Our city is going through a difficult time as we struggle to deal with the aftermath of the Jazmir Tucker shooting by Akron Police on Thanksgiving Night. I’ve seen the Officer’s bodycam footage numerous times, but I’m not an expert (or even close to one) and cannot tell exactly what happened, other than Jazmir was shot.
I fully support our safety forces and am thankful for all of our police officers who put on their uniforms every day to keep Akron residents safe. I want them to be safe as well, and want to make certain that we on City Council are providing them the training and tools they need. On Monday, legislation was brought in to council by the Mayor, Council President Sommerville and Ward 4 Councilwoman Davis to contract for a comprehensive review of the Akron Police Department’s use of force policy. The law firm of Paul, Weiss and consultant 21CP Solutions have worked with police departments in Baltimore, Cleveland, California, Vermont Minnesota and the Department of Justice. This will be 6 month deep dive, which will include public forums, engagement with APD, Fraternal Order of Police and community leaders. I believe it’s a strong step to discover what we’re doing right, and what we can do better to protect citizens and our police officers. I applaud the administration’s actions for positive change , will be supporting this initiative and I look forward to implementing the results to make our city safe.
