Better late than never.
The mayor has finally issued his application for the Civilian Oversight Board (COB), as the process established by the Coalition Against Police Crimes & Repression (CAPCR) came to a close. Mayor Slay probably realized that he had not given any leadership to this important process and there’s a lot at stake in the selection of the citizens who will serve on this historic COB.
For CAPCR, this is a juncture in our long struggle for real local control and an effective civilian oversight board where transparency and democratic engagement is absolutely mandatory. We began our discussion and development of the COB application long before the bill was signed into law. By late April, we announced the process and directed people to our website for all the details. We also began holding meetings and town halls to help identify worthy candidates for the seven positions.
The COB law states that one member will represent a COB District that includes four wards. These nominations come from the alderpeople and go to the mayor for approval. His seven names must go back to the Board of Alderpeople for final approval. Built into the bill are public hearings for citizens to review the proposed board composition and to assess whether the board complies with the ethical requirements by the community.
CAPCR’s application centers on ascertaining the candidate’s character and his/her demonstrative involvement in the community. We think these elements are key to being a public servant who will be accountable to the community.
Conversely, the mayor’s 9-page application seems to be witch-hunting and contains language like:
- Please list all social media accounts you maintain or have access to, whether in a personal or professional capacity and whether or not you use your own name or another name;
- Have you ever, as an adult, been charged with any crime or arrested for any crime for which you were not convicted, excluding traffic offenses where the fine imposed was less than $100;
- Has any business you have owned, or of which you have been the majority shareholder, ever filed for bankruptcy or been adjudicated bankrupt?
One has to wonder if this is an application to discourage people from applying. There are a number of reasons why a business would file bankruptcy that have little to do with their ability to be a competent member of the COB. Questions about your social media account? This may border on infringement of one’s First Amendment rights.
Additionally, CAPCR has built in its process a rating score that also includes diversity factors. The criteria was adapted from a rubric by Alderwoman Megan Green which failed to pass as an amendment to the bill, but that we thought was still very useful. Because it will be difficult for individual districts to pay attention to the overall demographics of the board, CAPCR will also score according to whether the potential candidate is non-white, differently abled, LGBTQ, etc.
All applications turned into CAPCR will be turned over to the respective alderpeople in the COB district along with the score sheets. Several alders have agreed to use our process.
The deadline for CAPCR’s application is past, but the official deadline is not until July 6. Since there is no official application, you can still use the CAPCR one at its website (www.capcr-stl.org) and turn it in to your alderperson by the deadline date. You’re not required to use the mayor’s application.
CAPCR is encouraging a robust discussion about the board and the community’s expectations. Protecting the integrity of the process by any means necessary will be critical, but ongoing citizen participation is imperative.
