City Commission - Regular Meeting

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Heat. Heat. the city commission to order. Um, and as is our want, I would ask you to join us by beginning of the meeting with a moment of silence. Please join us in the pledge of

allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. Uh Mr. Clerk, if you call the role. Commissioner Kilgore, present. Commissioner Knight, present. Commissioner Belchek, here. Commissioner Sasi, present. Mayor Lrand, yes. Believe Commissioner Purdue is on her way. All right. So, uh, we expect Commissioner Purdue momentarily. Um, but I would like to ask for a motion to excuse Commissioner Robbins. So moved. Support.

Thank you. Uh, this brings us to Pardon. A vote. All right. Uh, all in favor say I. I. I

all opposed. Motion carries. Uh that brings us to our next item. If the our interpreter could come up and introduce themselves, we have an interpreter um for Spanish to English and English to Spanish is necessary. So if you can say that in Spanish, that'd be great. Thank you. That brings us to our first opportunity for public comment. This is public comment on items that are on the agenda. So, if you could introduce yourself and tell us where you live and tell us what item on the agenda you're addressing, um, we'd welcome your comments.

How you doing? How y'all doing? I'm D. Jones. uh speaking on the resolution of you guys uh changing your preliminary preliminary preliminary fiscal uh plan starting in December. Uh as you guys have invested into 3D printing construction or not in not directly invested into it but actually adopted it into his plan until 2031 because of me. Uh I would like for the city to actually invest into uh potential 3D printers. to change the my special meeting. Am I in order? Am I in order dated?

Uh well, if you're talking if you're addressing our changing the date, if you want to if you want to speak to our changing the date of the meeting, that would be great.

All right, cool. So, I would like for y'all to be able to do this at a time where the community can actually give feedback or listen to these prelim preliminary fiscal budget sessions that you guys give because this is the city's fiscals. This is the city's taxes. Um, I believe that the community should definitely be engaged and highly engaged and give feedback on the uh uh pl preliminary budget. It's a lot, but [snorts] I would really like for the community to get engaged, especially with our uh police department. Um, you guys do control the budget for the police department. So, I would like for the city to directly the community to directly be engaged once you guys change those dates. change it to a date where the community can actually come and give feedback if you guys could be really transparent and let the uh the community know on your Facebook page or social outlets. Uh we'd like to know when those pre preliminary sessions are happening so we can give you guys direct feedback on the budget. I believe we should have some type of bring back participatory budgeting. But I also believe that the community should directly be engaged on the dates if you guys change the dates for the preliminary budget session so we can give direct feedback on the police department and what the funding should look like uh funding the police department with the tragic things that's been going on. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good evening, mayor. Evening

commissioners, staff, my fellow citizens. I'm Daniel Scott, longtime resident of the city. My real identity is I'm a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Committee of the whole resolutions two and three. I see it's on the agenda again. So, let me give you a warning from holy scripture again, some new scriptures that I haven't shared before, but this is what the Lord says in his word about making and selling and using alcohol. The drunkard shall come to poverty. Like I said before, I've ministered in Hartside neighborhood for over 45 years. I see drunkenness and the results almost every day. Is this what you want to stand in front of the Lord one day [snorts] and explain why you want this distillery bringing more poverty into Grand Rapids? Scripture also says, "Wine is a mocker. Strong drink is raging. Whoever is deceived thereby is not wise." I used to be in that category. I was a drunkard before I knew Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. But praise God, almost 50 years ago, he delivered me from that. They who practice drunkenness shall not inherit the kingdom of God. I invite you to take a walk in Heartside

or in the near west side where I live, especially in the summertime, and look at all the effects of drunkenness. They sleep in our church's doorway. They sleep on the streets. They're in poverty.

It's just what the word of God says. So again, I want to voice my displeasure that uh this distillery would be enlarged. It's right near where I live, so it's going to affect my neighborhood and it'll affect the whole city. Thank you. My name is John. I live in the third ward of Grand Rapids. I felt moved to speak because he stood up to call out to speak about the distillery. And if that is considered relevant to discuss, we should discuss that Long Road Distilleries is being boycotted by the local immigrant movement that opposes ICE. And that I think that approving or cooperating with Long Road Distilleries is a good way to stand in solidarity against vulnerable immigrants. and that uh and let this be a call to both the mayor and the commissioners to re-engage in conversation with uh the movement at Ketcha community that has called for the boycott. They're looking for conversation and action. Uh but yeah, I I oppose doing anything with long road distillers. I don't know anybody in good conscience that opposes ice that would go to long road distillers. Lucas GR. Um, [snorts] like the previous speaker, I didn't plan on saying anything, but since Long Road's legal affairs with the city are now on the table, let's pop that cork. I actually disagree with both the previous speakers. One respectfully, one definitely not. Uh,

poverty. I came here because of Beer City USA. Tax money that I spend on that goes to the opposite of poverty. And you create jobs with that business. David, I've got total understanding of the boycott. Makes perfect sense. I've quibbled about how it's been executed. That's not part of the discussion. the ridiculous contorting of uh invisible sky wizard words in old books written by gay scribes that were ashamed of themselves under an oppressive king long ago. Uh those are really not a way to come at telling you whether or not you should have a business getting the things that other businesses get. So, I know how much it it wrinkles West Michigan's immature political landscape for me to both support and oppose someone's affairs, but I don't have a problem with you increasing production. And as a brand snob, I think your brand's pretty great. I'm pretty pretty judgmental about that stuff, and you do a good job with that business on that. And I would support what's happening because of that growth. So, there you go. I prime you up for later when I'm not quite as nice to you.

My name is Emma. Um live in Grand Rapids. I um echo John's comments about boycotting Long Road Distillery and it kind of baffles me. It seems like a conflict of interest that the city should be involved in it at all. um especially considering um the ties to ignoring the COA demands. Um COATA for those who don't know and for if you all don't know already um is an organization here made directly of immigrant voices. And um I'm a firm believer that um excuse me that's okay. Um I'm a firm believer that those who are most affected by the issues should have the most say on the solutions. Um that is how change happens and that is how effective solutions are born. Um, so again, uh, just not really understanding why, um, something like this would happen cuz it seems like a conflict of interest, but again, also it's just we shouldn't be buying from Long World Distillery anyways because we're we're trying to convince the city to um, do their actual job and become a sanctuary city and listen to what the immigrants all of those immigrant demands. For those folks who um don't know those immigrant demands offhand, and I apologize for not having them prepared today, this is not something that I plan to speak on until others spoke on it. Um COATA and rapid response to ICE um both have those readily available of all [snorts] those demands drafted and picked by um by immigrant voices. Again, we should be letting those immigrant voices lead. Thank you.

Seeing no further public comment, I will move us along to um approval of the minutes. Can I have a motion? I'll move to approve the minutes. Support. This is uh minutes from uh the February 10 meeting. All in favor say I. I. All opposed. Motion carries. Brings us to petitions and communications. The first one's communication received from Eric Davis regarding his resignation from the Southtown Corridor Improvement Authority. Referred to committee on appointments. Communication received from Tom Lambert on behalf of Michigan Open Carry Incorporated regarding Foya Appeal PD-205- 2025-1013. Received and filed.

Communication received from Terry Atest expressing concerns related to development of property at 2400 7th Street Northwest. Received and filed. Um for Go ahead. Sorry. That brings us to report of city officers. First one's controllers warrant report for the period of January 27, 2026 through the fe through February 9, 2026 in the amount of 34,929,4616 received and filed. Treasures report for the period of January 28, 2026 through February 10, 2026. Received and filed. And third one is the city clerk submitted the mayor's two 2026 standing committees and other commissioner appointments report.

Receive and filed. That brings us to our consent agenda. And for those of you who are um new to the process, these are this is passing in a group uh items that came unanimously out of committee and were not removed by uh any commissioner for uh any particular reason. So I'd take a motion to uh approve the consent agenda. So moved. All in favor of approving the consent agenda say I.

I. All opposed. Motion carries. That brings us to items removed from the consent agenda and I will recuse myself um from the first two as I have an interest in the business that's asking for this industrial development uh action. So uh madame president if you could take the chair and I'll recuse myself. Um, all right. As noted, these items were removed confirm consent that we uh have two items due to the conflict of interest that the mayor has noted and has noted I'll say since this item was introduced at the public hearing and for consideration today. So, the first item is a resolution establishing an industrial development district for Long Road Distillers at 1750 Elizabeth Avenue Northwest. Do you have a motion?

So moved. It's been moved and supported. Commissioner Belchek.

Yes. This is a resolution to establish an industrial development district for Long Road Distill Distillers at 1750 Elizabeth Avenue Northwest. It is for the purpose of um expanding their industrial facilities and they would like to ask for an industrial facilities exemption certificate for Long Road Distillers. And um the application more fully describes what they are doing out and the project. And I will note that the second item will be related to this as well. Thank you, commissioner. Colleagues, any questions on this item? Again, we discussed this at committee of the whole, but we pulled for the um for the conflict. I'll call the question. All those in favor?

I. Any opposed? Motion carries. Next item number two is a resolution approving an application for a 12-year industrial facilities exemption certificate. This is pursuant to public act 198 of 1974 for long road distillers for a um $680,000 project located at 1750 Elizabeth Avenue Northwest. So moved. Moved and supported again. Commissioner Belch, uh could you speak to this companion item?

Yes. And thank you. And just to be clear, the last item we passed was for the Industrial Development District. I did mention the um exemption certificate which um this more fully details. It is a 12-year industrial facilities exemption certificate for the same address for the project of expanding their canery and that will be a $680,000 project. It is going to include a tasting room or they currently have a tasting room and a restaurant and so this will be expanding that to include additional distillery capacity, the installation of the canning line and ready to drink products that will come from that. Um if there are additional questions, there is um more information in the package. I think that should cover us.

Thank you, Commissioner. Seeing and hearing, no other additional questions on this companion item. I'll also call this question. Uh all those in favor I. Any opposed? Item carries. Um so with that, uh our city clerk is calling the mayor back up to continue on to our next item, which are the ordinances. We have one to be adopted and considered. Thank you, Commissioner. That brings us to item 11 on our uh agenda, which is an ordinance to be adopted, and this is an ordinance for a major uh amendment to a planned redevelopment district at 1150 Adams Avenue. Can I have a motion?

Some move. Support. And Commissioner Purdue.

Yes. Good evening, everyone. On February 10th, 2026, the city commission established today as a date to consider this amendment that was previously to a previously approved special district plan redevelopment district to incorporate changes intended to facilitate the construction of zeroep entry town homes. Um, this is part of a larger de development plan for the Boston Square business district known as Boston Square together. Planning for the larger project included neighborhood stakeholders of Oakdale Neighbors, Amplified GR, and Boston Square Neighborhood Association. The city commission adopted an ordinance establishing this district on August 25th, 2020. The 7.11 acre project consists of phase development of nine buildings with up to 270 residential dwelling units, commercial units, shared recreational space, and surface parking lot. Each phase of the development is subject to planning commission final site review with a public hearing. Um the proposed amendment relates to the northernly phase of the plan redevelopment district bounded by Adams to the north fuller to the east. Thank you.

Thank you. Uh any comments or questions, colleagues? Seeing none, uh all in favor of the roll call vote. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Uh Commissioner Purdue, yes. Commissioner Knight, yes. Commissioner Belchek, yes. Commissioner Kilgore, yes. Commissioner Sassi, yes. Mayor Lrand,

yes. Um and uh the motion carries. Uh having no resolutions in front of us and no public hearings, um this moves us to our second opportunity for public comment. And this is on any matter that you wish the commission to hear about. Uh you'll have three minutes and uh guessing that there are going to be a number of people who want to make public comment. Um, we will accommodate everyone as uh in turn so you don't have to get up and um if you can gauge the room and try to keep the door not blocked for fire reasons. Um, we'll keep things moving. So, show hands. Uh, okay. The city manager would like to get a show of hands so we have an approximate idea of how many people intend to make public comment.

Great. Thank you so much.

How y'all doing? I'm D. Jones, passionate entrepreneur and visionary. Before I get into the crazy stuff, uh, I want to really just speak on 3D printing construction first. So, I got you guys to adopt 3D printing construction until 2031. And one of my good friends that is a banker, I spoke to him at the uh, GR chambers and I got Huntington Bank actually is going to be financing 3D printed construction. So besides I'm getting the government to adopt 3D printed construction at the local level, I am also working with Huntington Bank to actually be sure that 3D printed construction is actually financed as an entire construction industry, as an entire method for improving affordable housing and creating affordable housing. Yes, a black person is influential enough to be able to speak to another black banker to be able to get them to see the benefit as Huntington Bank is going to be expanding into eight different states down south where they do heavy heavy 3D printed construction. So, thank you city for listening to my advocacy, my effective advocacy to be able to get 3D printed construction into our consolidated housing and community development plan until 2031. And then also being able to get Huntington Bank and other banks to look to try to finance 3D printed construction. Also, I'm going to continuously push for policy change. I believe the community should be a part of the collective bargaining agreements when you guys are bargaining and having uh contracts developed for our police department because my cousin was killed by a state police officer in Illinois. So, I am somebody that has actually had a loved one actually killed and my family has not been the same. It it gets sad to get on Facebook and everything else. And my other cousin, his brother was also killed in the streets in Chicago. I'm from Chicago. It's very bad out there. And for to, you know, be able to be a person that has a cousin that was killed by a state police officer and a cousin killed in the streets. Like, we need economic change. We need to unplug some of these deep rooted seeds that are definitely keeping our community uh

impoverished and having high crime poverty areas. Like we got high polices in in high crime poverty areas and in high areas. Sometimes it's not even a crime. Sometimes the police are kind of invoking this and escalating this stuff. And we need real investment. I was there at the groundbreaking for the center. I got to speak to you guys and and it was cool, but we need that continuous economic investment. And we need real policy change. We need policy changes on the dogs because why are dogs eating at people's necks after they've been shot and their hands are behind their back? Y'all need to be held accountable for that. All you police officers, y'all should be doing better. Y'all should try to be the standard of a police officer. Set a better standard because the standards y'all setting is embarrassing. It's embarrassing. As a black person, as a constituent that live here and got to see black people get executed, y'all should be embarrassed of y'all. Slave patrol. Police is really slave patrol. Actually do the community policing. Actually get to know us. get to know black people beyond the surface cuz all of us got a soul and a spirit. Get to know us. Thank you.

