CLEVELAND — The city of Cleveland’s police force has been under a consent decree since 2015, after a Justice Department investigation found CPD engaged in a pattern of excessive force.
What You Need To Know
- The consent decree is a settlement between the city of Cleveland and the Department of Justice
- It requires the CPD to make a number of changes to address the issues, and a federal judge oversees it
- Following the firings of four police officers, the police union president said it’s time for that agreement to end
At a rally outside Cleveland City Hall, activist Alfred Porter Jr., of Cleveland Black on Black Crime Inc., called people together to continue what he believes is progress.
“I wasn’t sure, but now I see a lot of hope coming from that, because I see a lot more citizens able to give input, strong input, be able to speak on what needs to change,” said Porter. “I see more officers listening, but not enough coming from the union head at the top.”
He was talking about the Cleveland consent decree — the agreement is supposed to lead to changes in policies, practices and procedures within the Cleveland Police Department.
The decree was projected to last five years, but many have said there is still work to be done.
While at the mic, Porter expressed anger with those trying to get rid of it.
“Maybe we’ve seen the second coming,” Porter said. “The reason I can say that is because if there’s no consent decree needed, then maybe the police union is letting us know that they’re perfect like Jesus or Yahshua the Messiah.”
Earlier in 2021, four Cleveland officers were fired and one suspended by Cleveland Safety Director Karrie Howard. The Cleveland Police Patrolman’s Association criticizes Howard’s handling of police discipline, and called him a “puppet” for the Justice Department.
“I’ve looked at the facts, and a lot of these officers could have been saved, they would have had a great career, but they made a one-time mistake,” said Union President Jeff Follmer. “And I get that the DUI was a second time, but you know what, we’ve had other officers that had two DUIs, they went on to have great careers.”
Follmer said he wants the consent decree and the safety director gone. Letters of termination obtained by Spectrum News detail the allegations against the officers who lost their jobs.
One was accused of not properly investigating a domestic violence case, that same officer had a second drunk driving conviction. Another officer was accused of using a recording device in a locker room, and another of not giving medical care to a woman who had swallowed a large number of pills.
Follmer believes some of these punishments are political and unreasonable.
“We’re all about if you do something a second time, a lengthy suspension,” he said. “There’s also things we’ve done back in the day, but the city won’t negotiate with us, like a last chance agreement. And a last chance agreement says ‘hey, if you do this a one more time within a three to five year period, you’re fired no ifs ands or buts.”
Follmer also said that right now, with rising crime numbers, it’s hard under the consent decree and current safety director for officers to get the job done to keep Cleveland safe.
“Officer morale, officers afraid to do their jobs, we need to take a harder stance as the city of Cleveland to put away the bad guys and stop this crime,” Follmer said. “We’re also lacking personnel, I mean, we’re down 130 people, it’s going to be hard to be covering shifts going on throughout the rest of the summer.”
But Porter believes the consent decree and the safety director need more time to make changes he supports.
“That’s the pot calling the kettle black and everything because as of right now, he has not, Jeff Follmer has not done anything to show that he is willing to reign in the police department, willing to hold officers who do something wrong accountable and until that happens, it’s still a major problem,” said Porter.
