Black elected officials in Summit County have responded to Akron Mayor Shammas Malik's decision to only consider internal candidates for the city's next police chief, saying Malik "completely ignored" their concerns.
In a letter sent Wednesday evening, State Rep. Tavia Galonski, vice president of the Black Elected Officials of Summit County, wrote the group is "displeased" with Malik's response to their letter sent last week asking him to pause the search to draw from a more diverse pool of candidates.
"The police department and its leadership is of critical importance to the advancement of our city. Action is needed now and simply asking us to continue to wait until next time is unacceptable," Galonski wrote in the letter.
Galonski was responding to Malik's letter in which he states he wants to hire a new chief as soon as he can – and until the city can pass a charter amendment, an internal search is the only option.
“While I had hoped to allow for external candidates, I don't believe the city is best served by waiting until the end of the year or longer to fill the Police Chief role,” Malik wrote. “My administration is seeking to prioritize public safety, and to ensure the Akron Police Department is effective and accountable.”
The city’s legal team has cited a state law that they say makes hiring candidates from outside the department unlawful and punishable by removal from office.
The Ohio Revised Code Section 124.44 states: "No positions above the rank of patrol officer in the police department shall be filled by original appointment. Vacancies in positions above the rank of patrol officer in a police department shall be filled by promotion from among persons holding positions in a rank lower than the position to be filled."
"The Mayor’s response has completely ignored all of our concerns; our questions remain and are growing. The Mayor has full authority through the charter to hire/appoint the Police Chief. This is not a promotion," Galonski wrote in the response letter. "The fact that neither the Chief or Deputy Chief searches will be paused to allow diverse officers to be considered for leadership at the highest levels is troubling and unsettling."
The city’s legal team has cited a state law that they say makes hiring candidates from outside the department unlawful and punishable by removal from office.
The Ohio Revised Code Section 124.44 states: "No positions above the rank of patrol officer in the police department shall be filled by original appointment. Vacancies in positions above the rank of patrol officer in a police department shall be filled by promotion from among persons holding positions in a rank lower than the position to be filled."
"The Mayor’s response has completely ignored all of our concerns; our questions remain and are growing. The Mayor has full authority through the charter to hire/appoint the Police Chief. This is not a promotion," Galonski wrote in the response letter. "The fact that neither the Chief or Deputy Chief searches will be paused to allow diverse officers to be considered for leadership at the highest levels is troubling and unsettling."
Malik plans to seek a charter amendment this November that would permit the city to do external searches in the future but said in his response he did not want to wait that long to hire a new chief.
BEOSC is planning a community forum alongside the Akron chapter of the NAACP and The Freedom BLOC, a community organizing group, to hear residents' thoughts on the search.
In the group's initial letter, BEOSC asked Malik to seek advice from the state attorney general’s office.
Malik can’t do that, he said in his response.
“The Ohio Attorney General's office has very specific limitations regarding the types of entities they can provide advice to, and the office is not able to provide the city with legal advice that we can rely upon regarding our city charter,” Malik wrote. “We did seek outside legal counsel to verify the research and findings of our law department and that advice was consistent with the conclusions our team reached.”
The Ohio Attorney General’s website states they cannot provide opinions to “officers and employees of county, municipal, and other local governments.”
Akron’s internal search is based on rank – so if the city’s two highest-ranking officers, who are white, apply, no one else can be considered, Malik said.
APD has one Black captain, one Black lieutenant and eight Black sergeants among its more than 400 officer department.
"This means only 11% of the current department’s leadership is Black," the initial BEOSC letter states. "With the barriers in place, it would take 20-30 years for the department’s top leadership to become truly diverse. This calls for an immediate course correction."
Malik added in his letter that he hears the concern about the need for more diversity in the department and pointed out a few ways he is trying to tackle the issue, including hiring an employee focused on recruitment and retention and eventually allowing for lateral hiring in the department.
Currently, all new hires are entry-level, Malik said.