So, before I get into it, uh I just want to thank you all for doing this. I know you're going to receive a bit of a public flogging tonight with all the comments, but you know, I realize how working in this field. I understand how difficult it is the job you all do and the responsibilities that you have to face as a consequence of your decisions. Anyway, I've met most of you. If you don't remember me, I'm Wesley. I'm in the first ward. Uh what I wanted to speak to you all about as a first war resident is uh the vacancy that is obviously coming up. I want to make sure we don't repeat the mistake of the past. I know you met at the committee of the whole earlier this morning. Uh that we don't have a quote unquote kind of caretaker that we appoint. I want to make sure in my ward we appoint somebody who actually wants to be there and we don't either leave it vacant or we leave it that or we make sure somebody who plans on running and commits to running. And the reason being is with restrictive term limits, by the time you learn where the bathroom is, you're already out the door. And so it's really important. I want my city commissioner to be somebody who's gets these next six, seven months that they can go and know what they're doing. Become an expert so that when January 1 comes, they're already ready. They're experienced and ready to go because like I said with these term limits, I know it's a whole other thing with term limits and it's a different debate. People already by the time they have experience and really know how the city works, they're already gone. So, I want to give them the best chance possible. So, just make sure when you appoint somebody, appoint somebody who wants to be there and will commit to you that they will run. And last of all, don't leave it open. Worst case scenario there, just take advantage of the time. Thank you for your time. Not by much. Okay. All right. [snorts] Okay, my name is Emma. Um, and I just want to start with a blessing over um, Duan. Um, this is from a book um, where she's a black woman is um, recognizing

her kinship to whales that are hunted um, and other black people. All my love to the hunted, the traded, the betrayed. All [snorts] my love to the haunting, the disciplined, the discreet. I know what it is to be somebody's nightmare all day. But when I dream you, you are free. And your wings are unhidden and your face relaxes and you breathe when you want to and loud. When you want to and how, and no one can catch you. Um, I'm a a death [sighs] worker. I've worked um with many people on their um journeys at the end of their life for a long time. Um and there are beauties more precious um there's few beauties more precious in life than a a dignified death. Um I need you all to know that you are death workers as well, but of a different kind. Um you are in fact agents of death and deaths of the worst kind. The kind that comes from the thieves of life of life. The kind that cages people that cages children. Um that looks back at me with with faces that I can tell you're not you don't care. Um that looks back at me as the violent workers we call GRPD slaughter more of our community. [snorts] I don't say this because I think this will change you. I've been in front of some of your faces many times. Um, but I say this because I know giving grief a voice is what keeps us alive. Um, you are in charge of three important things that um, among others truly affect um, whether people live or die and that is housing, policing and that is um, not those adopting those policies that Costa has put forth. And I want you to know also that there are

many kinds of deaths that are come from these policies. There are these massacres that that like happened um last week, [snorts] but there's also the slow deaths that happen. Um there are those deaths that happen because of the exposure to the cold. There are those deaths that happen because of trauma and the impact on the body. Um there are the deaths that happen that are hidden that we don't hear about because they don't make the news. And I need you to know that because you refuse refuse to to we have been asking to abolish police. You haven't even you've been increasing. You haven't even you have not listened. And look what happened. Another gruesome death that is on you. That is on you. [snorts] My name is John. I live in the third ward. Since Patrick was killed, I've been a boots on the ground activist in the Grand Rapids Black Lives Matter community. I'm an abolitionist. I believe in the abolition of ICE. I believe in the abolition of the police department. I believe the United States of America was founded on stolen land and we should give the land back. When a black person is killed by the police in Grand Rapids, I make an effort to be a visual presence of support to the family of those who were killed so that the parents of Patrick Leoya, Samuel Sterling, Riley Dogette, and Dayquan Trey Johnson know that this man from the community came to be here for me, to stand with me, to show that he loves me and cares what happened to my son. I go with the only intention of making sure that they know I was there and I was there for them so they aren't carrying the pain alone. It's meant to be truly me trying to

bring you to the education of living among the people who are most vulnerable. This is an invitation to you and in the room being in the room with them and hearing what they are feeling and what they are thinking and how they see things. Then I'm able to act with care and compassion. Then I'm able to move with the family, live among the family, share their burden. Then I have some clue how to act in the interest of, on behalf of, at the request of the people who are suffering most in the room, living among, being in community with those who are affected by the most injustice is the work and it's how you learn the work. You need to be near the people who are hurting so that their heart is resonating with yours like a tuning fork. You need to get yourself in tune with the people who are hurting or you'll say things that sound tonedeaf like you did mayor yesterday. You say you're in a totally different conversation. You're changing the subject. The pain of the community where the police shoot people in the back of the heads and get away with it. You're changing the subject. We are grieving here. We are scared and sad. And some of us stand with a family and it's not y'all. We need to take the voice of those marginalized to the darkest corners of injustice and suffering and move them to the center. They have the answers we need. Full stop. Period. We aren't helping people if their voices aren't leading us. The only people you could truly help in your community are the people you live in community with. Abolish ICE. Abolish the police. Justice for Bana Taylor. Justice for Patrick Leoya. Justice for Samuel Sterling. Justice for Riley Dogget. Justice for Hank Wymer. Justice for Joey Nagel. Justice for Dayquan Trey Johnson. There's a rally this Saturday and the cops are going to be watching it because black activists even right now are in jail for months for protesting. All the

white protesters in here, you got the privilege to protest cuz Kai's in jail and you ain't been standing with Kai, the white folks in this town. Period. Justice for all stolen lives. Lucas GR know what these are? Yeah, you do. License plate tabs. These are mine from a year ago when I decided to start an experiment to see how long I, as a white dude, could drive around without them and not get pulled over. Last year, working all the way across town 5 days a week, driving through four or five different police jurisdictions, I was never stopped or questioned once. But please do keep telling us that there's no racial or class bias in policing. I bet if I started riding my bike around with a gun on me, nobody would call. But in the past couple of years, GRPD has killed on two out of three calls for simply being black and having a firearm supposedly in a state where that in itself is not illegal. Speaking of racism, let's talk about dogs. As a white guy from the south, I got to say that when I see a black man running away having dogs sicked on them, it's reminiscent of the plantations of the old south with an E. Delbert, release the hounds. That boy is running. I concur with those who've called for drastic change in the dog policy at GRPD.

I also join with those who are very tired of listening to a group who doesn't even rank among the top 15 to 20 most dangerous professions belly ache about how they supposedly feared for their lives while nestled snug in their body armor. Mayor, you urged people last night to have ideas rather than just complaining. But ideas are always rebuked by cops as a coddled class hiding behind endless excuses, red tape, assorted jingoistic mythos, and an endless pecker measuring mockismo. Look, David, I get it. You're insulted and maybe a little buttth hurt that people like me will come up here and get on you about your promises. I saw the Facebook unfriending. I read the cold, stoic handshake a couple of weeks ago. But you're the one that promised to take on policing as an issue in your campaign and that we shouldn't be arresting people all the time for every little thing and then you went and made a video carrying water for exactly that. Nobody's trying to belittle progress on stuff like financial disclosures. But I can guarantee you that has never saved a life. And imagine how much faster you can move if you stop caring about wealthy puppet masters and feelings and egos in this building. Besides, until financial disclosure for all those appointees is a thing, this is nothing but political theater. So, I reiterate my question from last night that you dodged about your personal political capital. You're unique. You can push back. You're better equipped than any prior mayor to throw some elbows. What keeps you from flexing? Make it make sense. Tonight, I'm not staying for whatever gaslighting emptiness comes off the DAS. I'm making room for somebody else to come upstairs here to this podium. This has already done enough for my mental health, and it's only a freaking Tuesday. [clears throat] My name is Charlie Snedeker. I'm a lifelong resident of Kent County. The statistics and facts I'm presenting here tonight are compiled from the

nonprofit Police Scoreboard Project, which is a nationwide public evaluation of policing in the US. Data is taken from over 16,000 municipal law enforcement agencies, which have populations ranging from 100,000 to 250,000. This data is compiled and scores are assigned by for various categories ranging from zero to 100 [clears throat] using excessive force. A higher score of 100 indicates a police department that uses reasonable force. Grand Rapids scores a 25 on force being used per arrest. 100 represents reasonable force. Grand Rapids scores a 25. Accountability. A higher score means a police department is more likely to hold officers accountable for their actions. Grand Rapids scores 27. 100 is a score achieved when officers are held accountable. Grand Rapids scores a 27. Homicide solved. Grand Rapids scores a 29. Racial disparities and drug arrests. Grand Rapids scores 25. Black people in Grand Rapids are almost 5% more likely to be arrested for a low-level non-violent offense than a white person. Over 85% of the Grand Rapids Police Department officers are white. In 2025, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights was investigating 28 different complaints against GRPD. In 20 In 2024, 51 class A complaints were submitted to internal affairs at Grand Rapids Police Department, which included excessive use of force and racial profiling. [gasps] These are public facts available to anyone with a computer. So, a question I have tonight for Mr. Washington and the Grand Rapids City Commission is number one, is it not

obvious GRPD is guilty of using excessive force during public interactions? Number two, is it not apparent that GRPD officers are not being held accountable? Number three, is it not reasonable to assume that blatant racism exists in GRPD? And number four, why are you not addressing and solving these problems? Thank you. Jesus. Let's get down to business. I given the mayor and the commissioners a picture of a young man named DeAndre who had his mouth bit off by a police dog. We also saw that Dcoan was mauled and when I was at the funeral home with his mother, we got to see uh dog marks that we believe may even continued after he was deceased. So on mayor's Monday when I begin to say that we need to have a review. Uh definitely something that uh Mia Lrand um has had some conversations and sparked up some conversations um about the K9. So I want to definitely give him credit for the meetings that he have with us in the community. But today I wrote this to send to you because we don't have years to work on this. We

have to work on this now. When you look at this picture, you can understand why our community is ready to implode. I'm writing to formally request a con consensive a comprehensive review of the city of Grand Rapids K9 deployment policies and practices. Recent incidents and ongoing community concerns underscore the need for greater transparency, accountability and evaluation regarding the use of police canines. Specifically, I respectively request that the city undertake the following actions. data collection and review, gather and publicly assess data related to K9 deployments over the past several years, including but not limited to frequency and circumstances of K9 development, demographic data of individuals involved, nature and severity of injuries or fatalities, outcomes of incidents involving K9 use. Number two, training standards and practice. conduct a review of training requirements for both K9 handlers and non-handler officers, particularly as it pertains to decision making around K9 deployment, deescalation alternatives, coordination between K9 units and patrol officers. Number three, policy evaluation and reform. Examine existing K9 policies to identify provisions that may elevate the risk of serious injury or death. where such risk are identified. I urge the city to pursue policy changes that prioritize preservation of life proportional responses and constitutional policies. The use of police canines carry inherent risk and is incumbent upon us as public servants to ensure these policies governing their deployment reflects our best practices, evolving standards, and the values of the community we serve.

It's really that serious. When people run for office, all we talk about is what we can do. Now that we're in office is no more time to talk about what we can't do. We need change and we need that now. Justice for Dcoin gives one a full investigation so we can judge that better. And may DeAndre receive the help he needs to continue his life in peace. [applause]

How's everyone doing tonight? I am Daycoin's mother. Initially, I was just going to show up, but I need I think I need to speak up. I want to know at what point do us mothers of police violence, losing our children, do we get answers? It's going on a week now and I still have no answers. I don't have an autopsy. I don't know how he died. At what point do they get to stop hiding behind you guys? At what point does that young man I I met that man. I met Sterling's mother. I've talked to Dogget's mother. At what point or what price do we have to continue to pay until we get actual justice? if he or he was to shoot have been the ones to shot Daycoin because they quote unquote saw a gun that I have yet to see because I cannot get footage. They get to y'all get to release what you want to to the public. That's not fair. Your police chief says things like, "We edited this video." But then y'all have a professional try to discredit our video. We didn't edit our video. They did. They're refusing to give me answers. They're slandering our kids after they murder them because they got a record. Really?

Does that make it right? That makes it right. Again, I want to say this and reiterate this. The president has a longer record than my son did. And if a police officer shot him, [applause] guess what? Y'all lock him up. No if, ands, or buts about it. Don't matter if they said the president had a gun. If they shoot him, guess what? Yeah, that that officer, that president, he ain't this color. I'm multi-racial. I have a whole white side of my family standing with me. There's not a racist bone in my body or anybody else that's supporting me. But we don't just got Daycoin. We got the ICE killing people. These are all law enforcement. At what time do you elected officials really do y'all job that we voted y'all in for? Like at what point do people get justice? That woman GOT SHOT FOR no for no reason. But y'all found a way. people f not y'all but people like y'all found a way to cover it up so that that officer didn't get charges like y'all going to be okay if we was to go out and start shooting the police

ma'am if you could finish your thought I'm just want to tell you everyone gets three minutes in so I I'm not trying to but I apologize but what I need to know is

what are you guys going to do when do we the people get THE JUSTICE THAT WE actually deserve. When do we stop electing people that promise us to do something different than the people before y'all? There was a time this stuff won all this violence. When do y'all start controlling the narrative again? Thank you. [applause] I've asked DeAndre to come to the meeting to speak for itself. [snorts] Can everybody hear me? Yeah.

Okay. My name is DeAndre Gavine. I grew up in the city of Detroit. I moved here for schooling. I graduated here for carpentry and nursing. I want to say first off, I say my deepest condolence to Mrs. Johnson. And then I want to talk about what happened to me on the night of January 5th, which was not right. It was unlawful and I felt as if I would never look the same. I would never be able to think the same. Every time I go to sleep at night, I think about the same thing. You know how big that dog mouth opened when they bit me in my face? They don't know that. They won't know how I feel about that. Every time I got to look at one of my family members, how my mama feeling about this, how my daddy feeling I can't tell my daddy about this. My daddy got stage four cancer right now. You know what I'm saying? I can't tell my daddy nothing about this cuz you know why? It might cause it might cause distress on him. You know, I've went through so so so much here and it hurts me. It hurts me deeply to know that that happened to me. I never in my life would think something like that happened to me because of the way that I am. I'm a I'm a a happy individual. I take care of everyone. You can ask around even in the neighborhoods. I look out for everybody. So why me? Why me? Especially when I'm compliant, when my hands are out of my window. Why? no reason. It's going to get quiet just as such. So now I'm here demanding the answers. I'm not here for peace. I'm not here for none of that. I'm here for results. I'll demand results. If they can't give me that, then hey, so be it. I ain't got nothing else to say, man. [applause]

Hello. Hello everyone sitting up there. I'm going to pray for all the families that are going through losing a loved one. It's a lot and everyone's like angry cuz it's like we're not being heard. I am 49. I fight a lot of cases downtown at the courthouse because my people get pulled over and get charges that are so ridiculous. So I ask them all to fight their cases. Do not plead guilty to the minute charges that they put on us purposely knowing that down the line when you want to do better, it messes up your crim criminal history. Then we have to fight to correct our records. It's like we're being seen from the outside and not the inside. A lot of people like myself grew up in the inner city. A lot of people that judge the inner city never been there, never live there. None of y'all really know the struggle. So, yes, we're going to fight against a lot. And I'm going to continue to fight. I pray for these families. It's painful. And then it's like we look at all of y'all, even the police. The police pulled me over 15 times in one week and asked me where was I going. Why is it their business where am I going and I work for the state of Michigan? Once they see that I run work for the state of Michigan, guess what they do? Oh, you have a good night, ma'am. What? They stop you and ask you. It's like they provoke you. They are aggressive. They know what they're doing. I asked some officers one night. Do they know that they're intimidating

the people in the neighborhoods? And they told me, "Yes." That's a problem. That's a problem. But everybody want respect from the inner city. How do you want respect when you're not showing us any respect? No one downtown ever has the right answers. Maybe you guys don't know the answers. We don't know all the answers, but we have to fight for what we know is biased against us as a community. It's been going on for years. It's like our voices, our screams, our cries are not being heard. Until it hits one of you guys' homes, you'll never understand what we as a community go through. So, I ask all of y'all, do better. The police are aggressive. They need and what I've learned a lot of them have criminal histories. They've been violent in their past. But every time we get pulled over or something happens with us where we something goes on with us, even if we get murdered, everyone is quick to bring up our criminal history, our past. Everyone has a past, including downtown. A lot of them are very violent and aggressive. So something needs to be done until they kill one of yours, not knowing that one of you guys work in the office or downtown. [applause]

Hello, I'm Matthew Scott. I've been I've been here and you have given because of uh enemies whom we love in the Lord. um the um the threat you given us permission to um not state the address. But my name is Matthew. I'm 30 and I've been Yeah. I've been alive for 30 years. I'm not we're not Republicans. We're not Democrats and we but we as followers of Christ and we voted going according to the Bible and um and there's a lot of emotion tonight and but we here to we here to celebrate Black History Month and we agree with a guy who said it is shameful that is limited to a month while other wastes while other holidays correctly show so are not limited to a month. We believe there should be a um two three months for black history and um we know we we know some black history like the the dead gun state and we stand up for the um black people and a majority of them are black that are being torn apart that are being um viciously ly murdered at 425 Easter and viciously murdered at um uh it is not planned parenthood. We call it planned genocide or anti- parentthood.

