Greenville City Council has unanimously passed a resolution to establish a Citizens Advisory Panel on Public Safety.
The nine-member advisory panel will serve as an ad hoc committee and will include the current chair and vice-chair of the City’s Public Safety Citizen Review Board. The Mayor and City Council members will each appoint a member and the mayor will select one member to serve as the advisory panel chair.
The purpose of the Citizens Advisory Panel on Public Safety is to improve communication flow between the Greenville Police Department (GPD) and the community, identify and collaborate on public safety issues, develop a dialogue about Greenville, specifically around policing, and recognize the evolving relationship between law enforcement and the community. City Council has tasked the advisory panel with the following:
- Reviewing current GPD policies, including the use of force policy, body-worn camera policies, K-9 policies and training policies, including de-escalation tactics
- Reviewing GPD minority hiring practices and developing recommendations for improvement
- Reviewing the composition, duties and responsibilities of the Public Safety Citizen Review Board
City Council will appoint the members of the Citizens Advisory Panel on Public Safety within 30 days.
The goal is for the advisory panel to complete its work within 60 days of its first meeting and to present recommendations to City Council. All meetings will comply with the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act, including open meeting requirements.
The City established the Public Safety Citizen Review Board, which consists of seven members appointed by City Council, in 2005. The review board addresses grievances of uniformed employees in the Greenville City Fire Department and Greenville Police Department, hears concerns of members of the public about the conduct of City firefighters and police officers and makes recommendations to City Council and the City Manager regarding practices and procedures in effect at the respective departments.
Visit the City of Greenville website for additional information.
Prepared by the City of Greenville.