Milwaukee and the nation are still divided now that District Attorney John Chisholm has decided not to issue criminal charges against Milwaukee police officer Christopher Manney, a white officer who shot and killed an African-American man, Dontre Hamilton, on April 30, 2014 in Red Arrow Park.  

The Department fired Manney because he created a deadly situation by approaching and trying to frisk Hamilton from behind – even though Hamilton was causing no disturbance, had already been contacted without incident, by other officers on two occasions earlier in the day, and had been identified by Manney himself as being an emotionally disturbed person.

The Hamilton killing, along with other incidents of excessive force by police officers in Milwaukee, other Wisconsin communities, and across the country, including in Ferguson and New York City, expose the distrust between communities of color and law enforcement, and the belief that communities of color receive second-class police service while white communities are seldom subjected to racial profiling or excessive police force.    

We need to strive for what all people of Milwaukee deserve -- a just, fair, and open society, where everyone’s rights are respected, and people of color feel protected by the police—not unfairly targeted and alienated.  It is in everyone’s interest to improve police/community relations.  

To this point, Mayor Barrett and Police Chief Flynn, for the most part, have kept inflammatory rhetoric to a minimum and have allowed demonstrations to proceed, albeit alongside a serious police presence.  But beyond showing respect, there are concrete actions that city leaders, the police chief, and the Fire and Police Commission must take, now that Manney is not criminally charged.

 

  1. It is time to end stop-and-frisk practices that are discriminatory and conducted in the absence of individualized suspicion. . In Milwaukee, policing strategy is patrol-based and relies on huge numbers of stops every year, particularly in predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods. These stops severely undermine confidence in the police among people of color who feel unfairly targeted by such tactics.    Action steps: The City and the Fire & Police Commission need new policies that prohibit such stop and frisk practices.  The MPD should actively enforce its existing policy of requiring officers to have reasonable suspicion before seeking consent to search an individual, and must collect and regularly release racial and other demographic data on traffic and pedestrian stops, frisks, and searches to help identify patterns and practices of racial profiling and unconstitutional conduct.
     
  2. The Mayor, the Chief and the FPC need to make it clear that they are committed to unbiased professional policing in all neighborhoods and for all people.   The rights of unionized employees need to be respected, but to the extent that there are elements among the sworn members of the force that are corrupt, biased, or incompetent, the department needs to remove them.   Action Steps:  The MPD needs a comprehensive and effective early warning system to help police managers identify officers who may be biased or cannot comply with the code of conduct, training, and policies.   The FPC, Common Council, and the public needs to know that such an early warning system is in place and working.
     
  3. The Mayor and the Common Council need to exercise their oversight of the MPD in a way that insists on transparency and accountability while respecting the chain of command.  They need to strengthen the Fire and Police Commission so that it has the personnel and resources needed to effectively oversee the Department and investigate and prosecute citizen complaints.  Action steps: The FPC needs an Executive Director who will champion the Commission’s independent oversight and auditing function, while working well with the chiefs.  Before the Public Safety Committee approves any nominee for the position, it must hold a public hearing to allow constituents to offer their perspective on the FPC and how it can increase its credibility among communities of color.
     
  4. The Mayor, Common Council, FPC and Department need to evaluate the MPD’s community-oriented policing programs in light of the huge number of civilian stops made every year in predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods.  A patrolling strategy that deeply stigmatizes Black and Latino residents by targeting them for stops that may not be supported by reasonable suspicion of criminal activity negates much of the good that happens because of such programs.    Action: The City needs to expand the evaluation of community-oriented policing programs, such as those funded by Byrne Justice Assistance grants, to assess the impact of high-visibility patrolling.  Residents should not have to settle for second-class police service.

 

City leaders need to act now.