And we we are here who and the ones who al also the ones who are viciously torn apart and murdered at the at the hospitals and we here to speak up for them and we also here to invite you to call on the Lord and be still saved so you so so you can join us in heaven. And we also invite you to come to one of our church services and even was life church and our churches on badworth and division. Thank you and God bless. Thank you, Matthew. He's right. Uh, we're neither Democrat or Republican [clears throat] when it comes to politics. I'm here again to speak up for the unborn, black, white, Hispanic, any other nationality, but also, as my son said, to recognize Black History Month. Did you know that uh Jesse Jackson, who just passed away, once more than once called abortion genocide? Jesse Jackson. I've quoted Martin Luther King Jr. many times here. How can the dream survive if we murder the children? Every aborted baby is like a slave in the womb of his or her mother. The mother decides his or her life. Did you know that Republicans voted to abolish slavery? Democrats opposed it.

Did you know that Republicans gave blacks the right to vote? Democrats opposed it. Republicans passed the Civil Rights Act. Democrats opposed it. The first black Republican was elected to the US Senate in 1871. Hyram Rhodess. The first black Democrat wasn't elected to the US Senate until 1999. The first 22 blacks elected to the US House were all Republicans. Martin Luther King Senior was a Republican. Martin Luther King Jr. was an independent. Abraham Lincoln, of course, was a Republican. Jim Crow. We hear a lot about Jim Crow. He was a Democrat. The KKK operated as a parliamentary wing of the Democratic Party. If you get bored throughout the night, you can check my facts by looking up history, art, and archives. The founder of Planned Parenthood. Her name is Margaret Sanger, founder of the same place at 425 East Cherry. And again, I remind you, 100 babies are murdered there every week. Margaret Sanger said this, we don't want the word to get out that we want to exterminate the negro population. They are human weeds, reckless breeders, spawning human beings who never should have been born. I also accepted invitation to talk to the women's branch of the Ku Klux Clan. She was also a personal friend of Adolf Hitler. This is the spirit at 425 East Cherry, killing 100 babies every week, black, white, Hispanic. If you want less violence in this city, shut that place down.

[applause] Please folks, I that's if if we could if you could notice on the sign, one of our uh de facto things is to not clap because it's important to have public comment and be able to hear people, but it's also important that we do it. So, thank you.

First, I want to say his name, Deco. seen that video of one cop having his hand almost sutured to his back, a dog gnawing on his face and shoulder, [snorts] and the executor pulling out his gun for almost a minute before he shot him. [snorts] I want to address the chief of police, Eric Winstro, and soon to be Joe Trig. Our [snorts] color is not a weapon. [snorts] To all the police officers in the world, [laughter and gasps] our color is not a weapon.

[gasps]

I'm tired of being scared of my family leaving the house. My brothers, [laughter] my uncles, my father. [laughter] [snorts] In the second commandment, God says, "Thou shalt not kill." This is a battle between good and evil. [gasps and laughter] What side do you want to be on? [snorts] Because right now [gasps] it's evil. [laughter] And I pray for all the families who have had to endure this pain. All the hearts that are broken for this senseless evil [gasps] [snorts] we have on our money here in America. And God we trust. Why [snorts] trust God to fight for us? Because if you guys don't, we will and he will. [snorts] [sighs and gasps] I'm tired of y'all putting us at the bottom of a barrel. We get pulled over [gasps] for driving real black, working real black, being born. Black is a crime. And I want to ask the police, [laughter and gasps] are you going to reconstruct your system? Cuz clearly something is not working. [snorts] Why do you shoot to kill? Do I look threatening to you? Do [snorts] 90% of the people in this room look threatening to you? Your policies need to be evaluated. And I hope and pray [gasps] that you guys look at it like one of your family members are being gunned down in the

street [snorts] because it happens to us every day. And I [laughter] pray that God has mercy on everybody's soul that does not find a problem with what's going on today. [snorts] Thank you. [applause] My name is Letha Griffin. Um I'm with the third ward. Um I have um been in the last class which was with linkup and the fellows program. So they're the first ones that actually I start getting involved with coming down here to the city commission meeting. Um mostly just to speak about the transformation in my life, how I was in recovery, born again believer Christ and um also came down here to commend the city. Um, the last couple of times I came, not tonight. Tonight I come with hurt, pain, anger, [panting] disappointment. I have nine brothers and sisters. I've got um three brothers that were shot and killed. I've got um 48 nieces and nephews. I have a large family who I love and I care about dearly. There has I've had to overcome a lot of obstacles in my life and I look for resources and um looking to the city of Grand Rapids for all types of help um to help me with the situation. And so I come down with her pain disappointment. I am in sheer utter and disbelief and speaking to let today to let the city

know that the police department has to answer for what it has done. [snorts] The police department has no regard for human life. We feel that we are being treated with disrespect. We we have no safe and protected community. We have never been so scared or intimidated in our community. To even have to witness some of the things that we have to witness that we are going through that does not even happen to us. To have to witness these things is sheer and utter disbelief. Especially the things that just recently happened going on with people being shot, mauled by dogs, treated with unjustly um things that are going on in this community. You can't tell how evil people and monsters really look like by their clothes or their physical appearance, but you can't tell by their actions. Stop coming to these scenes with your canines, using them as weapons against people to hurt, kill, and ma people. Stop using excessive force. Stop brutally stop being brut. Stop having brutality against us and our communities and our loved ones. You are supposed to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. I am ashamed to live here. I am a certified mental health worker for three years. I know for three years I know mental retardation people when I see them. Your police department needs assessments immediately. They need to be evaluated. I suggest that you send them to Pine Rest Hope Network or Spectrum Community Services before you hire them. I also suggest that you get

you're three minutes. If you could finish your thought. Okay. Uh let me see this part I want to say. You can you could you can't tell how evil people and monsters really look like by their clothes or their physical appearance, but you can tell by their actions. So I just pray that you guys get the that the police department gets the necessary help that they need. Gee, I wonder if it'll cut me off. Good evening. My name is Jace.

And I'm coming to you on behalf of the Grand Rapids Action Committee to speak in favor of sanctuary city policy, ending all cooperation with ICE and preventing the and prosecuting the killer cops this city allows to run rampant because DHS and ICE are two heads of the same fascist monster. I'm I'm sure hearing these concerns of the people make Mayor Lrand want to run as far away from this meeting as possible. It seems our Valiant mayor has an allergic prohibition of making strong, principled, clear stances to protect the people whose taxes pay his salary. That or he just doesn't care. And I'm willing to bet on the latter. Case in point, when we last tried to bring this issue to you, you expelled our comrade. Afterwards, you turned and said, "Just saved us 30 minutes." to one of your colleagues. Our taxes pay for your salary. Yet you you seem to see us as a burden. Our taxes pay for you to listen to us. Dcoan Johnson's taxes paid for it, too. Yet, you likely have just as much sympathy for him as you do for all the people you allow ICE to abduct. You know how you know how I know? Because Kai has spent more time in jail under your government than any killer cops.

We, the working people, don't have the time for your pathetic excuses and virtue signaling. Our neighbors are dying. End all police and state violence. Abolish ICE and abolish the Grand Rapids Police Department. Say his name, Dcoan Johnson. [applause] [applause] Uh, good evening, city council. I am Jay Congden. I am also a representative from the Grand Rapids Action Committee, uh, a direct action activism organization recently formed in response to ISIS's unlawful violence and American imperialism. And I'm here to list Grand Rapids Action Committee's demands and uh, thank my peer Jace. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands ice out of GR and everywhere. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands sanctuary protections now. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands the prohibition of flock cameras. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands the repeal of 287G agreements that fund ICE. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands Grand Rapids Police Department and city leaders be held accountable for all unlawful violence committed by military and paramilitary organizations. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands statements from GRPD and city leaders related to non-ooperation with ICE and what might happen in the event of an invasion similar to Minneapolis. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands the shutdown of detention centers in GR and Michigan. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands no support for Geog Group and Core Civic. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands an eviction moratorum for all families in fact impacted by ICE aggression. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands the end of support for military intervention abroad and at home. Grand Rapids Action Committee demands justice for all of those slain unlawfully or undeservedly, including but not limited to the recent slaying of DQ. Thank you. Pull up. [applause]

Hello. How do you turn this off? Just push the button.

Hello, I am Dylan Dodge, Grand Rapids resident and a member of Socialist Alternative and the Grand Rapids Action Committee. Police brutality is absolutely out of control. You got cops shooting people at the back of the head while also having them mauled by dogs. You got cop cars running people over. You There's no accountability. It feels like excessive force is a persistent problem with GRPD. I mean, literally one time while I was driving along division, I saw a couple of GRPD officers bodys slamming a teenage boy. like two big cops chasing after this teenage boy and one big dude just leaps on him and bodys slams him to the ground. That should not be acceptable because when stuff like that becomes an everyday occurrence, that's how you end up with people like Patrick Lavoya and Dcoin Johnson getting brutally murdered the way they were. And on top of that, you've also got ICE conducting raids on Caesar Chavez. No one wants to live their lives in fear. And ICE is really a huge component of the Trump administration's agenda to enact a reign of terror over the American people, to quash descent through terror and surveillance, and to create a white supremacist ethnation where the people are made to believe that they're inalienable rights don't actually exist. 32 people have died in ICE custody. You can literally find their names on ISIS's website. Look look up their names on ICE.gov. You'll find their names. I know that someone will say, "Oh, they're illegal immigrants." Well, prove it. Prove it with due process because otherwise you're engaging in racial profiling and just kidnapping people for being Hispanic even though they're abiding by the law. It's absolutely frightening that you have Christy Noam just saying criminals don't deserve due process when due process is how you tell people who have committed a crime from people who haven't. You can't just say I

am the law what I say goes. That's not how it works. The people who value justice will hold you accountable for failing to respect people's constitutional rights. Even if you don't heed to our demands right now, we'll keep fighting. We are not going to stop until our demands are met. [sighs] We are not going to quit. We are not going to capitulate to capitalism and greed and inhumity. It's too easy to be swayed by something with no soul for consideration of big oligarchs who don't respect the community, the constitution, or human dignity. I don't like to do things the easy way and I feel like that we deserve a better reality, a better society, a better country with fairer, equitable institutions. This is our one life and one chance. And from my perspective, as someone who doesn't believe in an afterlife, it is unethical to treat people poorly and force their options to be foreclosed and limited when they have a finite amount of time on this planet. The working class is the future. We are the future. And the way I see it is this. Help us or get out of the way. [applause] Uh, hi. My name is Ally. I'm obviously here to speak on the murder of Daycoin Johnson. Um, last time I was here, um, I left this building and was assaulted by GRPD officers and I was 3 months pregnant. And from that incident, I got a felony charge for touching a police officer. Myself, right now, we have an activist named Kai has also spent more time in jail than any of the officers involved in these local police killings. There have been 12 officer involved shootings in Grand Rapids. And within the past four years with all but three of them taking place on the southeast side of Grand Rapids, I recall at some point after Patrick Leoy was killed, there was a statement that

was put out by the statement by the my goodness by the chief of police and he was talking about how we're going to have a sanctuity of life. We're going to warn people before they we kill them. Where's that sanctuity of life? More people have been dying since Patrick Leoya. Last time I was here, I asked you how many more people have to die in order for something to be done about this? And I keep asking this because since then, at least three more people have died at the hands of GRPD alone. This was an execution and this is a direct result of not holding Christopher Sher accountable when he executed Patrick Leoya almost four years ago. Our prosecutor is prior prioritizing charging activists for using their first amendment rights. Our prosecutor, the same one that wasn't going to retry Christopher Sher after the mistrial, told an activist that he would retry her after her mistrial until he dies.

That's how much effort he's putting into silencing the voices of this community instead of listening to us. We're not saying we don't like the police for no reason. We're saying that from experience. We're seeing our people be killed. They they let a dog maul him after they shot him more than three times.

Four. There's no reason why this should keep happening. We constantly hear from the police about civilian violence, but when are we going to talk about their violence? This is a systemic issue we've been fighting forever. I've been doing this since I was 19. I'm 25. And people have been doing this long before me. This is unacceptable. Every single one of you have an obligation to this community to do right by us. We pay all your salaries. Like someone said, Daycoin Johnson paid your salaries. Paid the salaries of the officers that killed him.

