Cleveland Consent Decree Public Meeting on Youth and Policing

By Rich Weiss, for Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland

The Neighborhood and Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland is providing monthly reports on a series of community conversations about the 2015 Consent Decree negotiated between the US Department of Justice and the City of Cleveland regarding the policies and practices of the Cleveland Police Department.

“This question comes from a fellow student here at Tri-C. He asks in what ways can the policies instated by the Consent Decree be proactive rather than just reactive?”

“Based on research, it was discovered that police officers may hold unconscious biases against minority youth and make assumptions about them based on their age, their race, their dress style, appearance, and other parameters—sometimes Black folks look older than their age. My question is how do we practically reconcile this unhealthy sentiment while ensuring it’s a saner, a safer, and a happy society?”

“Do you believe the Cleveland Consent Decree has prepared police officers to carry out their tasks safely and effectively in such a unique time?”

“What things specifically are being done to have officers engaging and becoming more relatable to the community?”

“Can you file a complaint with the department if they feel like they’re they have an encounter with the officer that was inappropriate?”

“How do Cleveland Police Officers feel about what has been happening, for example last year, and then the overall police brutality, and what steps are you taking to make sure that these things do not happen in the city of Cleveland?”

These were among the questions asked by three Scholars of Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Scholars Academy during the last conversation held online seeking public input on Cleveland’s Consent Decree. The October meeting focused on “Youth and Policing.”

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Cleveland Consent Decree Public Meeting on Community Involvement

By Rich Weiss, for Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland

The Neighborhood and Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland (NCMA-CLE) is providing monthly reports on a series of community conversations about the 2015 Consent Decree negotiated between the US Department of Justice and the City of Cleveland regarding the policies and practices of the Cleveland Police Department.

“On a scale of 1 to 10, what percentage of the Consent Decree [is] considered to be completed? 10 percent, 30 percent, 70 percent?”

“Do you think the Community Police Commission (CPC) should play a more significant role with enforcement power? And are there any down sides to shifting disciplinary enforcement power from the Chief of Police?”

“Why should Clevelanders believe that the CPD can police itself and its behavior without significant oversight from citizens, since we’ve had two federal probes and we still are underneath a Consent Decree beyond its five-year deadline?”

These were among the questions being asked and answered during the monthly conversations held online about the workings of Cleveland’s Consent Decree. The September meeting focused on the “Cleveland Police Commission and Citizen Involvement.”

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United Way Greater Cleveland VIRTUAL Annual Community Meeting & Film Premiere: Friday, 9/10 at 4:00 PM

Where do you want to see a change?

This year, at our Annual Community Meeting, we will invite all Clevelanders to have a voice in informing our funding efforts.

This event is complimentary and open to the public.

There is still time to register for this event. Please RSVP to reserve your virtual seat.

RSVP

FirstEnergy’s admissions feed critics’ call for big-picture regulatory oversight and review

The company’s revelations about Ohio’s largest corruption case raise questions about the integrity of the regulatory process and its piecemeal approach to reviewing utility spending.

By Kathiann M. Kowalski

This story is from the Energy News Network in collaboration with Eye on Ohio, the nonprofit, nonpartisan Ohio Center for Journalism. Please join Eye on Ohio’s  free mailing list or the mailing list for the Energy News Network as this helps Neighborhood Media Foundation provide more public service reporting.

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio should conduct a big-picture, in-depth review of FirstEnergy’s spending and governance in light of the company’s admissions last month about former PUCO Chair Sam Randazzo, critics say.

“It’s not a debate anymore whether the company engaged in corruption,” said Howard Learner, executive director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “The company did so. With this pervasive corruption, the PUCO needs to mind the store in order to protect the public interest and to protect consumers.”

On July 22, FirstEnergy admitted it used nonprofit entities “to conceal payments for the benefit of public officials and in return for official action.” A federal court filing on the same day details multiple interactions with and payments to former House Speaker Larry Householder, who faces criminal charges for an alleged $60 million conspiracy to pass and defend House Bill 6. That nuclear and coal bailout law gutted Ohio’s clean energy standards.

