The closed-off structure that houses this city’s police department is symbolic of the agency’s relationship with the community it protects and serves. Several years ago, an officer-involved shooting resulted in the death of an African-American man.
Limited video evidence and information regarding the incident fanned the long-simmering mistrust of the police within the community. Many months after the incident, the county prosecutor deemed the shooting to be lawful — further fraying the fragile threads of this police-community relationship.
In response, the City government established a plan to ramp up the department's commitment to community-oriented policing — but the attempt at reform made few meaningful inroads with actual community members. Continue reading here.