City responds to criticism from FOP, saying Columbus can reinvent public safety and fight crime

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Brian A. Steel, Vice President of the Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge No. 9

Citing the shooting of a Deputy U.S. Marshal a day after the deaths of two children and a young man, a local Fraternal Order of Police official on Wednesday criticized the city of Columbus leadership for its approach to the public security.

Brian A. Steel, vice president of FOP Capital City Lodge No. 9, which represents 4,300 law enforcement officers in Columbus and Franklin counties, said in a statement that city officials had put focus over the past year on its Reimagining Public Safety initiative, which is intended to help resolve violence in the city and complaints about police action.

“It’s not working,” Steel said categorically. “Our homicide rate continues to climb year after year.

A spokesperson for Columbus City Council said the council has spent millions of new dollars to support the police division and all parties need to work together to keep the community safe.

The shooting deaths of two children and a young man on Tuesday night in what investigators say was a “targeted assassination” at an apartment complex on the south-east side near the Winchester Canal brought the total number of homicides in Columbus this year to a new record 186.

The public safety initiative, which Mayor Andrew J. Ginther and city council say is based on polls and feedback from city residents, includes the creation of a Civilian Police Review Board and an independent inspector general to investigate allegations of police misconduct, alternative responses to 911 such as sending mental health or addiction counselors to non-violent emergency calls, and programs such as an initiative intervention with young people and mentoring to tackle the root causes of violence.

Ginther spokeswoman Robin Davis did not respond directly to criticism of the FOP in a brief email response to The Dispatch, saying “Mayor Ginther is focused on bringing those responsible for this horrific crime to justice and on the safety of Columbus neighborhoods “.

Michael S. Brown, chief of staff to Columbus City Council President Shannon G. Hardin, said in an emailed statement that city council has spent millions of dollars this year on new spending for the division of the police.

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The council, said Brown, has “supported every request from the new police chief for the tools officers need to do their jobs, while adding millions for new partnerships to reinvent safety, involve young people in programs. positive and adopt long-needed programs) reforms to ensure accountability. “

“Columbus can do both, but to reinvent security all parties must work together to keep us safe,” he said.

Brown noted that “the city mourns the horrific murder of two children and prays for the recovery of the police officers in central Ohio shot dead in the line of duty.”

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Reimagining Public Safety Initiative “Not Working”, Says FOP

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