NOTICE UNDER THE LAW 24 HOURS IN ADVANCE OF THAT MEETING.
UM, AND SO I THINK IT WAS BROUGHT UP EARLIER WHETHER OR NOT THERE WOULD BE SUFFICIENT TIME FOR THE, FOR THE CANDIDATES THAT ARE OUT OF STATE, UM, THAT NEEDS TO BE GIVEN SOME CONSIDERATION THAT THAT TIME DELAY, WE HAVE TO GIVE THEM WRITTEN NOTICE.
UM, THEY HAVE TO TELL US WHETHER OR NOT THEY WANT IT DISCLOSED.
UM, AND THEN IF IT, IF, IF THEY SAY YES, THEN IT'S JUST GONNA BE A PROCESS OF THEM GETTING THAT INFORMATION TO THE COMMITTEE.
AND SO I KNOW THAT WAS A, A GOOD BIT OF INFORMATION.
IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT SOMEBODY WANTS ME TO REPEAT, I DON'T MIND DOING THAT.
UM, BUT WE DO HAVE TO PAY ATTENTION TO THAT UNDER THE LAW.
MR. MR. GIBSON, THEN MR. WALKER, UH, YOU MENTIONED MENTIONED PERSONNEL FILES, MENTAL HEALTH AND SO FORTH, BUT SPECIFICALLY WITH DISCIPLINARY, UH, RECORDS, UH, JUST TO MAKE IT PLAIN, IF SOMEBODY'S BEEN DISCIPLINED FOR 30 DAYS FOR EXCESSIVE FORCE, I'M NOT INTERESTED IN INTERVIEW
I UNDERSTAND ALL THE OTHER THINGS YOU SAID, BUT I THINK WHEN IT WAS BROUGHT UP, IT WAS BROUGHT UP BY DISCIPLINARY, UH, THE KIND OF IS DOES IT DISCIPLINARY, UH, DOES THAT FIT IN THE SAME CATEGORY AS THE OTHER INFORMATION YOU SAID? I BELIEVE IT DOES.
IT'S GONNA BE IN THEIR PERSONNEL FILES, BUT, UM, OUR PERSONNEL ATTORNEY IS ACTUALLY WATCHING THIS AS WE SPEAK.
UM, AND PLEASE BE MINDFUL OF THIS, UM, THERE CANNOT BE ANY DELIBERATION AT ALL OUTSIDE OF THIS PUBLIC MEETING.
UM, AND SO, UH, AS YOU'RE DISCUSSING RIGHT NOW, MR. TOMMY, YOU KNOW ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, DECIDING WHETHER OR NOT YOU'RE GONNA INTERVIEW SOMEBODY THAT THO THAT LEVEL OF DISCUSSION IS GONNA HAVE TO HAPPEN IN THIS FORM.
WELL, WITH THE, SOME OF THESE DEPARTMENTS ARE EXPUNGING DISCIPLINARY FILES.
SO ONCE SHE RESPONDS TO ME, I'LL, I'LL GET BACK UP TO THE MICROPHONE.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS THOUGH ABOUT THAT PART OF THE PROCESS? I DO, IF I, IF I MAY MM-HMM.
NOW, THERE MAY BE SOME REDACTIONS, UH, KNOW THAT TOO.
UM, EVEN THOUGH THE, THE FILES WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING, IF THEY ARE AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING, AND I'LL, I'LL FIND THAT OUT SPECIFICALLY.
UM, SOMETIMES THOSE FILES COME WITH REDACTIONS, BUT YOU
[00:50:01]
MAY NOT SEE EVERYTHING.AND MY ONLY THOUGHT WAS, SINCE IT'S AN OPEN FILE, THERE'S BEEN NO ADJUDICATION OR NO FINDINGS IF IT'S BEEN OPEN.
I CAN'T PROVIDING THAT INFORMATION TO US.
BUT IF YOU SAY IT'S OKAY, IT'S WONDERFUL, WE CAN SEE IT.
BUT I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WAS CLEAR.
SO MR. DAWSON JUST INFORMED ME THAT IT WILL APPLY, THAT WILL APPLY YOUR ABILITY TO SEE, UH, ANYTHING TO THE CLOSED FILES, NOT ANYTHING THAT'S CURRENTLY UNDERGOING ANY KIND OF INVESTIGATION.
UM, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE ANY LETTERS OR RECOMMENDATION THAT WERE MADE WHEN THEY WERE HIRED.
YOU SAID WHEN THEY WERE HIRED? YEAH.
WHEN THEY, WHEN THEY WERE HIRED WITH THEIR, WITH THE, WITH THE DEPARTMENT, WITH THE DEPARTMENT THAT THEY'RE WITH RIGHT NOW, THE OFFICER WOULD'VE HAD TO GET LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION FROM SOMEBODY.
SO THIS IS THE RESPONSE THAT I'VE GOT FROM OUR, OUR PERSONNEL ATTORNEY, UH, MS. DON GALL.
IF SOMEONE WAS DISCIPLINED FOR A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF DAYS, THE ENTIRE FILE MAY NOT BE PUBLIC BECAUSE OF THE DETAILS.
THEY CAN REVIEW ALL THE DOCUMENTS OF EVERYONE BEFORE AND THEN DECIDE WHO THEY WANT TO INTERVIEW.