Justice for Patrick Leoya. Justice for Samuel Sterling. Justice for Riley Dogit. Justice for Hank Wymer. Justice for Joey Nagel. Justice for Daycoon Johnson. And free Kai. [applause] Good evening. U. My name is Lily Edgars. I come before the commission tonight as a resident of the third ward and in solidarity with my neighbors, the Johnson family, and the black community in Grand Rapids and all people who have experienced harm at the hands of GRPD. I echo many of the comments already made tonight. Um, I live in the Franklin Eastern area, uh, been there for three and a half years, uh, and it's just a few blocks from where Dcoin Johnson's life was taken by the GRPD officer. My block is made up of neighbors that look out for each other, children that love to play outside and people of all ages and backgrounds. I love Grand Rapids because of its people. But the public safety approach that this city takes cast a dark shadow across our community. I see on a nearly daily basis and have had my own experiences with the disruption the excessive presence of the GRPD in our neighborhood brings. Our city's police force not only has a policy problem, but a cultural problem. One with a documented history of racism and sees the people they are supposed to protect as threatening criminals. So though it is absolutely devastating, it is unsurprising that we see another black man killed by the GRPD in southeast Grand Rapids. As Ally said, the community has been calling for change for public safety for years. And instead of change, the city's leaders and police force continue to harm, kill, and criminalize the very community members they're supposed to represent. I believe that the blood of Dcoin Johnson is not only on the hands of the

officer that took his life, not just the GRPD, but on all people involved in the system and structures that have allowed this to continue to happen. Another family is grieving. The community is again traumatized. By not changing our approach to public safety, you're allowing violence, death, and both individual and collective trauma to continue in our community. I want to thank Commissioner Purdue for talking to community members tonight about the process that takes place after an officer involved shooting. And we understand we're waiting to see how that plays out, but there are things that this body can do to reduce the likelihood of this happening again. Marginalized communities know better than anyone that change does not happen quickly, but is nevertheless necessary. So, we demand transparency, accountability, and that justice be realized. Release the name of the officer who took Dcoin's life, release all of the unedited footage, and take steps towards fundamental change in the city's approach to public safety. Thank you. [applause]

Check. Oh, okay. Mic check. Uh my name is Javon. Uh first of all, I want to say assalam alaikum to all my Muslim brothers and sisters as we are celebrating Ramadan right now. Um I know y'all hungry, so uh you know time is almost coming. Uh personally, I'm not really here to speak to them. I'm here to speak to y'all

because we keep asking them year after year, decade after decade, century after century for [ __ ] to change for us. As you can see, most likely that [ __ ] ain't going to happen. Oh, my bad. No question. Okay, great. um we need to worry about ourselves our community. We too worried worrying about answers from them and not holding ourselves accountable for the things that we do. If you never change the person in the mirror, you can't expect somebody else to change it for you. So, since I've been sitting there, every person that I've seen come up here has been speaking to them. They may give you eye contact, they may not. That should tell you everything. They do not care. It starts with us. We have to stop. I won't even say victim blaming is the is the right term. Miss Johnson, she deserves justice. Outside of that, we got to hold each other accountable. This is [clears throat] D. Jones. I appreciate you. you are in these meetings day in day out and this is the first time I've seen this many people come and rally for you know something and it's sad that it had to be a situation like this we got to hold our we got to hold

ourselves accountable we worried about where the dollars going to come from from them who they going to fund who they going to defund we going to fund Y'all going to get that tax money. What y'all going to do with it? You f to go buy the new Jay's. You f to get the new weave in your hair. You going to get your nails done, your toes done. You asking for them to do something for community. Take that money and do something for the community. Stop worrying about what the next man going to do or not do for us and let's do it for ourselves. If we start there, you can't tell us nothing. Appreciate y'all. [applause] [clears throat] How's everybody doing tonight? My name is Kenneth Cortez. Um, I am an advocate of the third ward, um, and the city of Grand Rapids on a larger whole, as well as black people and all disenfranchised people across this nation and across the world. I think that we should all be one, but we all know that it's not cut like that. Um, I'm not going to stand up here and spend the next two minutes lamenting about all of the things that we know is an issue. I just had this young lady who wants to get into the social justice field and she pulled me aside and she asked me, she said, "How do you keep doing it? Aren't you numb by now? You've been all over the country, Ken, and you cover death after death after death. You keep going to talk to families and you continue to do this work, right? How do you do it?" I said, "You know what? To be honest, I am kind of numb, but at the end of the day, this does not get easier. every time I have to come up on the microphone and talk to the people that everybody knows kind of

wants to care, but you're in a position where you have to care about way too many people than an individual. We're the individuals though and that's the issue. We've had people come up here and they've talked directly at you. I work with a lot of you directly or soon to be at the very least directly. I've shaken hands with some of you. So, I know you're human. I've looked you dead in your eyes. I know you're there somewhere. And I continue to plead with you all to do the right thing. And I know that some of you have. Commissioner Perdue, always present, always giving back to the community, at least in the form of knowledge. Thank you. Commissioner Kilgore, since you've been elected, I've been seeing you pretty much at everything the third ward has to offer. As much as you can make it. Thank you for continuing to show up. Commissioner Knight, I see you a lot as well. You're not my commissioner directly, but thank you. Right. Uh, Mr. Washington, the first time we met, I actually had a Briana Taylor shirt on and I said, "You shouldn't still be here in six years. You're still here. I'm not directly mad at that, but it's time for you to do the job that the people are asking you to do. It's time for you to stand up and take a stand against this because, as my colleague Ally did say, when they didn't convict con uh Christopher Sher, this was going to happen again and it was going to be worse. I was there in 2019. I was standing next to the man that almost got his face blew off by a gas canister that got th shot out of a cannon. They actually twisted the can and rolled it right between my legs. Gas burst everywhere. I was there. I was in Louisville multiple times. I was up in Minneapolis multiple times. I know what these riots look like and I know how people get off on the violence. Do y'all want that again? Because it's coming. I'm promising you that. And it's not from me. It's from the people.

Martin Luther King said that best. And I'm not even going to repeat it. I'm going to lay this to rest. My time is done. Thank you. [applause] Good evening. My name is Colin Helick. I'm a resident of the first ward, formerly the second ward, but I moved back to the first. And when I was young, uh, and my mother had been pushed to two steps to the edge of her sanity, her go-to phrase to alert us to that would be, "I'm speechless." The funny thing about that is that she would then next spend the next 20 minutes explaining why, which seems uh kind of be which seems like a silly move, but I feel the same way, but thankfully I am beholden to the three-minute clock. Everything about the murder of Duantandre Johnson is horrid. That man was forced onto his stomach, shot three times while a canine unit mauled him. And we are sitting here expected to be polite about it.

We are expected to be nice about it when we watched a man I watched a man at the vigil. I I watched him be murdered in real time when the footage was released. I stood next to community members and Commissioner Wulmarmac watching that happen. German Shepherds have a bite strength between 230 and 290 PSI. To crush an apple, you need 150 PSI. That's the force that this man was being mauled with by a canine. We know who was killed, what position he was in when he was killed. We know where the pursuit started and ended. We The why isn't terribly relevant in my opinion, and the how is the most obvious. He was shot by a cop in the back laying on the ground. Within 18 hours of that murder, I knew the victim's name, the sound of his mother's sobs, and was attending a vigil to remember him. That's the problem because the community doesn't know who did it. We deserve to know the name of the of the cop who shot him. We can get into the hypotheticals of, "Oh, but what if somebody does this or that?" And in truth, real retaliation would be wrong. But let's not let that truth overshadow the reality of the situation. Duantandre murder Dauand Tree Johnson was murdered by a police police officer on his back, shot three times while being mauled by a K-9 unit. I was there 18 hours after the fact at a vigil watching the video where he was murdered. [gasps] So, I suggest three things to this commission tonight. Ban K9 units from being involved in onfoot pursuits. re-evaluate the city's disciplinary policy because administrative leave is not enough when you have lynched a man in our communities and also lastly release the full unedited body cam video and 911 call audio to the public. A mother has lost her son. Another one. And if you aren't going to let what needs to be done and be and turn it into what you're willing to do, another mother will lose her son soon. Thank you. [applause]

Uh, hi. My name is Jaden. I wasn't planning on speaking today. Um, I grew up in Wyoming, live in stand right now. I've been an EMT for about 3 years. Bulk of my time has been spent in Moskegan. I responded to shootings, car accidents, stabbings with police officers. I've seen how they act in the field. I've seen callous remarks next to overdose victims. I've seen cops bully patients in mental health crisises. And I I've seen brutality firsthand. I've seen that cop over there on his phone for half of this meeting. He doesn't give a [ __ ] about anything we're saying right now. All right. It pisses us off. And uh that's really all I got to say. Justice for Daycoan. We're going to be here every day until the killing stop. [applause]

Hello, my name is Harrison and I live in the first ward. Um, first of all, I want to piggyback off of that and say the cop in the back on his phone, um, I witnessed him helping out ICE like maybe two months ago. He arrested two comrades. So, shame on him.

Um, yeah, I stand here heartbroken for for Dcoin's family and for this community that you see here today. It's it's amazing to see this turnout on on such horrid circumstances. Um, justice for Dcoin, justice for Samuel, for Riley, for Patrick, for Hank, uh, for Kai. Uh, I'm sick of I'm sick of GRPD. You guys suck. I'm sick of seeing my friends chased down on on bikes and being harassed. I'm sick of my houseless neighbors being incriminated for not having a home. I'm sick of seeing dog bite wounds. And I'm sick of my family friends being tased and pepper-sprayed. I'm sick of seeing my neighbors executed. Are you not? These are the people we pay. Do your job, please. We built this [ __ ] system. We can build another. Okay. Thank you. [applause] Hello, I'm Andra. I currently live in Kentwood, but prior to moving to Kentwood, I lived on Neland, directly across from Joe Taylor Park. We had to move because I wanted my kids to be safe and able to play outside. In one year's time, my street was blocked off at least four times that I can recall for driveby shootings. The [ __ ] happened right in front of my house. At least once a month, I found bullet holes in the siding on my front porch. My neighbor had bullets fly into his home while he was asleep in his bed. My son, who was only six at the time, would have been struck one time had my neighbor not been standing right on the porch and instinctually grabbed him up and pulled him inside as bullets were flying onto my porch. I would hear gunshots most

nights in the early morning hours, like 12:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m. My car was shot at while I was parked on the street. I never seen cops drive by just patrolling those streets. Never. I only seen them show up after someone was shot. Not even when guns were going off non-stop did I see them. But when there was a driveby and the person was either dead or critical, then I'd see them. [snorts] It is true that they overp police the southeast side, but from my perspective, they mostly patrol the outside perimeter. They patrol the businesses on wealthy and wealthy street market. They patrol Eastern, Fuller, Franklin, etc. And as long as you stay in your little nest, they don't care. This is [clears throat] what Huey Newton talked about. He talked about black communities essentially being internal colonies. It's almost like the southeast side is segregated and as soon as you cross that perimeter, they're harassing and profiling you. You can see it without even having to live in those spots. You can be driving down Franklin and see it gradually go from really nice to run down. Same with the other side of Fuller. It [snorts] got so bad that I used to wonder if the cops themselves were shooting off guns at night. That didn't stop them from building new homes and gentrifying everything. But GRPD is not in the business of taking down actual criminals because they know exactly where the [ __ ] they're at. They're only interested in racial profiling easy targets like black men on bikes minding their own business, not harming anyone. At the meeting last night, the mayor said, [gasps] "I think anyone who owns a gun should be ashamed, mayor. Your privilege is showing.

How are bipock and marginalized groups supposed to protect themselves from GRPD when you refuse to do anything about the racial profiling and your trigger happy officers?" I'll [clears throat] finish with this quote by Mao. We are advocates of the abolition of war. We do not want war, but war can only be abolished through war. And in order to get rid of the gun, it is necessary to take up the gun. Justice for Dcoin Johnson. [applause] Hello, commissioners. My name is Riley. I am a resident of the first ward. I've lived in Grand Rapids for almost a decade now. I moved here from Flint. um where the trust in the police is very low, the violence is high. That will continue to happen here. To echo what Robert S said earlier, we need policy change. A lot of us have been out here for a very long time. Some of us in the room longer than others. Some of us it's our first meeting. How many more meetings until we are able to get that policy change? I am horrified and not surprised at the yet again excessive use of force by the GRPD. After all of the names that we have all had to memorize and here tonight, I am glad that this young man is not another one of them. The fact that we are still using dogs as a means to subdue and also trying to communicate that the police department is not an inherently racist organization. Uh, I would ask that those people educate themselves on the use of dogs in slave catching. I am I'm getting frazzled if you

couldn't tell because I'm upset about the situations in our city. Patrick Leo was shot in my grandmother's driveway and a lot of her changed after that. She went out and she was able to keep the candles lit for many weeks after he was gone and after the marches slowed down. And in my neighborhood now where it was only a 5-minute walk to his vigil, we have signs up that say, "Stop shooting. We play here." Are those for community members or are those for the officers? Thank you. [applause] Good evening everyone. First off, my name is Michael King and I am here to talk to you guys and I am also here to talk to my people as well. We have been going through these. You know what? I don't care about that. We have We have been going through a lot of these things so many times. so many times. We've been going through these things longer than I have been alive, longer than many of us here have been alive. When this action is going to be taken like when are you guys actually going to be listening to the people that are actually affected? When are you going when when are you guys going to start targeting the communities that are being targeted 24/7? He was a son. He was a friend. Something that you guys should care about. He was also a community member. You guys should not just be here listening just just so these community members and people that's actually passionate about these things. These words should not be going in one ear and out of the other. President, I mean not president, Mayor

Lrand, I have barely seen you look up from your phone this whole meeting. Only when things are address only when we are addressing you or something impacts you directly. I have so much respect for you. But but that's the thing. But that's the thing, transparency, honesty. You guys are so quick to release mug shots of criminals and that just robs some people, but then y'all can't release the names of the officers who have committed this execution. I'm tired of hearing murder. This is not a murder. This was an execution. And so I I am very shaken right now. I'm very passionate. I have worked with many of you guys here. I have respect for you guys. However, this is about accountability. You guys were you guys were elected in you guys position because of accountability. We have been dealing with these things for so many times. I am not here representing I'm here rep I am not here representing individual organizations. I am here representing my people. I am here representing the future and I am here representing transparency and justice. A lot of people always say a lot of people always say let's change policy. When are we going to start changing things? when are you guys going to start listening and everything and beyond beyond just you guys when when are the when our constituents are also going to be listening to some of the things that we're talking about 24/7 but I have to talk to you guys for the p for the last 30 seconds culture eat and I hear that all the time we cannot keep changing some things and we cannot put something on paper and expect people to listen culture eat policy 24/7 I'm going to say his name again, Dcoan Johnson. He was a son. He was a friend. He was a family member. I don't care about you guys looking at me and having eye contact with me. What I care about you guys is listening and actually making action and actually putting some change to y'all resumes

because right now I'm not saying anything. Thank you.

[applause] Good evening. My name is Richard Griffin. Um, and I believe what I have to say is basically a few questions to this body.

Okay. Make sure you're clear. Shall I proceed? Go ahead. Gotcha.

