Akron City Council has to authorize the review because it will cost more than $50,000 to implement.
AKRON, Ohio — Akron City Council will have the opportunity on Monday to approve an external audit of the Akron Police Department’s use of force policies and practices, with legislation presented by Mayor Shammas Malik, council president Margo Sommerville and Ward 4 representative Jan Davis.
“It’s one step,” Mayor Malik told 3News in a one-on-interview on Saturday. “But my hope is that it’s something that can lead to meaningful change. We need to be clear eyed about our challenges. We need to confront them directly and openly and honestly and not shy away from them. “
NAACP Akron branch President Judi Hill shared with 3News her message for city leaders, when it comes to addressing fatalities caused by police use of force:
“We no longer will allow for smoke and mirrors because our city is at stake. It’s really that simple.”
Malik’s, Sommerville’s and Davis’s proposed review was announced on Friday, the same day 15-year-old Jazmir Tucker was laid to rest after he was shot and killed by Akron police on thanksgiving night.
“These are not theoretical issues, these are not conceptual or policy issues,” Malik said. “These are involving people’s lives and often are issues of life and death. And my heart and my condolences go out to the Tucker family.
“It’s heavy to read about, or it’s heavy to hear about or it’s heavy to speak with people, but it’s most heavy for the people who are bearing the burden of grief and tragedy and so my heart goes out to them.”
Hill told 3News: “It is more than just one shooting… two… three. The city is losing money.”
Hill is referring to several lawsuits the city of Akron has recently settled related to police use of deadly force, including the nearly $5 million settlement reached in October with the family of Jayland Walker, who was unarmed when he was shot 46 times and killed by police in 2022.
“Would you rather try to fix this issue, or continue down the path that we’re going and continue to lose with these lawsuits?” Hill asked, rhetorically.
If authorized, Mayor Malik says the review could get underway within weeks, and could be complete within five to six months from its start date.
It would be led by former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, alongside the Paul, Weiss law firm and a policing consulting organization called 21 CP Solutions.
Akron police chief Brian Harding says he looks forward to working with the team.
Akron Fraternal Order of Police President Brian Lucey said:
“As a union, we’re open to this policy review and the opportunity to engage with the consultant teams and the community.”
Hill is hopeful the review is authorized, for what it could do in Northeast Ohio and beyond.
“If we do this right, we could be a model for other cities,” she said. “If we learn to police ourselves and help our own, i think we could help other cites move forward as well.”
It’s up to city council to authorize this external audit of Akron’s police use of force policy because it would cost more than $50,000. That vote is expected on Monday, at the last council meeting of the year.