SO IS THAT HELPFUL AT ALL? YOU CAN REVIEW THE DOCUMENTS BEFORE YOU DECIDE WHO YOU WANT TO INTERVIEW AND HOW WILL WE HAVE ACCESS TO THAT INFORMATION? UM, WELL, LET ME FIND THAT OUT.
USUALLY WHEN WE HAVE THAT KIND OF INFORMATION, SOMETIMES WE BRING IT AND MAKE IT AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING IN OUR OFFICE.
UM, BUT I'LL, I'LL GET THE LOGISTICS OF THAT AND LET YOU ALL KNOW.
SO WE'RE BACK TO THE, MY ORIGINAL QUESTION.
ARE WE SAYING WE WANT TO REVIEW ALL OF THIS INFORMATION AND DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT YEAH.
WE'RE GOING TO INTERVIEW ALL 21 CANDIDATES? RIGHT.
ALRIGHT, SO LET'S, LET'S START THERE.
UH, LET'S REVIEW THE INFORMATION IF AT ALL POSSIBLE.
I THINK, COURTNEY, IF YOU CAN LET US KNOW HOW SOON WE'RE ABLE TO, TO SEE THAT INFORMATION.
I'M NOT SAYING I'M, I'M OFFERING UP OUR OFFICE.
I WANNA SAY THAT FOR THE BENEFIT OF I AM OF DEALING WITH MY SUPERVISOR, YES.
I JUST SAID SOMETIMES, AS AN EXAMPLE, WE DO.
AND, AND LOOK, AND, AND MS. HUMPHREY IS CORRECT AND, AND THANK YOU TO HER FOR THE JOB SHE'S DOING.
UH, WE DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH DOING ANYTHING WE CAN TO ASSIST THE MAYOR WITH THIS PROCESS.
AND IF THAT MEANS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN OPEN, WE HAVE A VERY BIG CONFERENCE ROOM THAT WE CAN OPEN, THAT WE CAN MAKE AVAILABLE FOR Y'ALL TO COME AND INTERVIEW CERTAIN MATERIALS.
I JUST WANNA MAKE CLEAR THAT FOR ANYONE WHO'S OUTSIDE OF OUR JURISDICTION, OUTSIDE OF B R P D, WE CANNOT GUARANTEE THAT WE CAN GET ANY INFORMATION IN ANY TIMEFRAME.
UH, ANYONE THAT'S BEEN FAMILIAR WITH PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS UNDERSTANDS EVERYBODY HAS THEIR OWN PROTOCOL AND THEIR PROCEDURES FOR THE WAY THAT THEY RELEASE INFORMATION.
AND SO WE'LL HAVE TO, ON BEHALF OF THE MAYOR AND ADMINISTRATION, MAKE A REQUEST FOR THAT INFORMATION FROM TENNESSEE OR FOR WHEREVER THE OUTSIDE AGENCY IS, AND HOPE TO GET THE INFORMATION AS SOON AS WE CAN.
WE'LL, OF COURSE, LET 'EM KNOW THAT IT'S AN EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION, BUT WE CAN'T GUARANTEE THAT WE GET 'EM IN ANY KIND OF TIMEFRAME.
BUT WE'LL DO OUR BEST TO GET THAT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
SO, COMMITTEE MEMBERS, DO WE WANT TO SAVE BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON? UH, WE SHOULD HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO, TO COME TO THIS, UH, BUILDING AND REVIEW THAT INFORMATION AND THEN TALK ABOUT WHICH CANDIDATES, UH, WE WANT TO INTERVIEW OR NOT.
AND SET THE TIME BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON.
WHAT'S THE LATEST ON FRIDAY? WE COULD COME SEE THAT INFORMATION, MR. DOON.
I'M GONNA GET, UH, COURTNEY AND I WILL GET WITH, UH, MS. HUNTER AND I'LL GET WITH DELEY MORRIS, WHO'S THE BAND NEWS POLICE, DEPART LEGAL ADVISOR FROM MY OFFICE.
AND TO ASCERTAIN, HOW LONG WOULD IT TAKE US TO GET THE INFORMATION WE KNOW WE COULD PUT OUR HANDS ON? I'M HOPEFUL, UH, THAT WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO GET IT FAIRLY QUICKLY.
I'M HOPEFUL WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO GET IT WITHIN THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS THAT WE'LL FACILITATE Y'ALL BEING ABLE TO COME ON FRIDAY.
WE WILL KEEP IN CONTACT WITH YOU AND ALL THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND HOPEFULLY FIRST THING FRIDAY MORNING WHEN WE OPEN AT EIGHT O'CLOCK, PEOPLE CAN START ROTATING IN TO COME IN.
WHAT WE HAVE TO BE MINDFUL OF IS THAT IN THEORY, WE CAN'T HAVE ANY MORE THAN, UH, THREE OF Y'ALL.
WE WOULD LIKE NO MORE THAN TWO OR THREE OF Y'ALL IN THE CONFERENCE ROOM AT THE SAME TIME.
BECAUSE IF WE HAVE MORE THAN THREE OF Y'ALL, IT COULD BE CONSIDERED TO BE SOME SORT OF PUBLIC OFFICE, UH, OPEN, PUBLIC OPEN MEETING IN VIOLATION OF OPEN MEETING LAWS.
SO WE DON'T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN.
