Northampton policing commission to present final report to council, mayor

NORTHAMPTON — Members of the Policing Review Commission are poised to present their final report to the City Council and mayor Tuesday night.

The commission’s 58-page report calls for a new city department to respond to some 911 calls, among other recommended changes following a lengthy study into policing in the city. The special joint meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Zoom.

Mayor David Narkewicz and the council created the police review panel last summer and asked its members to review the Police Department and make recommendations on changes to policing and public safety. The moves came in the wake of police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year, which prompted many residents to call for the city to cut the police department’s budget — something the council did by 10%

The report was recently published online. One of its major recommendations is the creation of a Department of Community Care, a new department independent of the police that would respond to some public safety needs. The functions of community care would include peer response to mental health and substance use crises, according to the report.

Other suggestions include: the allocation of the Police Department funding cut last year; changes to policies such as how internal affairs investigations are handled; creating a cap on the amount of hours officers work; and an evaluation of the department’s staffing levels.

Tuesday’s Zoom meeting can be accessed at https://bit.ly/39yWNST, or instructions for how to call in on a phone line can be found on the meeting agenda posted on the city’s website.