MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board (CLERB) held a virtual election to select new board officers on Tuesday, December 8th. In a 6-2 vote, Rev. James Kirkwood was elected to serve as the board’s Chairman.
“I’m a citizen first, so I’m very dedicated to the community that I’ve worked 30 years to protect,” said Kirkwood. “I will listen to them and remain pro-community.”
Rev. Kirkwood served on the Memphis Police Department for over 31 years and retired as a Colonel in 2017. The new CLERB Chairman is also the Executive Director of the Memphis Christian Pastors Network, where he works to unify and encourage collaborations among local churches to address racial division and the decrease of poverty in our county.
“I’m honored to serve on a board, along with 12 other members, created to hear the complaints of police misconduct brought by our citizens. We are committed to ensuring that CLERB meetings are run in the most professional manner,” said Kirkwood.
CLERB also elected the two longest-serving CLERB board members, Dr. David L. Acey, as Vice-Chairman and Mr. Sandeep Pednekar, as the board’s Secretary.
The Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board (C.L.E.R.B.) was created in 1994 by a concerned group of citizens as an independent agency with the authority to investigate allegations of misconduct filed by citizens of the public against the Memphis Police Department (MPD).