SO YEAH, BUT WE ALWAYS GO BELOW THAT.
SO WE GO AS, AS FAR BELOW THAT AS WE CAN.
SO IN OUR EYE, IF A QUORUM IS FOUR, WE DON'T WANT MORE THAN TWO AT THE MAX.
THREE OF Y'ALL IN THERE AT THE SAME TIME.
SO DON'T WORRY ABOUT THIS, IT'S NOT UP FOR Y'ALL TO WORRY ABOUT THAT.
IT'S SOME, IF Y'ALL COME IN AND IT'S THREE PEOPLE, WE'LL TAKE ONE BY PERSON, PUT 'EM IN ANOTHER ROOM, OR WE'LL DO SOMETHING ELSE TO SEPARATE Y'ALL.
I DON'T WANT THAT TO MAKE Y'ALL HAVE TO FIGURE OUT OR CALL EACH OTHER TO SEE WHO'S COMING.
BUT I JUST WANNA LET Y'ALL KNOW IF YOU HAVE, IF WE SEE, YOU KNOW, WE, YOU SEE US DOING THAT, THAT'S THE REASON WHY.
WELL, WELL, MR. NOT TRYING TO SEPARATE YOU OR ANYTHING OF THAT NATURE, BUT THAT'S THE REASON WHY MR. CHAIRMAN, GIVEN WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE ABOUT SHORTENING THE LIST, THAT, DOES
[00:55:01]
THAT MEAN THAT THE SEVEN THAT WE'VE CALLED OUT MAY OR MAY NOT BE THE FIRST CORRECT? SCRATCH THAT.THEY MAY NOT BE THE FIRST SEVEN.
WELL, THEY'LL, IF I MAY, THEY WILL CERTAINLY BE NOTIFIED.
IS IT? WELL, WE'RE SAYING WE MAY INTERVIEW SOMETHING, BUT LET ME JUST ADD THIS, UM, I WAS, AS I HEARD THE COMMENTARY ON, UM, LOOKING AT THE FILES, ET CETERA, I WOULD RECOMMEND CERTAINLY UP TO YOU ALL, UM, THAT PERHAPS THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE OUT OF TOWN BE PUT AT THE END OF, UH, THE AGENDA THAT WORKS FOR INTERVIEWS.
AND LISTEN, UH, TO YOUR QUESTION, EUGENE, I I'M SURE THE CANDIDATES COME, WE CAN ASK THEM TO AUTHORIZE THE RELEASE OF THAT INFORMATION SOONER RATHER THAN LATER.
IF THAT HELPS, THEN, UH, YOU KNOW, THEY MAY BE ABLE TO ASSIST IN EXPEDITING THE RELEASE OF THAT INFORMATION.
UH, FOR THOSE CANDIDATES WHO ARE OUTSIDE OF B R P D, UH, YOU WANNA TALK ABOUT THIS
THAT MAY HAVE FACILITATED, BUT AGAIN, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE PROTOCOL IS OF THAT PARTICULAR AGENCY.
BUT BY ALL MEANS, THAT MAY ASSIST US.
AND IF THAT'S NEEDED, THEN WE'LL CONTACT THAT PARTICULAR CANDIDATE AND ASK THEM, ASK THEM TO CONTACT THE AGENCY AND ASK THEM TO BE RELEASED.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S A DEFINITE CONSIDERATION.
SO I THINK THIS IS WHERE WE ARE BEFORE WE IDENTIFY WHO THE CANDIDATES ARE GOING TO BE, UH, IN TERMS OF WHO'S UP FIRST, WE'RE GONNA REVIEW ANY OF THE PERSONNEL RECORDS SO WE CAN DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT, UH, THE CANDIDATE IS WORTHY OF BEING INTERVIEWED BY THIS COMMITTEE.
AND THEN, UH, WE'LL INTERVIEW LOCAL CANDIDATES FIRST.
AND THEN WE WILL LET THE, THOSE WHO LIVE OUTSIDE OF BATON ROUGE OR WHO LIVE OUTSIDE THE STATE OF LOUISIANA, THAT THEY'RE GONNA BE INTERVIEWED LAST.
SO THAT'LL GIVE THEM AT LEAST A WEEK AND A HALF TO MAKE TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS.
IN FACT, UH, THEY'RE SELECTED TO BE INTERVIEWED THAT WORK FOR EVERYONE.
MR. GIBSON, UH, ARE WE STILL, UH, GIVEN THE WAIVER, WHETHER ON THE, UH, PERSONNEL INFORMATION, ARE WE STILL SENDING THAT OUT? MM-HMM.
SO NOW WE DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN THE PERSONNEL RECORDS THAT THEY MUST WAIVE AND THE PUBLIC RECORDS THAT WE COULD GET BY PUBLIC REQUESTS WITHOUT A WAIVER, WE IS DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN THE TWO.
'CAUSE IF IT'S PUBLIC RECORDS AND IT'S BEEN IN THE NEWSPAPER SOMEWHERE AND EVERYTHING, AND YOU KNOW, WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO HAVE THAT WITHOUT THEM GIVING PERMISSION FOR US TO GET THAT INFORMATION.
THE IDEA BEHIND THAT, YES, SIR.
UH, I MEAN THAT DOES MAKE SENSE.
