Independent review of Decatur Police Department made public, looks at chief, arrests, more

The third-party independent review of the Decatur Police Department was released to the public Thursday and posted to the .

The Decatur City Council approved hiring Green Research and Technology to conduct an independent review of the department’s policies and procedures back in July. This comes after many called for a review of the police department, especially after the deadly officer-involved shooting of a Decatur man, Steve Perkins, in his own front yard in 2023. For more on that case, click HERE.��

Here is an excerpt from the review, showing the review's scope and key findings:

The goal of this assessment is to provide a transparent view of the Decatur Police Department (DPD) and recommendations on improving its practices, culture, and relationship with the community. Public trust is an essential component of an effective police department. Police departments are simply a part of the community they serve, and all members of the community should feel that their best interests are at the core of their police department's actions. When, for whatever reason, any part of a community no longer believes that the police department represents their best interests, trust is lost. When trust is diminished, tensions increase because of a fear that a community has of the incredible power that police officers hold to take not only freedoms but lives. As we have seen repeatedly across the United States, when tensions are high, it only takes one incident to create significant unrest within a community. The City of Decatur has experienced this situation since a police-involved shooting in September of 2023.

In response to this ongoing unrest, the Decatur City Council solicited GRT to conduct a third-party, independent review of the Decatur Police Department. The scope of this review included:

An assessment of Decatur Police Department culture by examining Public and DPD Personnel Perspectives.
A review of body camera footage and corresponding police reports (excluding the officer-involved shooting from September of 2023 and any other matters currently in litigation).
A review of the Office of Professional Standards (OPS) processes, also known as Internal Affairs.
A review of DPD policy and procedures.
A review of the Citizen Advisory Board appointment procedures and recommendations for appointment procedures.

To conduct this assessment, GRT conducted over 50 interviews with members of the Decatur community; interviewed over 50 DPD personnel, including support staff, officers, sergeants, lieutenants, captains, and the Chief of Police, Todd Pinion; reviewed over 300 hours of body worn camera footage; reviewed all citizen complaints over the previous two years, reviewed DPD Policies and Procedures, and reviewed the DPD Citizen Advisory Board and appointment procedures.

To provide a transparent view of the DPD and recommend improvements in its practices, culture, and relationship with the community, we broke the assessment into several key areas. These areas will allow for a comprehensive evaluation, identification of potential weaknesses, and development of actionable recommendations.

Key findings include the following:

DPD is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA); therefore, their policies are consistent with national standards and best practices.
There are instances of DPD officers treating members of the Decatur community with compassion and empathy. There are some instances of officers going out of their way to ensure that community members are left feeling safe and secure.
However, some officers treat members of the public with little empathy or use an inflammatory tone.
Several communication failures have negatively impacted both the community and the DPD, some of which stem from Chief Pinion's reluctance to speak publicly.
DPD has software (lAPro) designed to manage departmental workflow and effectively and thoroughly document officers' use of force incidents, citizen complaints, and internal investigations; however, this software is not utilized effectively in many cases or used at all in others.
IAPro has an Early Identification/Intervention System (IES), sometimes referred to as an Early Warning System (EWS). DPD's practice of housing different types of complaints/personnel investigations in separate locations makes this EWS ineffective.
Although complaints were physically recorded in one of these locations, the insufficient detail in some instances led GRT to believe that not all complaints were thoroughly investigated.
There were instances where DPD facilitated Disorderly Conduct arrest improperly and described the facts of the arrest differently in their arrest report compared with what was observed and communicated during the BWC review.
There were instances where DPD facilitated Obstruction of Governmental Operation charges improperly. In these situations, DPD officers often used their justification of "giving a lawful order" as the reason for making the OGO charge, even when their "lawful order" was questionable.
All interviewed Citizen Advisory Board members provided positive feedback regarding their view of the Board and its effectiveness and believed that Chief Pinion used the Board effectively.
Citizen Advisory Board members are generally recruited by current Board members or the Chief of Police and ultimately appointed by the Chief. This can have the unintended effect of having most, if not all, members with similar points of view.

Here is an excerpt from the review, showing what Green Research and Technology concluded:

While the Decatur Police Department (DPD) demonstrates adherence to national standards and best practices through its accreditation, there are significant areas that require attention. The commendable instances of compassionate and empathetic behavior by DPD officers are sometimes overshadowed by occurrences of unprofessionalism or lack of empathy. Communication failures, particularly those linked to Chief Pinion's reluctance to engage publicly, have adversely affected both the community and the department.

The department's use of lAPro software for managing workflow and documenting incidents is inconsistent, undermining its effectiveness. The Early Identification/Intervention System within IAPro is rendered ineffective due to the practice of housing different types of complaints and investigations in separate locations. This fragmentation and lack of investigative details lead to insufficiently detailed complaint records, raising concerns about the thoroughness of investigations. Additionally, questionable arrests for Disorderly Conduct and Obstruction of Governmental Operations, often based on officer's problematic "lawful orders," further highlight the need for improvement.

While the Citizen Advisory Board has received positive feedback, the current appointment process may limit the diversity of viewpoints.

This report lays the groundwork for actionable improvements aimed at enhancing public confidence in the DPD. By implementing the outlined recommendations, the department has the opportunity to set a new standard for transparency, fairness, and trust.

Here is a statement from the city's attorney on the release of the review:

This is the release of the prepared by Green Research and Technology. There are redactions of incidents described both positive and negative whereby personal interests, property rights, pending and potential actions including personnel matters, and the City’s interest would be impacted by the release of those items. It has been our position throughout that we do not desire to impact any civil, personnel or criminal proceedings outside that particular forum. Those items should be processed and handled in those forums in the necessary timeframe accordingly.

It is also our desire that the conclusions and recommendations of the Report be shared so that all parties can work together to address the issues for the betterment of our community. We have worked with Green Research and Technology and are in agreement with their assistance including the redactions that the Report will accomplish that goal.

Herman Marks, Jr., City Attorney