I got it. Go ahead. Oh, all right. Thank you. My name is Richard Griffin. Um, many of you I know from community. I've worked in um proximity to most of you in different areas. Uh, I have a few questions for this body. First of all, are you you guys tired? Y'all had enough? Have you all had enough? I've listened to the folks from this community come up here and express their thoughts, their concerns, and I can't help but to recall that I've never heard any of you address any of these questions at any time. Is there going to be a space when you answer these folks questions? But back to my original question is, have you had enough? Your police agency historically is operating at slave patrol in the third ward. This isn't a this isn't just some halfcocked idea. This is what I've witnessed day in and day out. I'm a resident of that community. I work in that community. I own business in that community. These men are being hunted by Grand Rapids Police Department. Have you all had enough of that? Have you had enough of folks coming in here and telling you what is going on before you take a position to say enough is enough? Because the alternative, we've heard statistics from folks saying the Grand Police Department is above and beyond assertive in their use of authority, their abuse of authority, but you've also heard from this community that they're tired. They've had enough. I would it behooves you to act very quickly before this community does. [applause]

Hi, my name is Lindsay. Um, first off, I'd like to start this by addressing Mayor Lrand. I truly think you owe an apology to quite a lot of people, but first and foremost, all of the black and brown folks in this room who have come up to spoke to speak. You've refused to give consistent eye contact with it's it's just a blatant sign of disrespect and lack of care about what we're talking about and what they're talking about. Um, I also had the chance to watch some of the mayor's meeting and that was uh really difficult to watch. I don't know how as a white man you can start a statement by saying, "I have a dream." That's disgraceful. I don't get where you do that, especially it's Black History Month. I just don't get it. Um, another part of that is you seem to victim blame um, within the mayor's meeting in terms of saying that you feel shameful or I'm not sure the exact words, but in regards to anyone who owns a gun, I think that's um, a really victim laming statement and a point of concern. Um, I also live in the 49507 area code. um Burton and Eastern area and the way you stalk the community is scary. Um I have friends and people I really care about who don't want to come to my place after dark because of my location and the way that GRPD stalks. Um, since moving into my home in 2021, you've killed Patrick Leoya literally um, six blocks from my home. And then now you've killed DQ Johnson. Um, Dain uh, literally eight blocks from my house. I don't like I walk my dog in these neighborhoods and it's like I

don't I avoid I think it's Silver and Ne where Patrick was killed cuz I don't want to go over there anymore. Um, but yeah, it's traumatic for people to drive in that neighborhood. It's scary. Um, the way the police stalk it, you guys park in all the parking lots. You park in areas that are dark and you're hiding like predators and I don't understand it. Cuz when I go to East Grand Rapids, I never see that. When I go to the northeast side, I never see that. When I go to any of the other suburbs, I don't see that. Um, and I hate that people I love and care about don't feel safe coming to my house cuz I feel so safe with my neighbors. There are kids playing in the street. And I don't know when those little kids are going to become a threat. Like they paint me rocks and put them on my doorstep. They play with my dog and they're so sweet, but when are they going to be a threat? Um, cuz it feels like it's just a matter of time. and Mark Washington, you've been here a long time listening to us and I just feel like it goes out one ear through the other. Thanks. [applause]

Hello, I'm Jesse. I'm a lifelong resident of Grand Rapids and I've been coming to these meetings for a while and we have asked the same thing every time. We ask for the people who have the power to change things to change them and every time nothing changes. And I hope that this is hard for you. I hope it is hard to hear everything that everybody is saying and that it finally maybe this time makes you change something, makes you act because we deserve to live in a place where we feel safe. I'm afraid for my neighbors. A woman was just assaulted by ICE at Miss Tracy's. They're here. They're taking our neighbors. And the people who are employed and overpaid and overpowered to protect us don't. So, please use your power to make change. Justice for all the lives lost. [applause] Good evening. Uh, my name is Frank Frank Vanpelt. Um, you guys don't know me from Adams and there have been so many eloquent people speaking tonight. I thought I'd share a little bit. Um, I go by many names um, from my family and my friends. Franklin, Frankie, Paco, Poncho, Uncle Frank is my favorite and great uncle Frank is my very favorite. Um, I've had the privilege to have a lot of

opportunities in my life to study abroad. I grew up in the Byron Center, Cutlerville area, but I've had the chance to study in in Spain, in Mexico, in Chile, and I grew up, my neighbors across the street were the Blanco family, uh, Cuban family, and I just feel privileged to have all of this in my life. Um, but I I do understand my white privilege. Um, I've never had a problem with the police ever. I've been pulled over. I just finished doing a Route 66 trip with my family and was pulled over twice on the trip and the officers were kind. Um, years ago when I was a kid or a young adult, I was pulled over in Saga and they got me out of the car and I did the the test and blew into the thing and they were so kind. They said, "Mr. Vampel, you don't blow um legally drunk, but we think by the time you drive into Grand Rapids, you will be. So, we think you should just go back and maybe get a room for the night." Um, so I understand my privilege, but I'm very nervous as a white guy, an old white guy, of what's what's happening um to my brothers and sisters of color. Um, it's terrifying. It It scares me for my niece and my nephew and my great nephew what they're going to be growing up into. Um, I never thought I'd have to come here and do this kind of thing. Honestly, I guess I was a little lazy um in my activism. Um, I came out in 1985 as a as a gay young man and we fought for our rights as in the LGBT community. And when we got them, we thought, "Hey,

we're done. That's great. We're not done. The ugly monster keeps raising its head." Um, the MAGA world scares me to death and I think it's I look at your faces and and I still I still have a little bit of trust. I still want to give the benefit of the doubt, but my trust is is waning. I don't have very many more benefits of a doubt. And if you don't start listening to these people and do something as simple as more accountability for the police department, it you're not going to get this isn't going to end. It isn't going to end well. Thank you. [applause]

Uh hello commissioners. Um my name is Sonia from the west side. uh [sighs and gasps] justice for Dcoan Johnson, Patrick Leoya, everybody else who's been brutalized by the GRPD and by ICE. Um, the last time I saw this room this packed was about a year ago, uh, shortly after Trump was elected and we were discussing sanctuary city policies, uh, in the city of Grand Rapids. Uh, there are about 200 people or more here at that time and we haven't made any progress on that front since. Uh, we're still demanding sanctuary city policies. If [sighs] the events of the last month have taught us anything, they should tell us that ICE, the police, DHS, and the Trump administration are prepared to escalate and continue escalating until they're forced to retreat. In other words, they fully intend to commit to continue committing acts of cruelty and sadism and to continue getting away with it. And they will get away with it unless people are bold enough to stand up to them. We're not asking for more legal observers. We're asking our city government to assert itself and take bold action to protect its people and take meaningful action to push back against the increasing militarization of the police, the state, DHS, and ICE. We want you to put up a fight. And the only other thing I want to say is that if Minneapolis showed us anything, they've shown that millions of people aren't going to sit idly by while these people abduct and murder in our streets. They shut Minneapolis down. And if people are afraid of being

targeted, abducted, or m murdered by the state, that is the next step. [applause] Well, well, well. Well, we are back, right? Last time I was here was when Patrick got killed. That's crazy, right? It's sad, right? I think Grand Rapids, Michigan deserves better. Grand Rapids, Michigan deserves a lot better. The nerve to say that we shouldn't have guns. the nerve, the nerve for these police officers to continue to harass and point us out. the nerve for them to be in my community on the southwest side, the southeast side, killing, kidnapping, throwing my people in vans, killing the black and brown folks like it's just hunting season. Why do we have Grand Rapids Police Department if they're not serving us? I had I had so much to say. I'm just going to put the phone down. You got people that are are patrolling our streets that don't even live here. How many hours? Three, four, five hours away you come down here to patrol our streets of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Are we serious? Hello, David. Mayor, can can I have some

eye contact? Can you look at us? Are we not thick enough for you? I come with anger. I come as a mother. I come to represent for the ch children of Grand Rapids, Michigan. I come to represent for everybody in here. I'm coming to represent and I'm coming strong and I'm coming logical. Get it together. Get to work. It was the coffee warm enough for you guys today before this. I hope it was cuz this won't be the last time you see me and this won't be the last time you hear my voice. I will walk up and down the street on the southwest side until y'all get ice out of my neighborhood. I will stand with everybody in here for the southeast side until y'all get these racist police officers off of our streets. We want them gone. We want to be different. We're tired of it. We're exhausted. Get it together. [applause] I'm Steve Bennett. I'm a resident of the third ward of Grand Rapids. Uh there's been a lot of passion out here and I believe there's passion up there. You're not you're not there just to collect the money. You're here to affect change to make this a better community. I believe that and you're getting personal attacks. Justified or unjustified, I can't determine. But my passion, you know, somebody

talked about change. How does a person change? I did. 39 years ago, I changed. Uh someone referenced, several people have referenced scripture. Uh for me, it was the 12 steps. And if you're at all familiar with recovery programs, it's about self-examination. It's about honesty. And I think each and every one of you are doing that. Now, the plea that is being stated in many different ways is to do something. Mr. Mayor, last night you were passionate in your absolute hatred of the actions of the Department of Homeland Security. I believe you. You also talked about how difficult it is to affect the change. I know that former public servant myself. But if you commit yourself, actually commit yourself, Mr. Washington. I feel badly for you. People are picking on you and I think that you are a trusted public servant. I really believe that. I've seen your actions. Been a resident of Grand Rapids for 27 years now. Thought I was going to be here for a couple minutes and met her and I ain't never leaving. And I'm grateful to be a resident of Grand Rapids. I'm grateful to have raised my children and to hear them speak fondly of their hometown when they come back to visit and that's good. But as many people have pointed out, white privilege like the gentleman earlier, I did that

experiment. Didn't put the new tags on my car. Took 18 months and there wasn't a Grand Rapids cop. I was in Kentwood. That's when I finally got pulled over. I believe that you can do something. I believe you will do something. Dogs, are you kidding me? Yeah. I I asked about just take away the guns from the cops. Keep them keep them in the car. Oh, we keep the long guns in there. We can make the change. People do it. Thank you. [applause]

KIM COMBMES. I've been a resident of zip code 49507 and 49503 my entire adult life. I was very anxious and eager to leave Indiana where one of the largest KKK clubs has existed from the beginning. I was excited to come to a booming city and live in a very diverse, eclectic neighborhood where I've always felt safe around my neighbors. The only time I do not feel safe in my neighborhood is when the Grand Rapids police storms our streets. The night that Dcoan's life was taken, I sat in my driveway for two minutes with my dog because it felt like war was breaking out. That was the GRPD rushing. It felt like every squad car in the force to three blocks away from me where my neighbor Dcoan's life was taken. I sat in the car for two minutes with my dog because it was so scary and earthshattering to hear the police approaching like they were going to war because of one of my neighbors that they were literally hunting down and executed. I was shocked and appalled to find out when I met with my neighbors at Boston Square Association not even 48 hours after Mrs. Johnson lost her son. To find out, she had not been able to see her son. She had not heard from anyone from the city or the department. She had no answers. And now to hear her a week later say the same thing, I'm ashamed. I'm disgusted. I'm not feeling proud. I'm I'm not a proud Grand Rapids

resident. My wife was traumatized last night because again on our street, 12 to 15 cop cars rush in with all sirens and lights going, parking down our street and a block away, not getting out of their cars. We have no idea what's going on. Why are we sending in the brigade? What's going on? I know you all care just like we all care. It's time to come together and make some serious changes. Please, I want to be proud of my city. I want to feel safe where I'm living. And I don't feel safe because of my neighbors. I don't feel safe because of the GRPD. Please, let's make the changes we need to make now. I don't want to keep having these conversations year after year. I don't want my neighbors to be living in fear. Please, let's do something now. and the dogs. Yes, that's disgusting. That should be abolished right away. But why do we have GRPD driving in from outside of the city? Is it something that we need to change in our constitution or our bylaws or what? But we have a lot of change that we need to make. We need to make it now. Now, please.

[applause]

Hello, my name is Karen. Um I'm in the second ward and I'm just here hoping also to appeal to your hearts and your humanness. Um that what we're watching with our neighbors um getting ripped off the street on their way to to work. Dcoan trade Johnson being executed. Um the community the community is activated. We are ready to do something about it. And so I know that each of you went into office because you want to take action. And so the community is begging for action right now. And I just wanted to be here to bear witness and stand in solidarity. I don't know the answers. I think I know for sure we have to abolish ICE. I think the police department, the Grand Rapids Police Department, there should be justice. I think they should be um they should be punished when they break the rules just like we are punished in our jobs when they we break the rules. Why is there a different standard for the Grand Rapids Police Department? And so I would say it's a great idea to have the community be in control of the Grand Rapids Police Department. [applause]

Hello, Russ Homestead, Westside Grand Rapids. Um, the first time that I ever saw a city commission meeting this full was when five young black m boys were walking home from playing basketball from the Croc Center and the police pulled them over and pulled the guns on them. And I was sitting I wasn't planning on speaking tonight, but I was sitting in back thinking that those boys are in their 20s now. And yet we still are fighting these same problems. And that's just a small segment of time of what the black community and people of color in general in this city have been experiencing these same issues. decades of meetings of feedback of organizations recommendations and I want I know I know that there is effort and willingness of many people on this day as to fix this. Nobody wants this. I've worked alongside you, Commissioner Purdue, Commissioner Yasi, on these issues in the past. I know the passion. I know the commitment and the willingness. And I hope that this is not another opportunity to fix these problems that we lose, that somebody else's life is lost or pain to the community in vain. That's too much. And I hope we resist the urge as a city, as a people, as you as leaders to analyze this problem. Again, we've analyzed this problem. We don't need to

know what's causing it. We know what's causing it. We need action. We have years and decades of recommendations from the community of feedback from this community on what needs to happen on what they want, what they expect, what they deserve. So I hope that you listen to that. Um I know the OPA has recommendations around some of that that they put forward back in 2021. That hasn't happened. I know that there are recommendations moving forward as well from boards and commissions inside of the city, but please don't just analyze. Please don't try to comfort through that. Analyze that you're trying to do something cuz I know that that is a natural reaction. Let's let's actually take action. Be bold. Do something about this. And uh if it doesn't work, try something else as well. Don't be afraid to take chances because we have to fix this. Thank you. [applause] Hello friends, Mark from Grand Rapids. Here we go again. When's it going to stop? When I first came to these meetings, I said I was from the triangle. I have a family member who was a former police detective. I have family members who were who had runins with the law. I have a family member who was killed by police. He didn't do anything wrong. He was sitting he was in his house

holding his infant grandson [snorts] and then all of a sudden Oklahoma City police came barging in his house with assault rifles and handguns opening fire on him and he was killed instantly. Fortunately, his the infant grandson who's now on the adult survived. I don't know how, but he survived. He's about the same age as Dcoin Johnson. My great aunt never got the justice that she deserved. I hope the Johnson family does get the justice that they deserve. How can you have him already in control and open fire with five open fire times in the back of the head? That makes no sense. Something will happen. And I'm telling you right now, out of towners to go come in and wreak havoc. Trust me on that. But you know, we have they going to have the attorneys just like they did with my cousin. You'll frame the narrative and trick it up and victim blame. Don't want that to happen. Don't want it to happen here. They should retract what they said immediately.

We want that happening now because we all know the orange felon gave all police officers nationwide full immunity. But you can make a change. get out there and vote and make him change those policies. Revenge 2026. [applause] Hey, good evening. I'm Jamal Eddie. Um, proud resident of the third ward. Um, father and a husband and, um, I have a 16-year-old son who we are currently, he's a junior. We're currently looking at colleges and he's black. I have a 13-year-old son who's in eighth grade here at GRPS and he's doing ninth grade level work. He's a black boy. I have a 10-year-old [clears throat] gymnastics um son who's also black and I fear for my kids. I used to fear for myself, but now it's bigger than me. I fear for my boys. I fear for the boys on our block. I fear for the boys, the black boys in our city. Since this uh murder happened, I've been nervous to allow my 16-year-old to drive out to his friend's house. So much so that there's been a few times where I've picked them up or now I'm asking questions like, "Hey, can our house be the house where you hang out at?" And I remember my kids loving when they were little to sit in a police car or see the lights go, hear the sirens and whatnot. That's changed. That's changed.