UM, BUT I THINK THAT IF IT'S A PART OF THEIR PERSONNEL RECORD, UH, I'LL, LET ME ASK THE PERSONNEL ATTORNEY, UH, ABOUT THAT PARTICULAR THING.
BUT I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
IF IT'S ALREADY BEEN PUT, MADE, MADE OUT THERE TO THE PUBLIC, THEN IT SHOULD BE GIVEN TO YOU ALL FOR CONSIDERATION WITHOUT HAVING TO ASK THEM FOR PERMISSION.
I, I, I THINK COURTNEY IS CORRECT AND, AND WE'LL FINALIZE THIS, BUT I THINK THE ISSUE IS, THIS IS A TWOFOLD CONSIDERATION, RIGHT? BY ALL MEANS YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO GET ANYTHING THAT'S PUBLIC RECORD, RIGHT? YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REVIEW IT AND TAKE A LOOK AT IT.
WHEN YOU GET INTO TRYING TO INQUIRE OF THE INDIVIDUAL AS TO WHY IT HAPPENED, WHAT THEY DID, THAT'S WHAT NEEDS TO BE GIVEN A WAIVER.
AND THAT'S WHAT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE UNDERSTAND.
THEY UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING AND THEY'RE GIVEN THE RIGHT TO DO IT IN PRIVATE OR PUBLIC.
SO THAT'S THE TWO SEPARATE WAYS WE LOOK AT IT.
SO YES, YOU CAN LOOK AT THE INFORMATION, BUT WHEN YOU GET INTO QUESTIONING 'EM ABOUT IT, UH, WHY THEY DID IT, WHAT WAS THE REASONING, WHAT HAPPENED, THAT'S THE THINGS WE NEED TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION.
AND THEY HAVE TO GIVE, BE GIVEN NOTICE AN OPPORTUNITY TO WAIVE THEIR RIGHT TO A PRIVATE DISCUSSION.
ALRIGHT? SO AGAIN, WHERE WE ARE REVIEW INFORMATION BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON, I'LL RECEIVE QUESTIONS BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON, UH, COMPILE QUESTIONS WE'RE GOING TO ASK AND MAKE SURE WE MAKE THOSE QUESTIONS AVAILABLE TO ALL OF THE CANDIDATES WE'RE GOING TO INTERVIEW ABOUT SUNDAY, CORRECT MS.
AND THEN WE'LL BE READY TO INTERVIEW OUR FIRST CANDIDATES, UH, ON MONDAY AFTERNOON AT 5:00 PM THOSE FIRST CANDIDATES WILL BE LOCAL CANDIDATES.
WE WILL DETERMINE AT THE TIME, UH, ON FRIDAY WHO WE'RE GOING TO INTERVIEW.
UH, AND THEN WE'LL KNOW HOW MANY WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW EACH DAY.
IF WE DWINDLE THAT NUMBER DOWN TO FIVE, WE'LL JUST TAKE ALL FIVE CANDIDATES ON MONDAY.
IF WE DWIN IT DOWN TO FIVE, AND I JUST WANT TO STATE FOR THE RECORD, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE APPLIED FOR THE POSITION, UH, WE ARE GOING
[01:00:01]
TO DO A VERY THOROUGH PROCESS OF REVIEWING THE INFORMATION.UH, AND IF YOU APPLY TO BE THE CHIEF OF POLICE OF BATON ROUGE, YOU SHOULD KNOW THOSE OF US WHO SERVE ON THE COMMITTEE, TAKE IT SERIOUS.
AND SOME OF WHAT YOU MAY HAVE DONE IN THE PAST, WE'LL COME INTO PLAY.
IT WILL COME INTO PLAY WHEN WE REVIEW YOUR PERSONNEL RECORDS.
AND, UH, AT THAT TIME, IF YOU ARE NOT SELECTED AS A CANDIDATE, UH, YOU KNOW, MY APOLOGIES TO YOU, BUT, UH, WE WANT THE BEST AND, AND, AND MOST EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE INDIVIDUAL TO SERVE AS THE NEXT CHIEF OF OUR CITY IN PARISH.
AND MR. MAYOR APPROACH, JUST TO ADD TO THE ADD TO NOT ADD ANY OTHER EMBARRASSMENT TO THEM.
RIGHT? UH, 'CAUSE I KNOW ALL OF THE, THE GOOD MEDIA FOLKS AROUND HERE, SEE MY MAYOR PERRY OVER THERE, HE GOING BACK TO HIS OFFICE AND PUTTING THOSE REQUESTS TONIGHT.
SO
BUT ULTIMATELY, UH, WE WANT TO THOROUGHLY, UH, VET ALL OF THE CANDIDATES WHO OFFERED THEMSELVES UP FOR SERVICE.
AND AS WE'VE HAD THIS DISCUSSION TODAY, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HAS COME INTO QUESTION IS WHETHER OR NOT, UH, THOSE CANDIDATES HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN ACTIVITIES THAT WE, UH, FEEL WOULD PREVENT THEM FROM SERVING, UH, IN THIS CAPACITY.
SO THAT, THAT IS GOING TO COME UP.
SO I WANNA STATE, AGAIN, FRIDAY EMAILS, UH, GENERALLY SPEAKING TO THE PUBLIC.
YOU CAN SEND THOSE EMAILS TO B R P D CHIEF QUESTIONS@B.GOV.
YOU CAN START SENDING THOSE EMAILS, UH, THIS EVENING.
