by Nick Castele
Cleveland’s mayor has sworn in 13 people to represent residents and law enforcement in overseeing the city’s police reform agreement with the Justice Department.
Cleveland’s new community police commission includes former Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, the dean of Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, a minister, a teacher, the director of public psychiatry at University Hospitals—and members of other Northeast Ohio groups.
A panel selected 10 members from just shy of 200 applicants. They will be joined by the head of Cleveland’s police union, the president of the black officers’ association, and a police supervisor.
One member, Dylan Sellers, is with the Children’s Defense Fund and works on the Freedom Schools program for kids. He said young people need a voice in the conversation.
“We forget that the kindergarten to 12th grade are citizens of Cleveland, too,” Sellers said. “And they interact with Cleveland police as well. And they have some of the most adverse interactions with the Cleveland police. And those things need to be addressed.”
Another member is Case Western Reserve University professor Rhonda Y. Williams, who has worked closely with advocates for police reform. In order to carry out the consent decree, she said, Cleveland needs to listen to attorneys, academics, grassroots activists and the city’s most marginalized residents.
“We have to solve this from many avenues, and we can’t just think that one commission is going to be the panacea to solve what are decades and decades of problems,” Williams said. “We've all got to work, and we've got to make sure we bring those voices in.”
Members serve four-year terms. The commission will recommend police practices and policies, focusing on transparency and community policing. Cleveland and the DOJ also must name a consent decree monitor this week.
Below, see the full list of community police commission members, as released by the City of Cleveland:
Ten Community Police Commission Members per Selection Panel:
- Mr. Anthony Body, Good Neighbor Ambassador Supervisor, Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District
- Mr. Craig Boise, Dean and Professor, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, Cleveland State University
- Dr. Kathleen Clegg, Medical Director, Recovery Resources; Director, Medical Student Education, UH Case Medical Center; and, Associate Professor, Psychiatry, CWRU School of Medicine
- Mr. Mario Clopton, Teacher, Shaker Heights City Schools
- Rev. Dr. Yvonne Conner, Retired, Greater Cleveland Congregations
- The Honorable Lee Fisher, President & CEO, CEOs for Cities
- Ms. Amanda King, Graduate Diversity Coordinator, Office of Multicultural Affairs, Case Western Reserve University
- Rev. Max Rodas, Executive Director, Nueva Luz Urban Resource Center
- Mr. Dylan Sellers, Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools
- Dr. Rhonda Williams, Associate Director of History/ Director, Social Justice Institute, Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association (CPPA) Commission Member:
- Steven Loomis, President, Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association
Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 8 Commission Member:
- Timothy Higgins, Sergeant, City of Cleveland, Bureau of Community Policing
Black Shield Police Association Commission Member:
- Detective Lynn Hampton, Cleveland Division of Police, Personnel Department and President of the Black Shield Police Association
