Decatur city councilmen disagreed this week over whether a proposed independent, third-party review of the Decatur Police Department should include scrutiny of policies and procedures ahead of a Friday meeting between the reviewer and the mayor.

Council President Jacob Ladner last Friday announced plans to bring a review by Huntsville-based Green Research & Technology for a vote before the council by late June or early July. His announcement came two weeks after DPD’s command staff was questioned under oath during a gag order hearing in the murder case against former officer Mac Marquette, accused of shooting and killing Steve Perkins on Sept. 29.

At the hearing, Capt. Rick Archer admitted that a video of Perkins’ death was shared with all DPD officers because the command staff felt the case had been misrepresented by the Morgan County District Attorney’s Office, while Lt. Joe Renshaw admitted to using a fake Facebook account named “Phil McGroin” to talk about the case.

Alainah Dailey, an outspoken city critic who was arrested earlier this year for protesting outside the mayor’s home, brought up Renshaw’s revelation and other allegations of police misconduct at Monday’s City Council meeting.

“I was sent a lot of that information the day after the Friday gag order hearing, and I made the call I made on Monday,” Ladner responded, referring to a phone call with the CEO of Green Research & Technology, Tory Green. “I didn’t know who it was saying that stuff. I don’t get on Facebook and look at every post. But once I did know who it was, I did something.”

Ladner’s proposal to review DPD’s policies, procedures, practices and culture was generally supported by his fellow councilmen Monday, although a couple questioned the need for reviewing the already-vetted Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) policies.

CALEA accreditation sets voluntary, contemporary standards for best practices in policing. Former police Chief Nate Allen secured DPD’s accreditation during his tenure.

“I don’t know the scope of what is being proposed, because we don’t have a proposal in front of us yet,” Councilman Carlton McMasters said Wednesday. “However, I’m completely fine with an audit of the department.

“The one question I do have is are we duplicating services for two policy reviews? That’s my only question.”

Councilman Billy Jackson said he is “less concerned” about the policies and procedures aspect of the review.

“What I’m concerned with is how we have not followed the guidelines, the policies and procedures, that are set for our officers to follow,” he said. “That’s my concern.

“Do we need to continually try to update our polices and procedures and see where we can change them? Yes. That’s what our police department, our leadership group in our department, is supposed to be doing at all times, anyway.

“Am I willing to pay an outside agency … to come in and do that? No. I’m looking for someone who’s going to look at actual incidents that have occurred in our city, look at bodycam footage of a routine police stop and see how we’re handling that routine police stop, look at bodycam of domestic violence calls and how they’ve handled that, etc.”

Jackson wants the timeline of the review to begin well before Perkins was killed and extend through the present.

“I want them to have open-door access to every facet of our police department,” he said. “I want them to have access to our court records. If we expect them to do a thorough job, they need to have full and total run of every piece of information that we have. And that’s the only way we’re going to get the full effect of what a company like this can bring to our city.”

Cofounder of Standing In Power Aneesah Saafiyah asked the council Monday how they would ensure DPD’s compliance with the review process. Ladner and Jackson said they both discussed with Green Research & Technology the possibility of “stonewalling” by DPD.

“I think that the City Council — if this resolution has the full weight of the council, whether it’s a 5-0 vote or a 3-2 vote — then the Police Department has no choice but to comply and say this is the direction we’re moving in,” Jackson said.

Ladner on Wednesday reiterated his desire for the review to be as comprehensive as possible.

“I do think the CALEA certification is important, but my opinion is that a neutral third party needs to take a look at everything, including policies and procedures,” he said.

Councilman Kyle Pike agreed that the review should include policies and procedures, although he expects that there will not be many recommendations in that area due to the CALEA accreditation.

“I think you have to look at the whole department and get an in-depth understanding of how it operates and why it operates in the way that it does,” he said. “It’s a good opportunity for our police department to improve its effectiveness with our community.”

Ladner and Jackson said they intend for the results of the review to be made public, with some reservations. Ladner said there will likely be some redactions because of “legal issues,” but everything that can be legally shared should be. Jackson said it should be public except for details such as, for example, the identifying information of private citizens.

“I do think that this probably needs to be a public report if we are going to move forward as a city and as a police department,” Jackson said.

Mayor Tab Bowling said he supports a third-party review “at this time.” Bowling and police Chief Todd Pinion met with Green last year but did not move forward with the review. Bowling said he and Ladner will meet with Green Research & Technology on Friday.

“I hope to learn more from our meeting about the scope of work they will provide,” Bowling said.

Dailey on Monday argued that nothing will “fix this” until DPD gets a new police chief. Saafiyah asked, if Pinion was dismissed, what qualities McMasters would look for in his replacement.

“If that happens, who’s going to want to come here right now?” McMasters responded. “Because we’ve seen almost every single thing that our police department does right now is criticized and ridiculed, whether right or wrong.”

“Because the majority of the time, they’re wrong,” Saafiyah said.

“And that’s what this review is going to find out,” McMasters said. “I think —”

“No, this is the experience of the community. This is what we had to find out,” Saafiyah said.

Later, in a Facebook post, McMasters said one of the things that frustrates him most “in all of this” is the way things have played out in the media and the “court” of public opinion.

“Some of the things we’ve heard haven’t been accurate,” he wrote. “Some have and they’ve been dealt with or the process is underway. I’ve said time and time again, there’s always room for improvement. Do I think this audit finds anything nefarious?

“I don’t.”

— [email protected] or 256-340-2438.

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