Public safety
Vision
A city in which all people are safe and respected, people get the help they need, and police work with the community to prevent crime.
Questions
There are legitimate concerns about crime and violence in Cleveland neighborhoods, but why do we assume the answer is more police and stricter laws? When will we begin to focus more on the social and economic causes of crime in our city?
How can we shift to a public health approach to crime prevention?
In 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice determined there was a pattern of excessive force used by the Cleveland Division of Police. As a result, the city agreed to consent decree which outlined how police policies, practices, and procedures needed to change to comply with Constitutional law. Now, after years of work, oversight commissions, meetings, and reports, have things improved? What still needs to change?
The city spends a third of its General Fund budget on the Cleveland Division of Police ($218 million in 2020). How could some of that money be reprogrammed for mental health and social service programs so armed police do not have to respond to calls they are ill-equipped to handle?
How else can we save money and lives by shifting response to low-level offenses (such as traffic violations, property complaints, noise complaints, loitering) from armed police to uniformed staff who can issue citations? (Tickets, not guns.)
There are many private police/security forces in Cleveland, such as RTA Transit, CMHA, University Circle, Case Western, and Cleveland Clinic. How can they be held more accountable?
How can the disproportionate political power of police be reduced?
Recommendations
Codify into law successful parts of the Consent Decree so the city does not revert to old forms of policing after federal oversight ends.
Shift some of the police budget to alternative “care response” safety programs, like the CAHOOTS crisis intervention program in Eugene, OR, and the Cleveland Peacemakers Alliance violence interruption program.
Reduce the use of armed police in traffic enforcement (the most frequent type of interaction between residents and police) by redesigning streets for inherent safety and employing automated systems, such as cameras, that remove bias from traffic enforcement.
Decriminalize low-level offenses to reduce the chances of violent interactions between police and the public, while allowing police to focus on more serious crimes.
End the city’s participation in federal programs which lack accountability, such as Operation Legend.
End cash bail that unfairly forces the poor to languish in jail (the pandemic has accelerated reform). And advocate for state reforms of fines and fees that trap low-level offenders in debt.
Increase funding for youth employment programs, such as Youth Opportunities Unlimited.
Cuyahoga County has created a Diversion Center for people with mental health and addiction issues so they can get treatment instead of languishing in jail after committing low-level crimes. This is a positive step, but it means that people have to get arrested before receiving the services they need. So much more needs to be done to improve mental health services throughout the community.
Advocate for a statewide database that would prevent bad cops from moving from one jurisdiction to another.
Advocate for sensible gun safety at the state and federal levels.
Resources
What’s missing? What else should be included on this page? Go here to contribute your ideas.
“Study after study shows that a living wage, access to holistic health services and treatment, educational opportunity, and stable housing are more successful in reducing crime than more police or prisons.”