The federal court filing also details FirstEnergy’s dealings with Randazzo. The former PUCO chair helped shape HB 6, and his companies received approximately $22 million from FirstEnergy entities from 2010 through 2019. According to the filing, FirstEnergy increased those payments in 2015 in exchange for Randazzo having his longstanding client, Industrial Energy Users-Ohio, drop opposition to an earlier nuclear and coal bailout plan.

FirstEnergy paid the last $4.3 million shortly before Randazzo became PUCO chair in 2019. “In return, [Randazzo] would perform official action in his capacity as PUCO Chairman to further FirstEnergy Corp.’s interests,” the filing said. That included work on HB 6 and “other specific FirstEnergy Corp. legislative and regulatory priorities, as requested and as opportunities arose.”

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Community meeting on consent decree to focus on CDP search and seizure practices

By Rich Weiss, Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland

The Cleveland Consent Decree mandates that the City of Cleveland Division of Police conduct all investigatory stops, searches, and arrests fairly and respectfully as part of an effective overall crime prevention strategy that considers community values.

How well they are discharging that mandate is the subject of the next community conversation in the series of discussions jointly sponsored by United Way of Greater Cleveland and the Cleveland NAACP.

The next meeting in the series is this Wednesday, August 11 at 6:00 p. The theme will be Search and Seizure. The public is invited and encouraged to attend these sessions to help in the monitoring process.

To attend, ask questions or voice your concerns, register for any of the four remaining Consent Decree public meetings by visiting unitedwaycleveland.org.

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52 men refuse to leave Ramada Inn in fear of risking their lives in congregate shelter during pandemic

Crowne Plaza/Ramada by Wyndham Cleveland Independence, located at 5300 Rockside Rd, Independence, OH 44131

By Molly Martin

Cleveland, OH—On the morning of July 14th, the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH) learned that several men experiencing homelessness were planning to refuse to leave the Ramada Inn on Thursday, July 15, the date that Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry is scheduled to cease emergency shelter operations at the hotel. Currently, 103 men experiencing homelessness are residing at the hotel to escape the danger that covid-19 and variants pose to public health.

NEOCH stands in solidarity with the men who are refusing to leave, especially after Independence’s racist and discriminatory actions to remove the men from the hotel. As of 9pm Wednesday, 52 of the 103 men currently seeking emergency housing at the Ramada Inn are refusing to depart because they feel unsafe and they are calling on the County to reverse course. 

Despite the support of the owner of the Ramada Inn, over 2 months ago Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry was asked by Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish to end their contract with the hotel after speaking with Independence Mayor Gregory Kurtz. According to the hotel’s owner Sharif Omara, “We have supported LMM and these men for months and we cannot let them leave this way. They have the right, as humans, to have a safe and comfortable place to stay. It is dangerous and inhumane to throw everyone into 2100 Lakeside Ave. We believe this will definitely increase COVID-19 amongst the homeless population as most of them have yet to be fully vaccinated.”

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Family members who lost loved ones to police action speak at community meeting on Consent Decree

NEXT CLEVELAND CONSENT DECREE COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS 6:00 PM JULY 14 & AUGUST 11

By Rich Weiss, for Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland

The Neighborhood and Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland is providing monthly reports on a series of community conversations about the 2015 Consent Decree negotiated between the US Department of Justice and the City of Cleveland regarding the policies and practices of the Cleveland Police Department.

Four local community members who lost loved ones to Cleveland Police Department (CPD) use-of-force were the Zoom panelists for the June public input meeting on the Cleveland Consent Decree.  United Way of Greater Cleveland and the Cleveland Branch of the NAACP co-sponsored this and five previous public conversations on the Consent Decree and its ramifications for our Cleveland communities.

Background: The Cleveland Consent Decree is a court-enforceable agreement that resulted from an investigation into the CPD by the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division (DOJ).  The DOJ is the agency of the federal government that has the authority to investigate and prosecute alleged violations of citizens’ constitutional rights by the CPD.

