MEMPHIS, Tennessee —
No doubt every Memphian was gratified to see Mayor Jim Strickland standing with protesters last week – pledging to institute reforms in the police department. The scene was intended to show that the mayor gets it. That black citizens are far more likely than white citizens to have negative – even tragic – outcomes during encounters with police. And he’s determined to fix it.
It was a nice, feel good moment, indeed. But what about genuine openness and access to police reports? Well, that still seems to be somewhat lacking. An analysis by the Institute for Public Service Reporting at the University of Memphis shows that the police department is reluctant to provide access to excessive force complaints filed against officers. The city’s Public Records Office told the Institute it would take months to compile the complaints filed over the last five years. And the cost for doing that work would be $6,000.
City officials also appear to be reluctant to allow the Institute’s reporters to inspect the complaints on their own. One would think that these complaints would be more readily available. So much for real transparency.
Despite a few highly publicized incidents of excessive force, I don’t necessarily believe police brutality is as serious here as in other cities. But we won’t know for sure, without looking at the records. And if the mayor is truly serious about openness, he would make that happen.
And that’s my point of view. I’m Otis Sanford, for Local 24 News.