AT THE CONCLUSION OF THIS MEETING, I'M TOLD BPD CHIEF QUESTIONS@BLA.GOV.
UH, YOU HAVE UNTIL FRIDAY AFTERNOON AT THREE O'CLOCK TO SUBMIT THOSE QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS.
AND THEN WE'LL COMPILE THE QUESTIONS AND MAKE THEM AVAILABLE, UH, TO THE CANDIDATES, UH, BY SUNDAY AFTERNOON.
AND SO ALL CANDIDATES WILL HAVE THE QUESTIONS WE'RE GOING TO ASK.
UH, WE STILL WILL NEED TO DISCUSS HOW MANY QUESTIONS WE'RE GOING TO ASK.
UH, EACH ONE OF US, UH, OF THE SEVEN MEMBER COMMITTEE WHO ARE HERE, ARE GOING TO ASK AT LEAST ONE QUESTION.
UH, BUT WE'LL DISCUSS BASED ON THE NUMBER OF CANDIDATES, WHETHER OR NOT WE ASK MORE THAN THAT.
ANYTHING ELSE? MAYOR, PRESIDENT, PUBLIC COMMENT IS GOING TO BE HELD AT THE END OF THE MEETING, BUT TODAY, PUBLIC COMMENT.
IS THERE ANYONE HERE WISHING TO SPEAK ON THE ITEM? THE ITEM IS THE SELECTION OR THE PROCESS OF SELECTING THE NEXT CHIEF OF POLICE.
IS THERE ANYONE HERE WISHING TO SPEAK ON THE ITEM FOR TODAY'S MEETING? YOU'LL HAVE THREE MINUTES, UH, TO SPEAK AND WE'LL NOTIFY YOU WHEN THE TIME STARTS AND WHEN THAT TIME MEANS.
SO IS THERE ANYONE IN YOUR WISHING TO SPEAK ON THE ITEM SHOWING? NONE.
WE GO BACK NOW TO THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS.
ANYONE WISHING TO SPEAK? YES, SIR.
UM, I'M STILL CONFUSED ABOUT HOW WE'RE GONNA MAKE THE DECISION ON THE 21 IF WE'RE MEETING AND STARTING THE INTERVIEW PROCESS ON MONDAY.
UH, AT WHAT POINT ARE WE GOING TO DECIDE WHICH OF THE 21 OR IF ALL OF THE 21 ARE ON THE LIST? UH, ANY SUGGESTIONS? MAYOR BRU? MY SUGGESTION WOULD BE THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO MEET AGAIN PRIOR TO, AND MAYBE WE'LL HAVE TO MEET AGAIN ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON.
UH, IF WE SET THE TIME, UH, FRIDAY TO REVIEW ALL OF THE INFORMATION ABOUT THREE O'CLOCK AND COMPILE THE QUESTIONS BY THREE O'CLOCK, MAYBE WE CAN MEET HERE FRIDAY AFTERNOON.
IF THIS FACILITY, THE CHAMBER IS OPEN, I'M SURE IT WILL BE MEMO ROOM.
THAT SHOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM AS LONG AS THE CHAMBER IS AVAILABLE.
IF IT'S NOT AVAILABLE, WE'LL HAVE TO LOOK AT ANOTHER, UH, LOCATION AND THEN IT WILL BE OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO, UH, MAKE A PUBLIC NOTICE.
AND SO THAT GIVES US, UH, THE ENOUGH TIME TO MAKE A PUBLIC NOTICE SO PEOPLE WILL KNOW.
CAN EVERYBODY BE HERE FRIDAY AT FOUR O'CLOCK? WE'LL, WE, WE WILL RECONVENE FRIDAY AT FOUR O'CLOCK.
AT THAT TIME WE'LL DECIDE ON THE QUESTIONS, WE'LL DECIDE ON THE CANDIDATES AND THEN WE'LL, THOSE CANDIDATES WILL KNOW THE QUESTIONS AT THAT TIME.
IF FRIDAYS IS NOT A GOOD TIME FOR ME, FRIDAY AT FOUR O'CLOCK, WON'T YOU ZOOM IN OR SOMETHING? OKAY.
BUT WILL YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW ALL THE QUESTIONS, BY THE WAY, RIGHT? YEAH.
AND, UH, GET WITH, UH, THE PARISH ATTORNEY'S OFFICE SO YOU CAN REVIEW THOSE FILES AS WELL, RIGHT? OKAY.
SO JUST FOR OUR SAKE AND FOR ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO MAY WANT TO SUBMIT QUESTIONS, AND THIS MIGHT BE A QUESTION FOR THE PARISH ATTORNEY AS WELL, CONSIDERING THE LIMITS ON WHAT WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO ASK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED IN RELATION TO PERSONNEL RECORDS.
IS THERE ANYTHING SIMILAR WITH WHAT WE CAN INQUIRE ABOUT? GOOD QUESTION AS TO WORK OR WHAT HAPPENS IF THERE'S, FOR EXAMPLE, ANY PARTICULAR INCIDENTS OR OFFICERS THAT INDIVIDUALS MIGHT HAVE BEEN INVOLVED WITH THAT KIND OF THING? QUESTION FOR YOU, COURTNEY.