I remember a time where we taught our kids that if something goes down, call 911. That's changed. There are three other people that they are to call before 911 now. And so it's my desire that something gets done now. So, I'm here as as a as a resident, but I'm here as a father. I'm here as a black man. I'm here as a black father in this community that I love, that I chose to be in, to work in, to live in, and to play. But the time is now. The time is right now to do something more than what's being done at this very moment. Thank you. [applause]

Good evening. Uh, my name is Eric Brown, lifelong resident, third ward, proud third ward of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Grew up five and a half mile, well, excuse me, about three and a half blocks from where our most recent situation occurred. Like others today, I am going to read scripture as I do believe in it. It says, "Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees to deprive the poor of their rights and to withhold justice from the oppressed of my people." That word justice can be translated righteous. And that word can then go further on me say to make something right. I've stood before you guys and many times um on the shoulders of those have that have come before for decades. We're talking about we're counting the last couple four or five years those that have been coming for us for decades pleading with your predecessors my predecessors to make change of how we police in our community pleading. I've also said we had an opportunity recently to repair fissurers that were happening within our community as it relates to police and all uh in our community and how we relate. I I'm I'm sad to say that that fissure is now a chasm. We have to We must act. Look at how we do policing within our community. [cough and clears throat] Thank you. [applause]

Hello. My name is Roar Randy Morales and I'm a citizen from the first ward. And one of the things I remember uh discussing with you uh Mayor Lebrand was that you wanted us to come up here with not just uh demands but come in with full ideas and steps for what we seek in these discussions. And I think one of the uh main things I can bring up was to re reiterate the ideas of reviewing the K-9 uh policies in our city. Another one which I believe is uh important is reviewing the policies on our pursuits and several of the incidents that I can think of and that we've seen the pursuits were non from nonviolent crimes and we should not be pursuing just because of non-compliance. Another thing that I believe that we need to be working on in the city is maybe a improved level of a PR community cuz I believe that all of you folks up here are working on something but I don't know if our communities are able to completely hear and discuss with everything that you are doing to show what changes you're trying to bring. And um I also believe that if we're not uh comfortable or if we're not viewing the changes that you're bringing as successful, we will of course at the way that democracy works bring our own leaders and help invest in them to come up and do where we believe that you folks are not uh providing positive change. And I feel like we keep talking about the taxes that go into your pocketbooks, the

votes that you folks will be uh getting or losing depending on your choices. And I think that we need to remember that it's not just us looking to you and wishing that you make all of the decisions that we want. I believe that as a community, we also need to think about which of us are going to make the changes that we want. And if we have a couple of seats up here that we don't believe are doing what we think is right, we can step up and take those spots when it is time for elections and time for democracy to happen. Um, I believe you all are trying your best or and doing what you think is right and I would be interested in discussing more and having more community outreach in conjunction with these other groups that have their demands and have their requests. And I want to see us working closer together. Thank you. Hello everyone. Um, Stephen Nerion, uh, second ward. I live in Fulton Heights. Uh, I want to start out by saying all solidarity to to Quan Johnson's and his, uh, and his family. Uh, I have two kids and I can't imagine losing one of them like that. Um, [snorts] and solidarity is really what we need right now. Like we want as the citizens of the city of Grand Rapids sanctuary protections for our neighbors. I don't care if someone calls them illegal. I don't care if someone calls them different from us. We want to protect our neighbors. So that's the first thing. The second thing is is that I cannot for

the life of me believe that we are still sick dogs on people in this day and age. Like that's utterly unacceptable. And it can't, there is no justifiable reason for that to be the case. You're talking about a kid getting his face chewed up by a by a hound dog now. Like, come on. We got to be able to do better than this. And the the third thing is is that uh one of our one of our the demands that um people are putting out for uh the Grand Rap is ending our contract with Flock. Now, I don't know if y'all are aware, but our city police department contracts with a company called Flock. They are an AI company like all tech companies are now apparently, but they run a nationwide drag net of license plate trackers. I'm a citizen of the city of Grand Rapids. I don't want to be tracked. I don't want I don't want the city I don't care if the police are angels and they're not to know where I'm driving all the time without a warrant. That also is unacceptable, right? And it can't be cheap. Okay. So, I as a citizen really want answers as to why that money is going to Flock and what the city of Grand Rapids is using it for and how they're sharing information with Flock and furthermore, how they're sharing information and resources with ICE who are threatening our neighbors. It's unacceptable. And I know that you all are here because you want to help people. No one goes into city government to just I don't know be heranged by the public. You guys are here because you want to help people. You have the ability to do that.

You have the power to do that. I'm begging you to use it. Thank you. [applause]

Hi. Uh my name is Adam Nazi. Um I'm a citizen of uh the second ward and yeah um first I'd like to say you know solidarity uh with those are here standing with Dwcoan. Um you know as a as a white guy I don't live with a lot of this fear that a lot of my uh you know colored you know black uh citizens of Grand Rapids live with. Uh it sounds horrible. You know I have problems in my life. um going through IVF with my wife, trying to start a family, and I I couldn't imagine on top of all that having to fear for my life, taking a you know, a drive from point A to point B on a regular basis. Um it's despicable and and disgusting and and I have so much empathy for for their situation. Um and the fact of the matter is it's a situation that is solvable. Um, you know, I I do game design for for a living and you know, one of the big things in game design is like player behaviors and creating systems that incentivize or disincentivize certain behaviors. Um, you know, we have time right now to look at why what incentives and what disincentives are in place for people to act in the way that they do, specifically police officers and ICE officers. Um, if there's no disincentives for police officers to uh abuse their authority, then what's going to stop them from abusing their authority? You know, where is the uh accountability? Where are the repercussions for actions like this? Um, you know, those are things we can tangibly do right now. You know, let's see this uh police officer, you know, what's his name uh or their name? uh you know, how can we hold them accountable so that there can be at least some sliver of justice uh in this situation. So, you know, I came here originally with the Grand Rapids Action Group or

committee to to call for no ICE in Grand Rapids and and no flock cameras. But I think more importantly, we got to hold the GRPD accountable for what they're doing right now and how they're terrorizing our citizens. Thank you. [applause] Hello, my name is Cynthia Hicks and I'm a longtime resident um more than 30 years. Bless you even though you don't deserve it. [clears throat] Anyways, um the reason I'm here um uh wow, it's a it's a heavy day. Um yeah, 10 years um my family um doesn't exist now. Thank you, GRPD. He took my my husband away and um we all know he you know they beat him almost to death on our front steps with my kid watching and myself. Um and then Patrick Leoya was best friends with my tenants. Um so yeah, my head has been a real effed up now for the last few years with all the 30 years of violence that I witnessed from GRPD. [snorts] And um I really wish you guys would wake up, okay? like I cannot watch this anymore. And um Melinda Yasi, I'm gonna be over in your ward now. You get to have me now. Yes, Melinda, you you you get to have me. And um I uh have been in my home now for 17 years and I have all these uh lovely violent memories and it feels now like I live in a war zone with the helicopters flying over my head and shaking my little old house. And um I I feel for Dcoin's family. Um the the house that I'm moving into that I'm half into um it's a half a block from where this poor man has has been executed because that's all the officers seem to know how to do. Um and

a year ago um I was driving 44th in Division. My passenger was removed out of my car and my rights were violated. Melinda, will you please listen and look up? That would be so nice. He was a Latino man that was undocumented that had not been in Guatemala since he was three. He was pulled out of his car and I wrote a letter to to all of you. And Mirror Lrand, I wrote it six pages and to the ACLU. No one cared. No one cared. Still nobody cares because you're still shooting and murdering my resident neighbors. And ICE still cooperates with GRPD and they still get money from all the pastors on the south side who let them park in their parking lot and then they go out and hunt the neighbors. I'm not crazy. I am so sick of it. I'm sick of it. I'm sick of politicians getting all the buildings and there's no housing. But the unhoused people, you know what? They eat at my table. They eat at my table. They come over for dinner and eat at my table. Okay? They're welcomed in my table and if they don't have a place to sleep in my basement. Okay, I don't care if they stink. Please wake up and fix this. And where's the Civilian Appeals Board? Okay, do you remember 1990? Whatever 1990 Paul Mayhew, call him on the phone. I used to sit on these boards and that's why I run my mouth and that's why you still see me here. Okay, Melinda. Melinda. Yes, you get to have me again. Oh, I'm on your black.

All right, let me lower this real quick. [laughter] I'm uh Justin Gomez. I'm a resident of uh Grand Rapids for over 40 years uh my whole life. Um, I see so many of my my my people in my community I see every day and I just ask like when you wake up in the morning, do you feel safe? When you see the police, do you feel protected? I'm kind of getting sick of asking and it it's about that time cuz seem like nobody's listening. So, I mean to heal the hood, it's going to take us. But we need us to all not just be here, but to take action when we leave here. So, man, just uh stay prayed up, man. Love y'all.

Wait, I got two minutes. Walk away, sir.

Also, the uh stepchild of a uh my father was a permanent resident of the United States. He was uh deported eight years ago. It's hard having to see my mother cry every day for her husband. That's something that's going that's going to hurt me for the rest of my life. Permanent resident was told it was up to the ICE agent. Excuse me. It was up to the judge who was a former ICE agent. And uh I ain't seen my dad in 8 years. I'll be 41 this year. My father has been in my life for 39 years. I'm ready for change. And uh I'm not laying down on the ground taking a boot to the face. Take that how y'all want.

Hello, my name is Aaliyah Ciphula and I'm up here because the biggest thing is I don't understand how we have a all-white police force working in inner city. any other big city you go to, you see black police officers. There's no way on earth that you have 90 plus% of a police force that is all white trying to interact with the inner city because the problem is they're not interacting well. They're not interacting well. Why don't we mandate that you guys have a little more diversity on the GRPD? I mean, there's for years, it's probably not even been a hundred police officers that have been black since 1980 in GRPD. And we're the second biggest city in Michigan. And every time you look around, there is no black police officers. It probably doesn't matter to a lot of people, but it matters because one thing, the hardest job to have is to be a black man in America. And with that said is if you don't know how to interact and talk to anybody that is not white, you're going to have a problem. And it's not that it's a white thing versus a black thing, but it's a white thing and a black thing when you have people officers who have never stepped foot in Grand Rapids until they have been on the police force. You don't know how to interact with these people. So when you don't interact well with people, you're going to get conflict because there's no way on earth that we've had what, two murders, no three in the last 7, eight years by police officers based off somebody not following rules, take them to jail, give them another charge. But to kill

people, that's because you don't know how to interact with them. You know, why don't you guys mandate for people to have a little more diversity on the GRPD? I mean, I don't understand that. You go to any other city, you see diversity on a police force. Here, you've I I promise it's not been more than 100 black officers since 1980 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. You can count on your fingers how much I mean how many they've been. They haven't. So, how do you expect for people to get along when you're bringing people from across different counties to come in here and work and brutalize people? It's not even that the fact that these people got killed, they illegally stop people. They illegally search cars and homes. They illegally put their hands on people. So at the end of the day, it's more than them just killing people. They harass people. They do illegal things and nothing is ever done. So with that said, it's is like to sit up here [snorts] and to vote for what? Because you get more energy when it's time to vote. Everybody they put a y'all put stickers on doors. Y'all got big bull horns calling out names. Everybody want to vote. But what are we voting for? We not getting nothing.

[applause] Seeing no one else, I will turn to my colleagues and uh uh for their closing comments. Uh Commissioner Yasi.

Thank you, Mayor. Um couple things I wanted to talk about um today. One, I want to address the individual, Miss Hicks, who was um shouting at me. Um, quite honestly, I'm not going to listen to people who have bullied me online and ask her how the police ended up at her house and why her husband isn't here anymore. So, that's going to be my comment on that. I will not be bullied by being up here. So, please make that known. Can I say to everyone else who came today, thank you. quite honestly the rhetoric and city manager you and I and and Phil you and I the three of us were up here and sorry Joel um when there wasn't the last officer involved shooting but officer involved shooting um that resulted in the killing of Patrick Leoya and the comments I hate to compare it but the comments today I took so many different notes because there were so many things that I felt like we could channel into action as a community. I think when we're dealing with any death killing, there is so much grief and process. And it's true. When it's somebody, you know, the the when I started crying was when my friend Jamal Eddie, who we've known since college, started talking about his sons that I know. And so I said to Mayor Lrant, I want to be the first person to speak because I think really everybody outside of Miss Hicks, I'll just say again, I appreciate you all coming out tonight. I appreciate your comments. I appreciate people's comments all in this last week and it has been a cycle. I'm you know hearing you talk Russ like these were the conversations that we were having last night at the mayor's Monday. I heard these questions asked. Um questions about surveillance and what was included in surveillance. Um last night somebody who wasn't the mayor said you know flat cameras are subject to surveillance policy. They are not. they were grandfathered prior to the surveillance

policy um prior they were grandfathered so they are not subject to to that oversight. What we did see today in our public safety meeting is that we did have a report on flock because a last year at the behest of a number of commissioners including the city manager including our city attorney's office said this technology has changed significantly over the 10 plus years we've worked with it. Um, and there are so many questions that our community is facing as it relates to ICE. We want to know more about this technology. We went beyond what the policy said and I heard somebody said and the the gentleman who talked about, you know, culture over policy. It's true. And so in that regard, we that wasn't our policy. That was our culture. And I'm shaking [laughter] because it's scary. It's scary to put yourself up on here and yes, we're getting paid and yes, we decided to be here and yes, some of us, myself, the only one up here, I don't have to run for a reelection and so sometimes [clears throat] I feel like I have the least to lose at this point. So, I'm just going to say what I really think and what I've really learned over these last six and a half years. So, in that instance, culture did eat policy. Absolutely. Yesterday at the mayor's Monday, there was a question asked about why we didn't release um the name of the officer. And quite honestly, the investigation isn't done, but why didn't we release the name of the officer? Again, Russ Kelsey, we were people who are working on a number of these issues before we were elected, before you were on a body. Police officers uh police officers, public uh officials who work who are public servants have a lot of protections. They have a lot of employment protections that are totally different than the protections that we have. I did not make up that rule. That's how I would answer that question last night. There was a question yesterday about why don't we require

people who are on our police force to live in the city of Grand Rapids. We've had this question asked consistently. Also in the early as early 2000s, we had this thing called Prop 2 that prevented um employment on the basis of race or ethnicity. in this in this state. Um, so what we have done is so while there is a state law that you know and the mayor could probably talk more about that as an attorney that prohibits that, what have we done? We've gone outside of policy and said what are the pieces that we might have as it relates to our um as it relates to our contract bargaining agreements and what are other incentives that we might provide to get more people interested. Uh second, I heard the the young woman, the last woman who spoke talk about um how do we have more diversity in our policing? Again, this was something that I would say was more culture than policy as it relates to hiring. Um, this was when myself, Commissioner Jones, Commissioner Laneir, and Commissioner Repart are really asking consistently, how do we move from, it's my alma mater, but Grand Valley's police academy to GRCC's police academy, talking about what are the realities of living and working in an urban environment. I've only ever lived in Grand Rapids. Well, I lived in Allenale for like two two semesters. And so, there are absolutely different nuances of what happens in Grand Rapids and what happens in Alenale. And so that was a move that we made. I I can't remember city manager, but that was probably my third, second or third year in commission. Again, totally agree. Culture eats policy in that. Nobody made us go to GRCC. GRCC said, "What else can we do? How can we respond? How can we get um more black, let's say explicitly, black and brown officers on the police force, more women um you know, and more women of more black and brown women. Um, one of the other things that we did and I'm now serving on our public safety body is back. This was be this was

