The whole nation followed events in Ferguson, Missouri, and Staten Island, New York, this year, where grand juries refused to indict white police officers in the shooting deaths of unarmed black men. With that, it is welcome news to see that state leaders are working to prevent such incidents from happening in Colorado.
That effort began Monday with a roundtable discussion in Denver between community leaders, lawmakers and statewide law-enforcement officials. The talk was the start to a process that will continue with a task force, possible involvement of the governor based on input he receives and perhaps new laws.
Above all, though, it will require open communication and an honest attempt by all concerned to understand and respect each other’s point of view. It seems Monday’s session may have been on that path.
Legislators are already looking at several proposals for bills in the upcoming session of the General Assembly. There, too, however, while state laws certainly have a necessary role to play, real answers cannot be found in the state house, and solutions cannot be imposed top-down.
Still, some of those proposals could help. The hope is that the roundtable and subsequent talks could point to what steps might be the most helpful.
Some participants Monday accused police chiefs, sheriffs and district attorneys of fostering a culture of bias. Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia, who will report back to Gov. John Hickenlooper, said he worries that law enforcement “demonizes young men of color.”
State Rep. Joe Salazar, D-Thornton, recounted tales of traffic stops in which all the occupants of the vehicle were asked to get out and lift up their shirts, so police could check for and photograph gang-related tattoos. He speculated that if any refused they would be arrested “because they didn’t comply with an unlawful order.”
For their part, law enforcement officials expressed concern about any measures stemming from political ambitions. Capt. Frank Gale, national second vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said, “We cannot believe that the reason you’re doing it was for somebody’s political agenda.”
Fair enough. There are legitimate concerns all around. And all involved should be heard. At some point, there might even be consensus. An informal poll at the roundtable indicated there is support among law enforcement officers for increased use of body cameras and racial-bias training. Those could be a start.
By helping to nail down the facts of the situations, body cameras could help protect police officers from unwarranted charges and the public from excessive force on the part of cops. Last week, for example, a white police officer in another Missouri town shot and killed a young African-American man. But, while there were some protests, the reaction was nothing like that in Ferguson because there was no question that the man had pulled a gun on the cop.
Other steps being discussed include requiring all interviews to be taped, limit or end the use of chokeholds, expand the state’s racial-profiling law and remove district attorneys from cases where the police they work so closely with are accused of wrongdoing. Prosecutors reportedly see no need for that last idea, but it might be a good idea nonetheless. Justice must not only be done, but also be seen to be done.
In the end, Denver Police Chief Robert White succinctly said what needs to happen:
“The community has to become the police, and the police have to become the community,” he said.
Talking will not accomplish that in itself. But it is not a bad start.
