Providence City Council unanimously approves law to give civilian oversight authority more power to investigate police misconduct
PROVIDENCE — The Providence City Council on Thursday unanimously passed an amended ordinance that expands the powers of the civilian-led police oversight board, a move that supporters hope will help bring greater accountability and more efficient civilian oversight to the Providence Police Department.
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The Providence External Review Authority will now have direct access to the department’s records systems, including body-worn camera videos, for its work investigating allegations of misconduct, auditing internal affairs investigations, and reviewing policies.
It will not have access to the department’s criminal investigative systems, however, to protect the confidentiality of those police investigations. But it does mandate when police internal affairs records must be turned over by request.
The ordinance also adds a directive to periodically audit internal affairs investigations.
“Tonight’s vote empowers PERA to fulfill its original mission — to provide effective civilian oversight of the Providence Police Department,” Council President Rachel Miller said in a statement. “For too long, PERA has not had the tools, access, or authority needed to carry out full and transparent investigations on behalf of city residents. This ordinance helps make the Council’s promise real, which will ultimately strengthen the trust between residents and the city institutions meant to serve them.”
PERA was established in 2002 to investigate allegations of misconduct and violations by Providence officers. PERA also reviews department policies, recommends training and discipline, and audits internal investigations. PERA is an advisory board, the police department is required to cooperate with it — but friction between the two entities and accusations of obstruction finally led the city council to set clear guidelines.
Ferenc Karoly, PERA’s executive director, had called for full access to the police records systems last July because he said the police department had repeatedly obstructed its efforts to conduct investigations.
Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez was apprehensive about giving PERA full access to records, saying he was concerned about confidential informants and witnesses, and ongoing investigations. He also didn’t want PERA conducting a parallel investigation at the same time as the department. His fears caused some of the council members to vote against the ordinance when it came up for the first time two weeks ago.
The administration and council hammered out a compromise — drafting the amendment within an hour of Thursday’s vote. It was strong enough to sway Councilor Pedro Espinal of Ward 10, who’d previously spoken against the ordinance, and Councilwoman Jo-Ann Ryan, who’d voted against the ordinance at the first vote. On Thursday, the second vote, it passed, 13-0.
Mayor Brett Smiley is expected to sign the ordinance into law within the next 10 days.
“I support strong civilian oversight, meaningful accountability and increased public trust in government,” Smiley said in a statement after the vote. “Providence benefits from one of the strongest systems of police oversight and transparency in the state and across the region, and I have consistently supported efforts to strengthen public confidence in that process.”
“The amendments adopted tonight address several important concerns by providing greater clarity around PERA’s authority, access to systems and records, and role in the oversight process, while establishing safeguards to protect sensitive information,” the mayor said.
The amendment gives PERA’s executive director and investigative staff “read-only” access to the records system for reports and body cameras. They will not have access to the department’s detective or investigative modules, the criminal intelligence databases or confidential informant records, or other databases maintained primarily for ongoing criminal investigations.
Karoly said that PERA had no need to access those criminal databases anyway. The board investigates misconduct and violations of policy, and would refer complaints of crimes to law enforcementto investigate.
The amended ordinance prevents PERA from conducting parallel investigations with the department’s internal-affairs bureau. PERA’s executive director or investigative staff must notify the chief and internal-affairs commanding officer before accessing those records.
When PERA’s executive director or investigator requests any information from the internal-affairs bureau, the police have up to 96 hours to turn over the information.
PERA conducts investigations and then makes its findings and recommendations public. The ordinance says that PERA shall issue a written report within 30 days of the completion of its investigation or evidentiary hearing. The report shall include the findings of fact, the determination of whether the complaint was sustained, and a recommendation of discipline.
The police chief shall impose discipline based on the recommendation within 60 days, and will give PERA, the city council, and mayor a written explanation of the reasons for the disciplinary decision. PERA’s report and the police chief’s written explanation will be public record, though the complainant’s name shall be confidential.
The chief said that the ordinance changes reflect the compromise between all of the various parties. “While they may not fully align with every recommendation we made, we appreciate the collaborative effort that went into the process and believe these revisions move us in a positive direction,” Perez said in a text later Thursday night.
Outside the council chamber, Karoly called the new ordinance “a positive step in the right direction.”
“I’m also very happy that the council members and the staff and the police, everyone were just coming together and coming to an agreement on something that’s better than it was,” Karoly said.
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