A commission in Colorado Springs that advises the police department and works to improve relations with the community has given its stamp of approval on a use-of-force audit.
J.J. Fraizer, now-former chair of the Law Enforcement Transparency and Advisory Commission (LETAC), told city council members on Monday that the group came to a consensus in supporting the third-party review of the department and the eight recommendations within it.
Individual members of the commission also shared their personal concerns with the city council in an effort to give insight into the perspectives of residents in their districts. That included questions about the amount of public input included in the report, the department's acquisition of technology, and new officers, and other topics.
Now-former LETAC Vice Chair Steve Kern said the report is an "extraordinary step forward" for CSPD and for the city.
"Very few police departments in this country open themselves up to this kind of examination and it's important to recognize just how robust it was," Kern said.
LETAC members spent several months going over the report. Kern said the commission will continue to engage with CSPD over efforts to improve its policies regarding force.
The commission recently changed its leadership. Now-former chair JJ Frazier will remain on LETAC, although not in a leadership role. Now-former vice chair Steve Kern has stepped down. They have been replaced by D’Ontay Roy, chair, and Brent Windebank, vice chair.
