Tallahassee Commission resolutions would defend police review board, apologize for slavery

Tallahassee city commissioners may pass a resolution that aims to defend their Citizen Police Review Board amid ongoing state legislation.

At Wednesday's meeting, the commission is looking to "urge the Florida legislature to defeat SB 576 and HB 601," which aim to put a stop to police oversight boards. The House already has passed its proposal and sent it to the Senate, where it awaits a final vote before going to Gov. Ron DeSantis for review.

Its backer there, Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, said he "actually thinks these boards are divisive. I do not think that they are serving the public well other than to second-guess, again, in the court of public opinion.”

Senators have until the scheduled end of session, Friday, to pass the legislation. But that means the city's resolution will be considered when lawmakers have less than three working days left in Tallahassee. The resolution would then be sent House Speaker Paul Renner and Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, both Republicans.

The bill's staff analysis says "any COA (civilian oversight agency) that is currently performing such oversight functions related to the investigation of complaints of misconduct would be prohibited from continuing to do so after July 1, 2024" if it passes and is signed into law.

Already the city's oversight board has been criticized by progressives and critics of the Tallahassee Police Department as toothless.

The city commission created the board in September 2020 after days of street protests following three fatal shootings of suspects by TPD and the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.

The nine-member panel can make recommendations to Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell and consider incidents after they've gone through the internal review process at the agency.

In December 2022, after only two years of work, the board suffered a major road bump. Commissioners voted 3-2, with Commissioners Jeremy Matlow and Jack Porter dissenting, on ousting board member Taylor Biro. The decision came after it was found that Biro had a sticker that said "Abolish the police" on a drinking cup.

The sticker, a design of a police officer striking a citizen, was initially and incorrectly said to be an "(expletive) the police” sticker, when it was brought up by a commissioner at last month's meeting. That sparked the Big Bend Police Benevolent Association to immediately call for Biro's removal. (The sticker was one of many others on Biro's cup.) Resignations followed Biro's ouster.

Afterward, the board struggled to find a quorum and was unable to meet for months.

As of 2024, the board looks to meet once a quarter, their last meeting being Jan. 11, and their next meeting being planned for April 4.

In other business: Apologizing for slavery

The agenda shows the commission also is looking to pass their own resolution apologizing for the city's history of slavery and racism. It "acknowledges that African Americans endured significant injustices ... under slavery and Jim Crow" and "apologizes for (the city's) historical role in the perpetuation ... of all forms of discrimination against African Americans."

"The City expresses its commitment to recognize the misdeeds committed against African Americans and to continue working toward eliminating racial prejudices, injustices, and discrimination from our society," staff said in the agenda item.

Arianna Otero is the City Solutions Reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact her via email at AOtero@tallahassee.com or on Twitter/X: @ari_v_otero.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee commission takes up police review board, slavery apology