before me and again before a number of us here, but the idea that we needed to have more civilians on our public safety body. Public safety is a standing committee that we have for the city of Grand Rapids. How do we bring more voices into that today? Pastor Goulson, thank you for s you're my appointee. Thank you for being my appointee serving the second warwell. And you asked a very important question. How are we measuring the amount of officer involved shootings that have happened? 2022 was the question. And what do we say at that meeting today? There was some back and forth about the nuance again of public uh public sector employees and what are their rights as employees, but how could we work around that? again going beyond policy to say how can we get at that information. We've committed to that and you know I think we kind of went back and forth on the date but we said the most next available public safety meeting. Thank you Pastor Goston. Um again somebody serving an individual serving on our public safety body. Um today when we had this surveillance report, we heard about a number of things um including again something as it relates to to drones and I know they're called something else but drones. This was um an issue that we were working on prior to CO prior to me being on city commission. I was on public safety working very closely with the NAACP modeling what we had in um the city I can't remember the city in California Santa Clara um I believe it was where we were saying how did we introduce technology quite honestly knowing that we all have these pieces of technology multiple pieces of technology that were utilized and that were being tracked um we had to wait for some time co hit again we had a robust conversation some of us were supportive of it some of it weren't Some of us were not for a variety of reasons. But again, we had a robust discussion about how do

we introduce new technology. Why am I saying all this? Cuz I am sitting here questioning how have I spent the last six years of my life? What have I done? What have we accomplished? And in this moment, it seems like absolutely nothing. And then I'm sitting here and I saw my commission my past colleague Commissioner Jones and I talked to past Commissioner Laneir and I have to remind myself that that's not the case even as and I I think Mr. Johnson's mother is no longer here but thank thank her for coming out this evening and how do we live in this balance of the reality is I will have a relationship with the Grand Rapids Police Department. Many of you know the Grand Rapids Police Department responded when my husband was assaulted has been working on the case of my cousin who was murdered on the in the first ward that still remains unsolved. So as a commissioner I can fully say here I sit in that you said this today commissioner that we live in this both and world and so for me that's that's really what I'm committed committed to is kind of reviewing all these things that I had to really think about of what we've done which today for so many of you and so many people watching people who text me probably doesn't feel like anything and um and the gentleman DeAndre who came to share and thank you for coming and you know I think that will be one that I I don't know any details about that but um that would be something that I would ask as a commissioner as I become aware of things as I'm sitting up here and so I I just had to say that out loud because I really said okay 2020 was co 2021 was co 2022 we had a variety of p uh public safety ordinances and considerations that's when Patrick Loyo was killed 2023 we had an election We

had new commissioners. 2024 was a mayor who had been here for almost 20 years. Her last year 2025 we have three new commissioners. And I said, "What have we accomplished?" And I can say here and I say that this these six years were not in vain. They were absolutely not in vain. And I appreciate all my colleagues up here um because while we all have different experiences and how we experience life, I do know that you all individually care and you are all individually trying to figure out where do we fit into this conversation because Grand Rapids wants to be known for a lot of things and I I don't want to be known uh for being a city that people don't feel safe in that don't feel safe and connected to their public safety system that feel that their city officials do not care for them. That's not what I want to be known for. I've got two and a half more years and the reality is all of us have different thoughts and ideas of what we want to work on and let's be honest. Sometimes they're not the same. And so does that stifle a collective decision being made sometimes? Yes. But again, that's not because we don't care. And so I think this is as many times of when something happens there is a cycle of something that happens that causes this concern and then it goes away and then something happens and it causes a concern and then it goes away and it will continue and I don't know you know there was a lot of like this is going to happen. I don't know what it's going to be but I know that I feel that Alexander Hamilton like running out of time. I'm running out of time. I'm no I'm not the new kid anymore. And I just really had to kind of put that in perspective and quite honestly was triggered by somebody calling me out who has been just quite honestly like abusive to me online.

So thank you all for listening to me go down this collective hole quite honestly of where do we sit and where do we stand? But I want community to know exactly what I'm thinking. I want our police department to know what I'm thinking. I want our city manager and my elected leaders and appointed leaders to know exactly what I think I'm thinking. And thank you all for coming. Thank you all who shared stories. For those who, you know, shared some trauma and it was hard. Thank you for being vulnerable. For those of you who work in systems, let's continue to work together. And I hope you all have a good evening. Thank you. Thank you, Commissioner Belch.

Hi. Um, thank you, Commissioner Isasi. That was a perfect, um, segue, I think, for everything we're dealing with. Um, I agree the last few days have felt very, very heavy. Um, there's a lot going on. Uh, we are down a commissioner. Uh we talked today at committee of the whole about how to replace that role so that we can have good representation in the first ward and for the entire city. These issues are things that affect all of us whether it's housing, whether it's the economic prosperity, whether it's the policing injustice, whether it's, you know, whe do we have a clean environment. And so I I really feel like we need all of us to be active. And I know that's hard to say when so much hasn't already felt like it's stalled or not happening. But I think that's I heard some of the comments tonight. Besides the pain, the fear, the very long, long look back into history, I also heard people asking some good questions and asking ourselves as citizens, as residents, as community members some good questions. And I really applaud all of that because if we want to transcend where we've been stuck beyond policy, beyond voting, beyond all these other structures, in the end, we're humans and humans have behaviors and humans can transcend when we grow. And I really believe that. And it doesn't happen if we don't open

ourselves up to be curious, to be willing, and to be inventive and experiment experimental. And I think that that is something we need to do better as a as a city entity. It's we've got a lot of things, a lot of things to manage. We had our midyear review today talking about the budget, talking about the forecast and what might be happening. Bringing in data from economic club and all [clears throat] these other places that are, you know, for those of us who are regular working folks, it's really hard. We're like, we know we can't afford it and it's not going to get better maybe right away, but we as a city have to also rely on income to be able to make changes, to make programs, to pay our pay people. Um, so I think one of the things that came out over and over again for me as a top takeaway, transparency is a call, accountability is a call, but we also have to look at trade-offs. And we are more resourced together when we don't point fingers and say what is my me as an elected official going to do? What is city manager gonna do? What is the budget going to do? What is what is my neighbor going to do? What is the police going to do? What is I don't know, pick another person? But be curious and ask a question and be willing to hear the answer. It might not be what we like to hear because as far as I can tell, none of us are winners right now. We all have some skin in the game. And I think that when we frame ourselves in a split section moment and we don't realize that that moment happened in a history of moments or a history of

moments yet to come, the future, we do ourselves a disservice. So those are some of my transparent thoughts that I'm percolating on. I have others um some of which I've shared, some of which I can continue to talk about, but um I've been really just sitting in the heavy space and thinking and feeling and if I could, I really wish I could wrap my arms around this entire city and give it a great big hug. I know that that's not possible and maybe not even wanted, but we I we can transcend this on a larger scale and I'm brainstorming some ideas about that. I don't know if they're implementable, but I'm just one person. So, um I think we all can be a part of the change story. I could probably say other things, but I really appreciate everyone listening and being a part of tonight.

Commissioner Purdue,

good evening everyone. Um, thank you all for coming out. Um, hearing your testimonies uh was really impactful. Um, and I'm really glad this body at this time could hear everything you all said in the way that you said it. Um, you know, I grew up on the southeast side and born and raised here in this city. Uh, I grew up in a house a few blocks from where um u this incident happened uh where Dcoin Johnson um was killed and um that's where I rode my bike. That's where I walked. That's where I went to go to Miss Tracy's and Sam's to get some chips and some pop. Um, and what I would what I would confirm to everyone here and everyone listening is there were no lies told today. Folks talking about their experience. We've been talking about that for we've been saying that for decades. A lot of what was shared today. the fear um feeling harassed, feeling targeted, feeling and seeing that your community is not being invested in, that you as a community are underestimated and under undervalued in your own city to the point where we are having a hard time even retaining folks, particularly within the black community. Folks are ready to go to places that they feel comfortable, that there is more for them to do, and there are more and better job and other economic opportunities. And that's part of the reason that drove me to say I want to be part of at this table to help change that. And for the last three years, I h I have said now we need to invest in the third ward. My prede predecessor said we need to invest in the third ward. And we are still having that same conversation. So I want to confirm that there were no lies detected today about there were some really extreme stories shared. There were also a lot of every of a lot of stories that felt extreme but really are everyday occurrences for the people who live in

our community and there were no lives detected. that is people's realities. And I encourage all of us um who are in service of this community, who are working with this community, who are making decisions that impact this community, to keep that in mind, to not dismiss it, to not make it feel like it's some a few small group of people um who are are loud and that's not really No, that is a representation of our city. That is a representation of what's wrong and what needs to happen. So um you know what really struck me? um who was listening was someone said that um they or their grandmother in one case was never the same after something happened. [sighs] Yeah. Um that's true. And so when I see so much violence happening in our community, I see so much division happening in our community, I see so much um the realities of just the injustice that we have to deal with day in and day out. Um we are we are always changed after those events. These events change and shape our entire community, our culture, how we relate to each other and every single one of those lives. And those children, those children in our apartment building who are watching what was going on in the aftermath and we should have been there at 9:00 a.m. the next day there to provide resources. We should have been knocking on all the schools within a mile distance to see how we can partner them with them, what support we need. U I am not pleased with our preparedness to partner and to serve and to show up in moments like this. I think it adds to the disservice. I think it adds to the broken trust. Um, and it's part of this process of ma of fairness, of justice, and of healing. Um, you know, I I was a victim of of gun violence about 10 years ago. And after the police left, and and someone said

earlier, and I I had the same experience after my house was shot up nine times, I got a duck in the bathroom, um, bullet holes going through my dry rod, through my windows. The first person I called was not the police. My first gut instinct, it wasn't even a a thought. It wasn't a logical, it wasn't a conscious thought. It was an unconscious thought who I would call next. And then I called the police. And then I'm shaking and I'm in shock, literal shock, right, as someone who wasn't actually physically armed. And it felt like there was more interest in figuring out the damage for the insurance claims than it was for protecting protecting my my soul, protecting my mental health. And so I think about all the babies, all the young people, all the grown people. We are all impacted when things like this happen. Whether we saw it in real time, we saw it on the video, or we know that it keeps existing that changes us as a community. And so I I a lot of people said it in different ways, like where is the action? And thank you, Commissioner Yasi. You're the only one who's I mean, you are senior commissioner. you're president of the commission and you know how hard it is even to get incremental change and all I mean we all do at this point all the fight that goes into something that seems relatively small and I thank you for being part of all the things that you you named um all the fight that you did seen and unseen appreciated and unappreciated because all those things really do matter um and we know there's more for us to do right so with that I the the actions that are top of my mind And I want to ask very directly and explicitly city manager and city attorney to consider these to take the lead on these and that is to one immediately begin to review our pursuit policy. I think it's time I don't think that requires us to wait until MSP does their

thing. That is something that we can review separate from this incident. um separate from this incident, look at our pursuit policy and I think uh public safety will be an appropriate committee uh to do that at uh we have some strong resident um members who are part of that along with commissioners. So I think that's one action item that we can leave from today on. The other part is I would love uh to us to look at our K9 policy as well. Um, this is the first time I think that a K9 um has has that I've ever heard of an incident like this of K9's becoming of being violent, of mauling, of causing damage, of being used in pursuits. And so I think uh from the sake of transparency and for the sake of uh better policing, better accountability, better excellence that it's also time for us to look at that policy too. one to make sure that we are all clear and also ask the same questions as we will with the pursuit policy. Is this the most upto-date? Is this aligned with best practice? Is this align with the needs of our community in 2026 and beyond? And the last thing I would say is two other things that have been happening. Um OPA was mentioned in their report on um our surveillance tools like uh like drones. Um and the civilian appeals board was mentioned very briefly. The civilian appeal appeals board was was founded in the9s um based on feedback and petition from citizens like yourselves and it was adopted and has been in place since. What I've heard um more so through informal channels than formal channels here is that there are some real opportunities to change and strengthen how that body works and how it works with with PD more specifically more specifically um we need to look at um and I'm again looking at city manager

and city attorney um the OPA has a complaint process and I've gotten explicit feedback there are parts of that intake process that is managed by OPA that could be improved and that could be better. So those are for transparency for fairness and to remove bias from the process. So those are three actions I think we can walk away from today and begin to have those conversations and see what policies we can change, we can update as well as continue to work on culture. We have a huge we have a few huge hires coming up for the city. will be selecting a permanent city attorney. This person is the one that will give us legal advice and and in what's and decide how uh how we will interpret our policies, how we would design them, um how we will enforce them. This person will also um help guide how risk averse we may or may not be uh when things happen in the world. Um, and I'm thinking a lot about what's happening um that the federal the work that the federal administration is leading um and all the craziness there. Um, so I think so wrapping up um thank you all for coming. My my sincerest condolences to the family and to our entire community when things like this happen after the police tape is gone after the camera's gone after the g is is is strikes the table and we all go home. This continues to sit with us long after. And as someone who's worked in health, community health, health, and public health, data and research shows that stuff like this can linger long, long long long long after an actual incident. And so um I I know that we have some resources available through the wisdom center to support people um from that that aspect right now. and then moving forward that pursuit policy, the K9 policy and the OPA complaint

intake process. I think our actions that we can take right now um in response to what we heard from you all tonight. Thank you. Um thank you for my colleagues shared quite a bit on some of the thoughts that um we've been having or that I've been thinking about through this this conversation tonight. My uh first of all, my heart um goes out to the family for their loss. Um when you have sons, it makes you think a lot differently. And I ponder um things that happen in our community and then this in this world. And my first thing is to thank God that my boys have been protected this long. my youngest being 26. And I begin to think about the pain and the loss. And what specifically hit me when you were talking, Commissioner Purdue, was thinking about the the book My Grandmother's Hands by Resma Manakim. and thinking about how things have happened continually over and over again uh in our communities and across this world that have caused us so much trauma that we can't even have time to heal to find the joy from each day. Just that small glimmer of hope of what can help us to move forward, to bind us together, to give us the thought that we just might make it, right? And then something else happens and something else happens. And we need to um get to a point that when these situations happen and and I don't want it to just be the situation

that we come together and have these conversations before, not to say that it hasn't happened, but I think we're kind of behind just a little bit. We lagging behind because there's so much power and strength in community, in the voices, in linking of arms, in building each other up and standing up for one another, that we have to wait for something to happen to do it. And I think if we can get ahead, we might be a little bit stronger and be a little more powerful in how we move in our communities and in everyday life. This should not have happened to anyone's son regardless of the situation. So, how do we heal and how do we move forward without continuing to carry this trauma every single day. Thank you, Commissioner Sassy, for being transparent and sharing your heart because this is not easy work. And people talk about the taxpayer dollars paying the salary. Let me tell you, I hustle five every day. This ain't it. It's not about the dollar. It's about my neighbors. It's about my community. It's about my children. It's about my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren. What legacy will we leave for them? How do they move forward and build on a better future? How do we strengthen and empower them? And how do we just do better as people? How do we do that? Because it's not just all these people

that sit up here because they live in houses in neighborhoods and after today, tomorrow, they're going to go to a job and do the same things that you do every day. How do we do this together as a unit, not pitted up against each other, not beating each other down, not tearing each other apart? because we all play a part in this. I hope for a change tomorrow, next week, next year, right now. How do we do it? Can't snap my finger and make it happen, but we definitely will be doing it. But we have to do it together. So when the lights dim down and everything's quiet, y'all going to be here tomorrow, next week, next month when things are happening in the city. It doesn't seem like there's anything popping off. So everybody gets quiet. We need you to show up the same way, next meeting

and the meeting after and the meeting after. And have these conversations when the cameras aren't on. Let's have these conversations in the coffee shop and in the church and in the community buildings and on the street. Let's have these same conversations and figure out how we're going to make change because I do not think one person here does not want that to happen at all. My youngest got baptized last night. My heart was full and yet is still full of pain. I can't really rejoice. I mean, I can, but you know, because I still feel the pain of someone else's loss. That's how we intercede for one another. That's how we stand in the gap. That's how we lift one another up when you can feel the pain of your neighbor. So I thank you for your time, for your compassion, for your energy, for your heart. I ask you to remain that way as we continue to move forward. Thank you.

