Portland inches closer to establishing its new police oversight board

It’s been more than four years since

Portland

voters

overwhelmingly approved

the creation of a new police oversight board, and the Portland City Council is finally

poised to appoint its members

Wednesday night.

But not without, once again, publicly airing their sharp differences in opinion on policing in the city.

Some of the names on the list of 21 volunteers and six alternates who are expected to serve will be familiar to Portlanders. That includes Karly Edwards, the former chief of staff to Commissioner

Jo Ann Hardesty

, who championed the initiative, and

Terrence Hayes

, a former City Council candidate who has been outspoken in favor of police.

It was the inclusion of Hayes that sparked a City Council debate about who is best equipped to serve on the new board. Dubbed the

Community Board for Police Accountability

, it will replace the city’s Independent Police Review and its Citizen Review Committee.

During a council work session, some councilors debated whether it was appropriate to appoint members who have openly espoused pro-police viewpoints. By design, the board is expected to be independent. Law enforcement members and their immediate family members are barred from serving, for example. So are people with a demonstrated bias for or against law enforcement.

“I will not be moving anyone forward that has a very obvious public record that would jeopardize how others view the people that we selected,” Councilor Candace Avalos said, alluding to Hayes.

Councilor Loretta Smith defended Hayes. “I think we need his voice,” she said. “I think we need his diversity, and I think we need his understanding of police particularly from his standpoint as a father, as a Black man and someone who was incarcerated.”

Hayes once chaired the community committee that monitors the work of a Portland police unit combating gun violence. Also, police shot and killed his

17-year-old cousin Quanice Hayes

in 2017, and he has said his early skepticism of police motivated him to help improve community relationships with law enforcement.

Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney said she believes it’s important to have perspectives from people who have had negative experiences with police — and those who have had more positive interactions. That’s why she would support Hayes, she said.

Councilor Eric Zimmerman then pointed to Edwards and noted that councilors were not raising concerns about her past work to promote police accountability.

“We’ve got folks on both sides and let’s be honest about it,” Zimmerman said.

City councilors will have to determine whether the members they appoint will serve one-, two- or three-year terms. And some raised concerns about giving longer terms to those who have run for office and could run again.

Others under consideration include Bob Weinstein, a former City Council candidate; Charlie Michelle-Westley and Tim Pitts, who were both members of the Police Accountability Commission that solicited public feedback to create the new system; and Corinne Frechette, who was formerly the co-chair of a police advisory committee.

About 120 people applied to serve on the board, which will investigate police shootings, deaths in police custody and complaints of force that result in injury. It will also have the power to recommend and issue discipline to officers, something previously reserved for the mayor and the police chief.

The mayor, however, will control any investigations and discipline involving the police chief.

—

Zaeem Shaikh covers the Portland Police Bureau and criminal justice issues for The Oregonian/OregonLive. Reach him at 503-221-4323,


zshaikh@oregonian.com


or on X


@zaeemshake

.

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