I THINK IT'S GOING, YOU'RE GOING TO PROBABLY BE RESTRICTED TO ASK ABOUT OTHER INDIVIDUALS
[01:05:01]
THAT WERE INVOLVED IN THE INCIDENT.UM, BECAUSE THE, THE SAME IS GONNA HOLD TRUE FOR THAT, THAT OTHER INDIVIDUAL.
IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT YOU ALL ARE DOING THIS FOR THE PURPOSE OF, OF INTERVIEWING SOMEONE.
IF YOU ARE IN A, IN A PUBLIC MEETING SETTING AND YOU'RE GOING TO START DELVING INTO ANYONE'S, YOU KNOW, CHARACTER, YOU KNOW, QUESTIONS ABOUT THEM, THEIR PHYSICAL, MENTAL HEALTH, UH, CAPACITIES, UH, YOU KNOW, IT IS GOING TO LEND TO ANYONE ELSE THAT'S, THAT YOU MIGHT WANT TO INQUIRE OR INQUIRE ABOUT.
SO IF YOU FIND OUT SOMETHING AND YOU WANNA ASK ABOUT THAT OTHER PERSON TOO, THEN YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO GIVE THEM WRITTEN NOTICE TO SAY, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT YOU
YOU HAVE TO GIVE THEM WRITTEN NOTICE AS WELL.
SO, SO DOES THAT APPLY TO ANY, ANY QUESTIONS? SO TO GIVE AN EXAMPLE, IF FOR SOME REASON WE WANTED TO ASK ONE OF THE CURRENT MEMBERS OF B R P D, IF THEY HAD ANY INVOLVEMENT WITH SAY, JASON ACRE, THE OFFICER WHO WAS DISMISSED AS A MEMBER OF THE NARCOTICS DIVISION, WOULD WE NEED THAT CONSENT FROM HIM? OR WOULD WE JUST HAVE TO LIMIT OURSELVES AND WHAT WE COULD ASK OR? YEAH, IT'S GONNA DEPEND ON THE QUESTION.
AND YOU MAY KNOW AHEAD OF TIME, YOU MAY NOT KNOW AND YOU MAY KNOW WHAT YOU WANNA ASK.
YOU'RE NOT GONNA KNOW WHAT, WHAT THE OTHER MEMBERS OF OF YOUR COMMITTEE IS GOING TO ASK.
SO YOU WILL HAVE TO, UH, PROBABLY JUST MEASURE AND TEMPER IT AS YOU GO, YOU KNOW, TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE NOT CROSSING THAT LINE.
UM, IT SOUND LIKE, SOUNDS LIKE, UH, WE MAY HAVE TO SUBMIT, PRE-SUBMIT QUESTIONS TO THE PAST ATTORNEYS FOR, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE WITHIN LEGAL PARAMETERS FOR ASKING THESE QUESTIONS.
'CAUSE I'M LIKE THESE YOUNG MAN, YOUNG MAN HERE, YOU KNOW, I, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN AROUND B R P D, I KNOW THAT THE TYPE OF THINGS THAT THEY WOULD DO OR HAVE DONE AND, AND IT MIGHT JUST POP UP IN MY MIND RIGHT WHEN I SIT DOWN AND THE QUESTIONS ARE ASKING.
I'M NOT, I MEAN, WE'RE NOT OPPOSED TO, UM, HAVING THAT DISCUSSION, UM, JUST NOT FOUR OR MORE OF IT AT ONCE.
YOU KNOW, WE, WE CAN TAKE A LOOK AT THE QUESTIONS THAT Y'ALL MIGHT START ASKING, UM, BUT YOU'LL BE HERE FRIDAY, RIGHT? OR SOMEONE FROM THE PARISH ATTORNEY'S OFFICE WILL BE HERE FRIDAY AT FOUR O'CLOCK AS WE BEGIN TO COMPILE THE QUESTIONS TO KIND OF HELP US WORK THROUGH WHAT, WHAT'S APPROPRIATE AND WHAT'S NOT.
RIGHT, BECAUSE NOW I'M TRYING TO THINK IF, YOU KNOW, I, AND I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, LIKE, GIVE IT TO US AHEAD OF TIME, YOU KNOW? RIGHT.
I'M TRYING TO THINK THROUGH WHETHER OR NOT THAT'S THE BEST ROUTE OR IF, IF JUST DISCUSSING IT OUT IN, IN THE OPEN.
I MEAN, I'M, I'M ALWAYS GONNA BE THE PERSON TO SAY, DO IT IN THE, IN THE FORUM THAT IT NEEDS TO BE DONE IN.
WELL, I CAN TELL YOU BASED UPON JUST TOWN HALL MEETINGS WITH CANDIDATES RUNNING FOR OFFICE, YOU KNOW, TO MAKE SURE THE FLOW FLOWS, WE WOULD, WE REQUIRE THOSE QUESTIONS BE SUBMITTED TO US IN ADVANCE MM-HMM.
SO THEREFORE THERE'S NO QUESTIONS.
SO I'M FINE WITH, WITH THAT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MAINTAIN TIMELINESS AND A DATE THAT WE NEED TO GET TO.
AND, AND I THINK THE FIRST THING, UM, FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS ON FRIDAY IS GOING TO BE TO DETERMINE WHO WE'RE GOING TO INTERVIEW OF THE 21 CANDIDATES.
THAT IS GOING TO DRIVE HOW MANY QUESTIONS WE ACTUALLY ASK.