Yes. Thank you all so much uh for coming uh tonight. Uh one a gentleman at one of the first city commission meetings, the evening ones that um I was a part of said it's really uh hard to be nice when you're in pain. And um I really understand that. I think it makes me think of the physical pain of so many of us have been through. Um if you've broken a bone, you know that just saying kind things and getting pain medicine is not enough. The true healing that must occur may happen through intensive, uncomfortable, and challenging surgeries. And the broken bones within our society cannot be fixed through words or just looking into our policies. We did some of that community surgery here tonight. And I appreciate that. Uh folks shared a collective trauma and we need to first address the wrongs that uh have been committed and accept our role and being accountable to writing those wrongs. And so I'm committed to doing that um once we have the full report from the Michigan State Police. and if the prosecutor will bring charges to the officer. We had pretty robust uh conversations about this on the public safety committee and about uh more um a more in-depth view of the officer involved shootings um that mostly have taken place in in the place in our city that I represent. Uh, we also talked about our surveillance policies where I gave feedback and asked for more information on what does accountability look like when um our body warn cameras um policies are not followed. So I I can tell you all firsthand as the only black male elected uh on this dis uh that I am not taking this lightly um in any shape uh way or form. Um, you know, I think just as the broken bones in our body, we can come together and heal. Uh, but it won't be easy. And

even after we heal these broken bones, there's still going to be trauma that we must address. What I continue to hear from everyone who spoke today, who's spoken in past meetings, who's communicated with me and community is, "Do you see me? Do you hear me?" And I think that is why pe people were saying things like, should we look up? Should we make eye contact? I get all of this. That is simply all people are asking us to do here is see them, hear them, and have actual um actual feasible change. Both of the last most uh challenging concerns has happened within walking distance of my home. Commissioner Knight was right. We live in these communities. Um, I have enjoyed uh the Franklin neighborhood, MLK Park neighborhood, uh, for my whole life. Um, and when the three folks were murdered from domestic violence, I said one life was too much. Um, and and I feel the same way with this. One life is too much. Um, and so my commitment is clear that our path to justice must be less violent. Period. Um, I want to be succinct tonight. Not that I don't have more to say on this. Um, but I will be having a coffee hour March 13th from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. You can drop in at Hub7 in Boston Square. Coffee is on me. And please continue this conversation with me. This is not done. We have I have heard you. I am committed to doing our part and taking accountability what we can do um at the city level which will be forthcoming as this investigation plays out. Thank you again for coming.

[snorts] [clears throat]

Yes, at committee the whole today we I brought a presentation talking about the first ward vacancy. Um very good robust conversation was done um by the mayor and the commissioners to um collaborate on a process. Um and and so um I I had I had a kind of a process drafted before of what what it could be. Um I heard a little bit of talk of shrinking that a little bit. So, I sent that to the the mayor today to um for his review. Um we'll talk about and and see how we can get that and then work on the and get it to you for what that pro what that process looks like um and and for what that time frame is. Um so, we'll continue to work on that. Um so, I've been here almost eight years sitting on this side of the table. So, this follows up Commissioner Kilgore, what you just mentioned. So there's there's two there's two views in this room. There's those that are sitting at the audience sitting on television or sitting at their computers watching commission and then there's those of us that are sitting up here watching the audience and what's going on here. So, for eight years, I've watched mayors or two mayors now and several commissioners as we have this public comment period and it's it's not it's not a give and take because it's it's time for the the p public comment time and you have your three minutes and then there's times in community to have go to commissioner Kilgore's coffee, go to all the other commissioners that have things in community and when we have commission night out, those are those times. But I have the opportunity to sit here and watch them write copious notes while everyone's speaking and I've seen that for almost eight years here now. So it might if they're not commissioners not looking up. It's not a I don't think it's of disrespect. They're writing down your all your comments and then I know as staff staff gets those some of those information they want more commissioners

and the mayor want more information on what someone said. um if and there's follow-ups that are done after these as well. So, I mean, so for eight years, I've watched mayors and commissioners write copious notes of um of getting people's names of what they said um and so they can think about those things as they're making decisions and policy decision late later. So, um, that's the vision that I see from this side of the table as, um, and, um, obviously we have two different perspectives when we're in a room like this. Um, and so that's all I have for tonight. I'll just reiterate my commitment to listening. Uh, I'm I'm listening to you as commissioners, but tonight, most importantly, I've been listening to community. I hear you when we're dropping off and picking up kids from the same school, when we're possibly running into each other at the YMCA or or elsewhere out in the community. I'm I'm taking your experience to heart. Uh and uh it's a interesting role as the attorney to try to give good legal advice to the elected officials and also be responsive and um communicative to to the community. And I'm trying my best to balance those two roles. And I'm here for you as elected officials uh to to hear your thoughts. I've heard Commissioner Purdue some of your calls for immediate consideration. The city manager and I and other city staff have been talking 10 12 hours a day every day since this has happened about some of the dynamic circumstances that are at play here. And we're taking it as seriously as as we can and as we've taken any other serious

critical incident that's happened in the city. and and I commit to doing that through this entire process and for any other critical incident that would happen in our city. So, uh right now I'm I'm in listening mode and I'm hearing you and I'm hearing from the community. Thank you. [clears throat] Thank you, mayor, and thank you everyone for being here. your your uh both uh members of the public, the staff uh that's here, including uh members of uh my executive office and the police department uh that's here today who are listening. We've heard a lot tonight. A lot of pain, a lot of uh discomfort and a lot of tension in the room. And we we uh we needed uh to be uh in that moment of listening. And uh having listened, I do have um a few thoughts I'd like to share. First of all, let me also thank uh the members of Alphafi Alpha fraternity who also came but not just to be decoration. They too shared their thoughts and they were quite challenging. Nobody up here gets a pass. So, thank you for uh being here. So, I wanted to share I appreciate Commissioner Assassi's framing the moment [clears throat] that uh that is predicated may it may not seem like much has been done but I want to offer where we've been at least in my journey here and then as a foundation but not the finish line. We know we have much more to go. So, just several things I would add to what she said. when we've listened to community, when we've engaged community, and when it has been an opportunity both for community as well as the staff that includes the officers to come together and try to make change and that's the way it's it has to happen. It can't happen uniformally just from the dis or just from um community members uh solely

desire solely. We have to engage the police department as part of the change. And so here are some of the things that have happened. uh youth interaction policy to help us better police when we're interacting with youth. Our foreign national policy that you've heard us share that we didn't have uh before until we had an opportunity to hear from community to improve. Uh we've worked even with the labor groups, the unions in terms of improving our retention of disciplinary action. uh that whenever an officer is disciplined, certain disciplinary action remains in the file, not just for a couple of years as it was before, but twice that amount. Now, uh the actual establishment of the oversight office as an alternative place for complaints and monitoring, and you've heard some of that work today, that is work that didn't exist a few years ago. the mental health co-response. We recognize that there are multiple ways to keep a community safe and that we have to use uh other resources besides law enforcement and there and that is welcomed in this community. uh the citizen informed training and engagement that we know that training is really a big component of how we all get better as public servants and we the police department has not been afraid to engage uh the public engage community and helping to design as well as to be part of delivery of some of the training. Uh we've learned even from the last uh excuse me from 2022 in the um uh deadly uh shooting of Patrick Leoya to uh improve our our taser deployment policy and the police department has uh improved the equipment to where the taser has a longer use that would reduce the amount of close uh contact. the Axon body camera oversight that uh process embeds is embedded within not in the police department but outside of the police department in the office of oversight and public accountability the

civilianization of sworn positions that commissioner Sassi had mentioned earlier that are now performed by nonsworn uh employees as well as uh other techniques for uh uh deescalation our surveillance policy that you've heard and the duty to intervene as well as a number of changes. So, I don't want to get the public while some may be uh um have been part of these conversations over time. There are some that are just coming to this moment and I wanted to give that as context, but that doesn't mean we're done. Obviously, we can get better. That's not the finish line. So, I heard the call to uh benchmark. And matter of fact, as we u adjourned the public safety committee meeting today, um uh interim dep excuse me, deputy chief, soon to be interim police chief trick said, "Hey, when we come back to public safety, why don't we share more transparently what our K9 unit does?" And uh I'm looking forward to that conversation with the public safety committee. There was another incident back in 2022 uh that did involve a pretty visible interaction with K9 uh but on the other end in which uh it was used to deescalate uh and avoid uh harming uh deadly lethal use of force in 2022 in which the dog was actually uh the one that was injured in that incident. So I think we need to look at our policy and compare it to other police departments. My experience tells me how we police and use our K9 unit right now is no different from some of the other large and midsize cities. But that doesn't mean that we cannot get better. I'm willing to have certainly have that conversation. Um in in light of the um you know anytime there's a death we talked about 13 14 people that

were killed last year in Grand Rapids and uh one is too many both whether it is caused by citizen or if it's uh uh as we said earlier no one wants to take anyone's life. No one wants to take anyone's life. So uh my sympathy and condolences for to Miss Johnson uh who was here earlier this evening. Uh I was not aware of the incident with uh DeAndre. I don't know if he's still here until earlier today. There you are. Not aware of that. And certainly I saw that uh you were at made contact with uh our oversight office and there's a formal complaint process if one has not been filed yet and certainly want to want to look into that. and [clears throat] and um I I will uh end on on a uh a I guess positive note. The other thing I would like to share is and thanks I want to thank everyone who came out to the uh opening of the Martin Luther King community um center and that is in uh third ward and it was a $20 million project, one of the largest capital improvement projects outside the downtown area as neighborhood investment and uh that was due in part to the funding by at the federal level, state level as well as local level and the third W equity fund. And so um all of the conversations that have sh all the thoughts that have been shared today are not lost on me. Uh and we will make sure that u as we transition uh starting uh shortly we'll have a new interim chief uh Chief Trigg and we look forward to engaging him in some of these uh conversations as we move forward as well as having more thought thoughts and information to share on the search for our uh new police uh chief. Thank you. Thank you. So, um I do want to thank everyone who came

out tonight and um everyone who came and spoke and uh a lot of people brought a lot of their pain and their concerns and their deep felt concerns tonight and that's a really important conversation to have at this moment. I also want to thank everyone up on this dis. Um, I heard a lot of wisdom in the closing comments and I hear a lot of wisdom from my colleagues uh on an ongoing basis and um also from our staff and I um I want to um and I certainly also I think there may have been more people at mayor's Mondays last night uh when largely the conversation revolved around exactly these issues because every three months. Uh I devote a month to conversations about justice and policing. And we have these conversations in an attempt to not just have um people come up and have three minutes of the mic, but to actually be able to have conversations. Um [snorts] maybe uh a certain number of people are going to be mad at me no matter what happens. Maybe a certain number of people are going to impute malice or lack of empathy to me uh no matter what I say or do. But I will say that um I have been deeply distressed um by many incidents in our city and I continue to be deeply distressed um anytime I see pain, anytime I see something that I think looks like injustice to me, anytime I see people untreated unfairly and I've spent my adult life

trying to make our justice the system better. And it's not something that's going to be done in my lifetime. It's not something we're going to ever be done with because our justice system is always going to need to be improved. It's always going to need to get better. And I also deeply deeply feel the need for many voices in that conversation because justice is a collective conversation. It has to be. It's not something that should be imposed. It's something that has to be agreed to. It has to be some It is a byproduct of community. It should never be a byproduct of authority or force. And so to the extent that we can keep those conversations going with that on the forefront of our mind, I promise you that's my priority. It's not going to shift. It hasn't shifted for decades. I know that right now there's a lot of anger because there's always a lot of anger when something traumatic happens. Um it's certainly true for me that anytime I feel like I'm the victim of of an injustice, I feel angry. That's where I start. Um and I know that a lot of people feel impatient and the day does doesn't go by when I don't feel impatient about something that I want to improve.

[sighs]

But it's also true that we have to be able to have a we have to be able to talk before we act and we have to be able to listen before we talk. So thank you all for coming out and giving us the opportunity to listen to you. I promise that we will continue to listen and that doesn't mean that we will continue to listen without acting. doesn't mean that we will continue to listen without talking with you. We will continue to do that because justice cannot wait. If we can find ways to do things better in our community, we should do them as quickly as we can make sure that it is the right thing for us to do. But there's always anytime we deal with moral issues, there always has to be a discernment process because we have to be careful that we are really doing the right. And so I promise you, we will continue to work on this. I will continue to work on this. My colleagues will continue to work on this qu foundational questions always have to be things that we're willing to revisit. questions about how we deliver justice, how we deliver our attempts to work at public safety, which are much bigger than policing. We have to ask ourselves all o over and over again though on policing some basic questions like why are people stopped? What are the criteria we use for stopping people? What things are we going to decide as a community are crimes? Those are all community questions and they're foundational questions and we have all of those always have to be up for re-examination. They have to be re-examined, re uh decided and they have to have

ongoing validity. And if they don't, they need to be changed. And that's how we do democracy. We don't have a central dictator who makes things happen by force of will. we do these things together. As a matter of fact, in a mayor's Monday last night, I I explained the need for the community to do things together. And one of the p people in the audience said, "Trump doesn't do that." And I said, "Well, that's really not my model uh for public service." And I don't think it's anybody up here's model for public service. We we can't rush ahead and impose decisions. We have to be willing to listen and deliberate and make sure that we get to the right answers for what justice looks like for our community because at the end of the day, justice is something we have to all own together. So, I really do appreciate all of your engagement on the issue. I promise that we will continue to work as expeditiously and urgently as possible. And maybe it's something about my face. I don't know. Um, but I will tell you I'm deeply distressed when I when I see things in the community that that I feel like need improvement and cry out for better treatment and for more justice and I lose sleep over it. I've I I wept three times today. Um, some of you know me and some of you know how long I've been working at this. And for those of you who don't know me as well and haven't worked with me as long, I would invite you to challenge me, challenge all of us, help us to be better, help us to focus, and help us to really include everyone in this conversation because we have to include everyone in whatever our collective vision is. So, thank you all

for coming. Thank you all for the the the middle of a long conversation and the middle of a long pursuit of a better community. Thank you all.