After a 21-month investigation, the DOJ found the CPD had engaged in a pattern of excessive force.  The Cleveland Consent Decree was agreed upon by the City of Cleveland and the DOJ to “…repair community trust and protect the constitutional rights of the people of the City of Cleveland.”  The Consent Decree was signed into effect by Judge Solomon Oliver, Jr. and the DOJ on June 12, 2015.  The agreement mandates “…the City will file a status report every six months thereafter while this agreement is in effect.”

The agreement also calls on “the community” of Cleveland to be a part of the reform process by serving on various Consent Decree committees and/or by attending local community meetings such as this to share concerns and real-life experiences from the community, and for the community to make recommendations for policy change. 

Photo of Angelo Miller and son courtesy of Alicia Kirkman

Alicia Kirkman was asked to be a panelist at the June public meeting on the Cleveland Consent Decree because her son, Angelo Miller, died in 2007 in an incident involving CPD use-of-force. 

Kirkman told the Zoom attendees, “Angelo was my everything.  Angelo was 17 years old, and I was still dropping Angelo off at high school and Angelo would still give me a kiss like he was still my 5 year old.  Still that loving, funny Angelo, he brought joy to all of us, to my whole family.  And he had two sons—Angelo was a father and his two sons didn’t get a chance to know their father.  I continue to fight for justice.  I want murder charges against the officer that killed Angelo.  We need charges.  The whole thing—when it comes to settlements and the families being paid—we need cops to be charged with murder.  If we get more charged with murder, they’ll stop killing.  They’ll stop killing.”

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Community members needed to join fifth Cleveland Consent Decree Community Conversation sponsored by NAACP- Cleveland Chapter and United Way of Greater Cleveland: 6:00 pm, May 12

By Rich Weiss, for Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland

If you missed your chance to attend the April 15th public input meeting on the Cleveland Police Consent Decree, your input is still needed for the upcoming Consent Decree Community Conversation at 6:00 pm on May 12 (on Zoom).  This public meeting (co-sponsored by the local chapters of the United Way and NAACP) seeks your opinions and questions on progress of the Cleveland Division of Police in the areas of Crisis Intervention and Officer Wellness.

According to Roger Smith, Administrator of Cleveland’s Office of Professional Standards, “It’s really what the grassroots wants that should be driving this train.  It’s important for public figures and people who work in public agencies to understand with clarity what it is the community wants, here—what role they want the police to play in their communities and what kind of rules do they want to govern those interactions.  The only way to find that out is to get it from the community.”

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FirstEnergy’s transparency pledge clashes with ongoing actions

The company’s broad view of its ongoing investigation for purposes of limiting public disclosures seems at odds with its narrow view and piecemeal approach to regulatory proceedings.

By Kathiann M. Kowalski

This article provided by Eye on Ohio, the nonprofit, nonpartisan Ohio Center for Journalism in partnership with the nonprofit Energy News Network. Please join their free mailing list or the mailing list for the Energy New Network as this helps us provide more public service reporting.

Complete disclosures are still not forthcoming from FirstEnergy, Energy Harbor and others who may have played roles in an alleged conspiracy that funneled millions of dollars to former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder in order to elect lawmakers sympathetic to House Bill 6, pass the law and then prevent voters from having a chance to reject the law in a statewide referendum.

FirstEnergy President and CEO Steven Strah said at the company’s Feb. 18 earnings call that the company is now “deeply committed to creating a culture in which … our leaders prioritize and encourage open and transparent communications with all of our stakeholders.” Strah became acting CEO last October and was formally appointed to the position on March 8, replacing Chuck Jones, who was fired for violating “certain FirstEnergy policies and its code of conduct.”

Yet there continues to be a clash between that stated commitment and what the company has actually disclosed. In particular, the company still has not provided full details about its various contributions to dark money groups that funneled money to the Republican Governors Association, Generation Now, campaigns for Gov. Mike DeWine and his daughter, and others.

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