BUT, AND SO MY CLARITY IS THREE O'CLOCK WE REVIEW THE INFORMATION THAT WE MAY RECEIVE, THEN AT FOUR O'CLOCK WE CONVENE TO DISCUSS THAT INFORMATION THAT WE REVIEW IS THAT, WELL FROM 8:00 AM TO THREE O'CLOCK.
I'M HOPING, UH, THE PARISH ATTORNEY'S OFFICE WILL MAKE THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE FOR US TO REVIEW, UH, STARTING THIS EVENING.
AT THE CONCLUSION OF THIS MEETING, WE'LL START RECEIVING QUESTIONS AND, UM, I'M HOPING DANTE WILL MAKE THOSE QUESTIONS AVAILABLE TO US AS WE RECEIVE THEM SO THAT WE CAN BEGIN TO REVIEW THOSE QUESTIONS BETWEEN NOW AND FRIDAY.
AND THEN BY THREE O'CLOCK ON FRIDAY, WE WILL HAVE REVIEW QUESTIONS AND PERHAPS COME TO THE TABLE WITH QUESTIONS WE WANT TO ASK.
AND THEN WE ALL WILL DISCUSS AT FOUR O'CLOCK WHO WE WANT TO INTERVIEW.
AND SO BY THE, AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE MEETING ON FRIDAY, WE WILL HAVE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW, THE QUESTIONS WE'RE GOING TO ASK, AND THEN NOTIFY THOSE INDIVIDUALS OR WHO'S GOING TO BE INTERVIEWED FIRST.
AND IF IT'S NOT EVERYONE, WE MAY INTERVIEW EVERYONE ON MONDAY.
UM, IS IT TOO LATE TO MAYBE CHANGE OUR DEADLINE FOR QUESTIONS FROM THREE O'CLOCK TO NOON ON FRIDAY? BECAUSE THAT WAY, UH, WHOEVER IN THE OFFICE HAS TIME TO COMPILE AND WE HAVE TIME TO GET THEM BY THREE, I THINK AT THREE O'CLOCK FOR US TO MEET AT FOUR O'CLOCK MIGHT BE TIGHT.
IF WE COULD SAY NOON, THAT MIGHT GIVE US A LITTLE MORE TIME.
IS EVERYONE ELSE NOON? I'M FINE WITH NOON.
I'M TALKING TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC NOW.
[01:10:01]
QUESTIONS FOR ANY OF THE CANDIDATES FOR CHIEF OF POLICE OF EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH, CITY OF BATON ROUGE BY NOON FRIDAY TO THE EMAIL BPD CHIEF QUESTIONS@B.GOV.SO PLEASE SEND THOSE QUESTIONS BY NOON ON FRIDAY.
WE DO HAVE A, A MEMBER OF THE, UH, PUBLIC WHO WANTS TO ASK THE QUESTIONS.
I JUST, I COULDN'T, I, YOU, YOU KNOW, I JUST COULDN'T, UM, I COMMEND YOU ON THIS PROCESS.
I DO HAVE CONCERN BECAUSE ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE HEARD THROUGHOUT, UM, ESPECIALLY WITH CHIEF PAUL'S TENURE, IS TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
UM, I THINK, AND I AS AN ATTORNEY, I UNDERSTAND THE CONCERNS OF THE PARISH ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND THE THINGS THAT CAN AND CANNOT BE DISCUSSED PUBLICLY, BUT I AM VERY CONCERNED THAT THESE INTERVIEWS BE THOROUGH AND THAT THE QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ASKED THAT YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO ASK THEM.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S A WAIVER FROM THOSE PEOPLE WHO, UM, WHO WANT TO BE INTERVIEWED BECAUSE THEY NEED TO KNOW THAT THESE INTERVIEWS ARE GONNA BE THOROUGH.
WE TRUST THEM WITH THE LIVES OF THE CITIZENS OF THIS, OF THIS PARISH, OF THIS CITY.
AND I DON'T THINK THAT THERE'S ANY QUESTION IN TERMS OF THEIR HISTORY THAT SHOULD BE OFF LIMITS BECAUSE IT'S ABOUT PUBLIC SAFETY.
UH, ANYONE ELSE, UH, FROM THE COMMITTEE WITH ANY THOUGHTS, QUESTIONS OR COMMENT? YES, SIR.
WE'RE BEING ASKED TO SUBMIT ONE QUESTION EACH, IS THAT CORRECT OR WILL WE SUBMIT AS MANY AS WE WANT IN SOME? AND AND WE'LL SORT THROUGH THAT.
I THINK ON FRIDAY WE'LL MEET AND WE CAN, YOU CAN SUBMIT AS MANY AS YOU LIKE.
AND THEN AS YOU SAID, I THINK THEY'RE GONNA BE SOME DUPLICATIONS OF QUESTIONS AND THEN WE'LL NARROW THEM DOWN BASED ON THE NUMBER OF CANDIDATES WE HAVE AND THE AMOUNT OF TIME WE HAVE.
I MEAN, I, I DON'T THINK WE WANT TO ASK 50 QUESTIONS OF EACH CANDIDATE.
HOWEVER, I DO THINK WE WANT TO ASK THE QUESTIONS WE ALL AGREE ARE MOST DESIRABLE TO BE ASKED OF THE CANDIDATES AND, AND LEARN THE INFORMATION WE WANT TO LEARN FROM EACH CANDIDATE IN TERMS OF HOW THEY BEST PLAN TO SERVE THE CITY.
