Police were called to assist an 8-year-old boy with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Cleveland in December 2020. When the child struggled against officers, one threatened to strap the child down and added, “You ain’t no big man” (CLEVELAND DIVISION OF POLICE).
An ambulance was already outside the East Side Cleveland home, its lights flashing, when the police officer arrived one evening in December 2020. According to body camera footage from the incident, the aunt of an 8-year-old with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder said the boy was “acting crazy.” At one point, she said he had climbed out a window onto the house’s roof.
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.”
By Rich Weiss, for Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland
If you missed your chance to attend the May 12th public input meeting on the Cleveland Police Consent Decree, your input is still needed for the upcoming Consent Decree Community Conversation at6:00 pm on June 9 (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 Families and Communities Building Resilience.
Rosie Palfy, who is a a community advocate, a homeless advocate, a veterans advocate, and a member of the city of Cleveland Mental Health Response Advisory Committee since it was created in 2015, said, “I think that the event was really well received…and I’ve got nothing but positive feedback from the community. Strangers have reached out to me on social media, and it’s a small world out there. So somebody knows somebody, who knows me and they send me an email, and so I’m really glad I participated in it and I actually felt empowered afterwards. I was very pleasantly surprised at how it went.”
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 at6:00 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.”
By Rich Weiss for Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland
Have you ever wondered: “How is the dedication to community engagement reflected in the Cleveland Police Department’s current budget?”
Do you have a handle on: “What is the CPRB (Civilian Police Review Board) and what is its function?”
In the moment—when you or a loved one comes face-to-face with Cleveland Police Department policies—will you know: “Are body cameras used by all officers, and what is the protocol for turning body cameras on and off?”
This story is provided by ideastream as part of special community coverage of COVID-19 and funded by Third Federal Foundation and University Settlement.
By Rachel Dissell
CLEVELAND, Ohio — State shutdown orders meant to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus have created a double-whammy of lead poisoning risk for young children in Cleveland.
Many of these children are spending more time in homes with potential lead hazards, and fewer are getting tested to see if they’ve been exposed to the toxin.
In accordance with Mayor Frank G. Jackson’s recent Proclamation of Civil Emergency, the City of Cleveland continues to take numerous precautions across multiple departments and divisions amid increasing cases of coronavirus (COVID-19). Click here to view the mayor’s declaration. The City continues to work in partnership with local safety agencies, county public…
The City of Cleveland and the Cleveland Department of Public Health (CDPH) have been notified of a confirmed test result for coronavirus (COVID-19) in a resident of the city. This is the first confirmed result for Cleveland. The confirmed individual is a male, between ages 30-40 who recently returned from…
