By: Anonymous Contributor
The purpose of this article is to explore what a Civilian Oversight Board would look like for the Hathian Police Department (‘HPD’).
In a city like Hathian, where corners are routinely cut and force and violence are endemic, the idea of a Civilian Oversight Board might be met with scepticism from some while others might view it as an opportunity to bring justice to the city.
What is a Civilian Oversight Board?
Civilian oversight is a way for civilians to be involved in overseeing government. Civilian oversight demands transparency in government agencies by opening them up to scrutiny and accountability in areas such as financial records, performance measures, open and free access to most records and effective reporting and monitoring.
A third-party neutral body that was made up of civilians, legal experts or lawyers and other notable professions could be the way forward out of the quagmire of corruption and scandals that permeate the HPD, famed throughout the city for its brutality and dirty dealings.
When and if such an Oversight Board is applied to the police department, it would mean civilians would be empowered in several ways, depending on which model the theoretical Oversight Board would be based on.
Different Models – All Might Be Worth An Attempt
An Investigation-Focused Model would investigate reports of police injustice and misconduct in their jurisdiction. Impartial, nonbiased ideally, the board would be able to explore accusations of brutality and mistreatment by police while being a neutral third party. The types of people running these investigations would have to be well-versed in law and legal affairs and police matters. If carried out well, this would slowly build up a trust in police when things become transparent with a sense of order and working justice in place. Civilians could see what is being acted out and why and on whose behalf. This type of set up is purportedly expensive [training people in legal affairs or using professional legal experts.]
A Review Based Model would see an agency take in community complaints. Staffed by full-time investigators who would be the middle people between the police and the community while investigating complaints. With this model, the investigators would be a second pair of eyes examining internal investigations of the police department, with community input. This would be volunteer run and costs are minimal.
Finally, an Auditor/Monitor Focused Model would look at: the internal complaint investigations process, and conduct evaluations of police training and codes of conduct. It would look at ensuring effective public reporting. More information about police conduct and training would come about as a result of this type of model and reforms demanded by the public would be more well-informed The positions in this board would be held by paid individuals ideally be from the community. A drawback with this type of model is that the agency can only recommend reform measures, not implement them. Another drawback is who decides who is allowed a position?
Benefits & Next Steps
Altogether, the benefits of any of these types of civilian oversight isn’t hard to figure out. Civilians would be able to direct their complaints to a third-party body and increase transparency as well as communicate with police who would have to open up their department and internal affairs to that third-party body, including allowing them look at their financial records, their policies, conduct, training and managing of such things.
If the citizens of Hathian are truly vested in such an oversight board, a movement to petition for it should be made. Peaceful protests and letters to the council and mayor should promote the idea. Legal experts, lawyers and judges and even a select few former police with proven clean records could come forward to offer up their time and resources.
With all that has taken place in the city between civilians and police, it is beyond belief that this has not been taken up. But corruption has always been hard to scrub out from a city, let alone a police department… Can Hathianites rise to the challenge and establish something that might challenge the status quo?
The views in this article do not necessarily reflect that of the Observer or the Editorial Board.