UH, AND THEN I THINK ALSO AS I'M THINKING, WE GOTTA THINK ABOUT, WE'RE GONNA GIVE EACH CANDIDATE AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE AN OPENING STATEMENT, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
AND THEN I THINK ALSO IF MEMORY SERVES ME, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT AT THE TIME OF THEIR COMMENTS TO ASK THEM QUESTIONS ABOUT ANYTHING THEY MAY HAVE SAID IN THEIR OPENING COMMENTS.
WE ALL, WE ASK THEM ALL THE SAME EXACT QUESTION, BUT BASED ON SOME OF THE COMMENTS THEY MADE IN THEIR OPENING STATEMENT, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO ASK THEM QUESTIONS, FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY.
SO ALL THOSE THINGS WILL COME INTO PLAY.
BUT TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, YES, SUBMIT AS MANY AS YOU WANT AND THEN WE'LL WORK TOGETHER TO NARROW IT DOWN TO THE ONES WE WANT TO ASK BASED ON THE NUMBER OF CANDIDATES WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW.
ALRIGHT, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YES.
MY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FIVE SELECTED.
IS THERE A LONGER INTERVIEW PROCESS FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS ONCE THE COMMITTEE COMES UP WITH THOSE FIVE FOLKS, MAYOR? 'CAUSE WE'RE SENDING THOSE FIVE NAMES TO YOU.
SO THE COMMITTEE WILL GIVE ME FIVE NAMES AND THEN I'LL TAKE IT FROM THERE AND SET UP INDIVI, UH, INTERVIEWS WITH THOSE FIVE PEOPLE.
ALRIGHT, MR. GIBSON, UH, THE MAYOR LAID OUT AN OUTLINE OF SOME ISSUES THAT SHE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THE STATE COMMITTEE UH, COVERS.
IF SHE COULD GIVE US SYNOPSIS OF THAT SO WE MAKE SURE THAT THOSE TYPE OF QUESTIONS ARE INCLUDED, YOU KNOW, IN THE INTERVIEWS.
I CAN CERTAINLY PROVIDE THOSE TO YOU IN WRITING.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, THOUGHTS, IDEAS FOR THE GOOD OR THE ORDER? YES SIR.
SO THIS WOULD DEPEND ON FRIDAY, BUT IS SOMETHING WE MIGHT WANT TO CONSIDER AT THAT POINT FORMING MAYBE LIKE A QUESTIONNAIRE TO SEND TO ALL OF THE CANDIDATES IF THERE ARE CERTAIN QUESTIONS THAT COULD BE ANSWERED WITH A YES NO OR BRIEF EXPLANATION.
MAYBE I'M THINKING TOO MUCH IN LIKE CHARACTER AND FITNESS 'CAUSE WE HAD TO DO THAT AS TWO LS THIS YEAR.
BUT THAT SEEMS TO BE A WAY THAT MIGHT KIND OF STREAMLINE THINGS AND COULD EVEN HELP THE MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE REALIZE, WELL LET'S NOT FOCUS ON THIS.
I'D LIKE THE SUGGESTION AND I THINK, UH, IT'S SOMETHING FOR US TO CONSIDER AS WE MAKE A DECISION ON FRIDAY.
UM, BECAUSE AGAIN, THAT MIGHT NARROW IT DOWN.
WE CAN ASK, WE CAN SEND A QUESTIONNAIRE
[01:15:01]
TO THESE FOLKS, TO THE CANDIDATES AND THEY ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS, YES OR NO.AND THEN WE ACTUALLY ASK THESE QUESTIONS ON THE RECORD AND THEN MAKE PUBLIC THE END THEIR ANSWERS TO THOSE QUESTIONS THAT WE SEND TO THEM.
AND PERHAPS BEFORE INTERVIEWS BEGIN ON MONDAY, WE CAN HAVE THAT INFORMATION BACK TYPED UP AND SAY THE CANDIDATE A ANSWERED QUESTIONS THIS WAY.
AND THEN, AND MAKE THAT AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC SO THEY KNOW HOW THEY RESPONDED TO THOSE CANDIDATE.
I MEAN TO THOSE QUESTIONS, WHICH IN TURN WOULD MEAN THAT THOSE CANDIDATES HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO ASK, ANSWER EVEN MORE QUESTIONS.
YEAH, THEY'RE DOING A GOOD JOB.
WHERE DO YOU GO TO LAW SCHOOL? L S U.
ALRIGHT, ANYONE ELSE? ANYWAY, WELL AT THIS TIME WE'RE GONNA CLOSE OUR COMMITTEE MEETING AND I'LL SEE YOU ALL ON FRIDAY AT FOUR O'CLOCK.
DENNIS, IF YOU'RE LISTENING AND YOU MAKE THAT FRIDAY FOUR O'CLOCK MEETING PUBLIC SO, UH, THE PUBLIC CAN STAY INFORMED ON DECISIONS WE'RE MAKING RELATIVE TO THE SELECTION OF THE NEXT CHIEF POLICE OF BATON ROUGE.
IS THERE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? YES, MR. CHAIRMAN.
ANY OBJECTIONS? HAVING NONE MEETING IS ADJOURNED.