By Fletcher Word
The Truth Editor
The Toledo Buffalo Soldiers hosted a community conversation on Wednesday, September 23, in order engage Toledo citizens with representatives of the Toledo Police Department. The event was designed to “foster positive relationships and feedback, while promoting police/community understanding and safety across our neighborhoods,” according to the information provided by the Buffalo Soldiers prior to the event.
The evening discussion was moderated by State Sen. Paula Hicks-Hudson, a Toledo Buffalo Soldier herself, and consisted of a panel including: Police Chief Mike Troendle; Darlene Sweeney-Newbern, president of the Toledo NAACP; Judge Ian English; Toledo City Councilman John Hobbs, III; Rev. John Jones, president and CEO of HOPE Toledo; Lt. Kelli Russell of the Toledo Police Department
“We are in partnership together,” said Hicks-Hudson as she opened the discussion about police/community relations. “This is one step to get to that partnership.”
The impetus for the community conversation, noted Hicks-Hudson, was the encounter that police officers had earlier this year with a group of teenagers which went viral.
The video of that May 20 stop of a group of teenagers on Sylvan Avenue while they were walking outside of a crosswalk revealed two police officers insulting the youngsters, particularly about the neighborhood in which they live and the impact of poverty on their behavior.
One of the officers was eventually suspended, the other reprimanded.
The panelists first had the opportunity to briefly explain why they were participating in the discussion.
“To try to improve our relations” with the community, said Chief Troendle, and to get “a little understanding from the police department and a little understanding from the community about why we do things.”
Sweeney-Newbern said she was present to serve as “a voice for the people … we want to see how we can collaborate with the officers to see how we can achieve equality.”
Judge English was in attendance “to listen and learn and get an idea of the issues from everyone.”
Councilman Hobbs noted that he was representing other members of council to “see how can we be of further assistance to the community and the police department and be a part of building trust between the two.”
Rev. Jones said he wanted “one, to listen; two, to learn and three, to shed light and insight so we canal walk out of here with one step forward not two steps backwards.
After the panel members were introduced and briefly explained their concerns, Jennifer Pledger, the mother of one of the teenagers who had the encounter with police officers in May spoke about her concerns.
“Nothing about that interaction should have happened,” said Pledger. Nothing was given to the children except disrespect and raving, for nothing more than living in that area.”
“What is the baseline for police intervention when there is no probable cause,” asked Hicks-Hudson of Chief Troendle in reference to such incidents.
“They should always come from a position of respect,” he replied. The chief explained that officers have standards and undergo training to deal with community interactions. He also said that this particular incident is a topic which will be addressed in upcoming training sessions.
“Officers are human beings,” he added, “but there is no room for this behavior … there is not another police officer in this department who thought that this was okay.”
The reaction from other panelists ranged from a continued indignity over the incident to personal reflections about uneasy interactions with law enforcement officials.
“People should be treated with respect and dignity,” said Sweeney-Newbern. “We the people should be speaking out always.”
Judge English spoke about how he is working with other judges to ensure that Judges’ behavior in courtrooms reflects respect to all parties, even the accused.
“in my experience my interactions with police officers have been polite and responsive,” he said.
Hobbs reflected on the conversations he and his fellow council members have had with Chief Troendle about such incidents. “It’s a tough place when you are a Black male,” said Hobbs. But he also noted that he is not for such extreme solutions as defunding the police.
For Rev. Jones ‘respect’ is the key. “Respect is a two-way street, if I want respect, I have to give respect. Wearing a badge cannot overlook actions if they are disrespectful … out community takes steps forward by showing respect.”
The forum was opened up to audience questions and several attendees spoke of their experiences with police officers, local or otherwise. The reaction from Chief Troendle was frequently an explanation of both the way police officers are trained to handle interactions with residents and also the enormity of the task given the fact that about 300,000 such interactions occur annually.
Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz offered thoughts on the training cadets and veteran officers undergo noting that the state reimburses cities for the initial training of cadets but not necessarily of veteran officers. “The City pays, but we don’t stop training, he said.
One initial result of the flawed May interaction between officers and the teenagers was announced shortly after the community forum.
TPD is initiating a new program pairing social workers with officers on certain calls starting on October 5.