Westport, CT
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Civilian Review Panel Mission Statement and Charge
The elected leadership of the Town of Westport and the leadership of the Westport public safety departments recognize the need to foster and maintain the public’s trust in its personnel. In order to do so, the First Selectwoman has created the Civilian Review Panel (CRP).
The CRP will be composed of five (5) civilian members who represent the Westport community: two (2) members of the Board of Selectwomen (other than the First Selectwoman); one (1) member of TEAM Westport who is a member of the Westport electorate, to be appointed by the First Selectwoman; and two (2) other members of the Westport electorate to be appointed by the Representative Town Meeting.
- First Selectwoman Appointments: Each appointment of members from the Board of Selectwomen and TEAM Westport shall be ex officio. Each Board of Selectwomen appointee shall serve until the member no longer serves on the Board of Selectwomen. The TEAM Westport appointee shall serve until the swearing-in of the next elected First Selectwoman and may be reappointed for unlimited consecutive terms. If any Selectwoman member declines to serve, the First Selectwoman may appoint any member of the Westport electorate to serve instead, and such member shall serve until the swearing-in of the next Board of Selectwomen, at which time the First Selectwoman shall appoint a Selectwoman to the CRP. If no eligible TEAM Westport member desires to serve, then the First Selectwoman may appoint any member of the Westport electorate to serve instead, and such member shall serve until the swearing-in of the next elected First Selectwoman, at which time the First Selectwoman shall appoint an eligible member of TEAM Westport to the CRP.
- RTM Appointments: The initial RTM-appointed members shall serve for two (2) years, and the terms of each subsequent RTM-appointed members shall be four (4) years. The intent is that the RTM-appointed members shall be appointed on an alternating basis with the Board of Selectwomen members. If the RTM does not fill any appointment within ninety (90) days after notice from the First Selectwoman that the position needs to be filled, then the First Selectwoman may make the appointment(s), and the appointed member(s) shall serve for either two (2) years or four (4) years, as described in this paragraph. Each member appointed under this paragraph may be reappointed for unlimited consecutive terms, whether such appointment is made by the RTM or the First Selectwoman as described in this paragraph.
- Vacancies: The First Selectwoman shall fill any vacancies in the Selectwoman members and the TEAM Westport member, whether caused by term limits or resignation of a CRP member or otherwise. The RTM shall fill any vacancies in the RTM-appointed members, whether caused by term limits or resignation of a CRP member or otherwise. Members appointed to fill vacancies shall serve for the remaining portion of the vacant term, and may be reappointed as provided above.
- Miscellaneous. No more than a bare majority of the members of the CRP may be members of the same political party. Each member, including ex officio members, shall have equal voting rights. The CRP members shall elect a Chair of the CRP annually, at the first meeting after December 1 of each year. No member of the CRP shall be an employee, or a family member of an employee, of the Police, Fire or Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Departments, and the First Selectwoman shall not be a member of the CRP. The terms "Selectwoman" and "Selectwomen" include elected Selectpersons of any gender.
The CRP will work closely with the members of the Police, Fire and EMS Departments to diversify hiring, oversee the investigation of civilian complaints, and evaluate opportunities to improve transparency and accountability.
The mission of the CRP is to build on the foundation of public trust between the Police, Fire and EMS Departments and Westport residents by conducting the following objectives:
- Hiring Oversight: The CRP will participate in the interview process of both new hires and lateral transfer applicants of the Police, Fire and EMS Departments. While the final decision on hiring will remain with the Chiefs of the departments and the First Selectwoman as provided by the Town Charter, the CRP will offer measurable feedback on the selection of candidates through a direct line of communication with both the Chiefs and command staff, which may include offering scored feedback during the interview process.
- Complaint Review: The CRP will review and provide feedback on (i) all documented complaints regarding Police and EMS Department personnel (both paid and volunteer) that are investigated by the Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards, and (ii) all documented complaints regarding Fire Department personnel (both paid and volunteer) that are received by the Fire Department. Review of such complaints will be conducted regardless of whether the complaint was received by the applicable department, or received by the CRP, and including anonymous complaints. A documented complaint is one that is either written on a complaint form, or one in which the applicant verbally responds in the affirmative that he/she requests his/her complaint be considered a formal complaint for further investigation. Upon the receipt by the CRP of any documented complaint regarding Police, Fire or EMS personnel, the CRP will promptly forward that complaint to the appropriate department for the department’s review according to its standard procedures. Upon the receipt (i) by the Police and EMS Departments of any documented complaint regarding its personnel that is investigated by the Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards, or (ii) by the Fire Department of any documented complaint regarding its personnel, then the applicable department will promptly forward the complaint to the CRP. Thereafter, the Captain of Professional Standards of the Police Department, or the Deputy Fire Chief of the Fire Department, as the case may be, will provide regular updates on investigations and the conclusions and result of the investigation. The CRP shall have the right, during and at the conclusion of the departmental investigation, to examine records, call for further investigation by the relevant department, evaluate the departmental investigation, and make recommendations to the relevant department.
- The Chief of the relevant department shall report to the CRP within two (2) weeks regarding whether the CRP’s recommendations are being followed, including an explanation of the Chief’s decision. The inclusion of the CRP maintains the integrity of the current process by insuring thorough investigation and proper attention to every received complaint. The Chiefs of the departments shall retain responsibility for the ultimate decisions related to the severity of any imposed discipline.
- Transparency & Accountability Improvements: The CRP may advise the departments on policies and procedures that improve transparency and accountability.
- Public Meetings: The CRP is a public agency under the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act and will conduct public meetings. In compliance with FOIA, the CRP may discuss the appointment, employment, performance, evaluation, health or dismissal of a public officer or employee in executive session. If such public officer or employee requests that the discussion be held in an open meeting, the CRP shall not meet in an executive session. The CRP shall hold special meetings as needed. All meetings will be appropriately noticed.
- Training: The Police, Fire and EMS Departments shall provide training to the members of the CRP as needed, in order for the CRP to fully understand current policies, procedures, general orders, internal affairs, and legal issues.
- Reporting: Each department shall provide an annual report to the First Selectwoman and the CRP of all disciplinary complaints received and the status and resolution of those complaints. The departments shall ensure that information protected from disclosure under the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act is not available to the public.