Mayor Turner announces 45-member task force on police reform
HOUSTON - "People in our city want good policing and they want accountability and transparency with the Houston Police Department," said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.
The 45-member task force includes representatives from various organizations including LULAC the NAACP and the LGTBQ community.
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The mayor says the task force won't dictate how HPD does its job but will look into various police procedures and practices.
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Mayor Turner recently signed an executive order that immediately changed several polices for the Houston Police Department including banning choke holds and no-knock raids. Isiah Carey spoke with several city council members who say these changes are just the beginning. Council members Martha Castex-Tatum, Tiffany Thomas, Carolyn Evans-Shabazz and Jerry Davis share their thoughts on long-term changes for the HPD.
"Relating to the use of force review the operations of the police oversight board its effectiveness and recommend what changes should be made," Turner said. "With regards to body cameras assess when body cam video should or should not be released to the general public."
The task force will also look at how police deal with substance abuse mental health issues and homelessness.
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Also neighborhood policing and how police interact with the community.
Larry Payne a longtime political fixture in Houston will head up the task force.
"Wedo this so future generations will not have to live through this nightmare that the parents of boys and men of color have to go through,' Payne said.