"Police conduct at port will get citizen review' KRIS SHERMAN The News Tribune April 01, 2007 http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/6442279p-5739957c.html Tacoma?s new Citizen Review Panel will assess police response to recent anti-war protests when it meets Monday night. The five-member committee won?t consider specific allegations of misconduct, but it?s expected to take up how Tacoma police handled 12 days of demonstrations at the port. The activist Web siteportland. indymedia.org is urging readers to attend the meeting and ?file complaints about police brutality, illegal acts and other issues you observed at the Port of Tacoma protests.? Hundreds kept vigil for more than a week at the intersection of Milwaukee Way and Lincoln Avenue to protest the shipment of Army Strykers and other vehicles through the port en route to Iraq. Police dressed in riot gear and protesters tangled on a couple of occasions. Officers used tear gas and pepper spray to halt what they described as rowdy uprisings; protesters say cops employed unnecessary force on a peaceful assembly. The well-publicized events prompted committee members to look at police training and policies on handling civic unrest, Citizen Review Panel member John Q. La Fond said Friday. Consideration of such a meaty subject so early in the panel?s tenure could blunt criticism by some that the committee would have limited power and effectiveness. The council-appointed panel, officially formed last month, has met only twice. City leaders pledged to create a police oversight group after Police Chief David Brame shot and killed his wife and himself four years ago. Some department critics envisioned an independent panel that could assess how well the Police Department handled individual complaints against officers. That?s not possible because of union contracts, City Manager Eric Anderson told City Council members last month when they formally created the panel. But Anderson and his staff said they still saw room for meaningful work by the group. Discussion of police policies and training for large-scale demonstrations like the anti-war protests at the port signals the panel?s intention to ?stay abreast of issues that are of concern to this community,? committee chairwoman Trisha King Stargel said. City officials stress that discussing allegations of individual misconduct remains beyond the panel?s scope. But that doesn?t mean people won?t be able to make their complaints about police conduct known. Early in their meeting, panel members should delineate at least temporary rules for public comment, King Stargel said. They expect to listen to what people have to say Monday night. The panel will also get an overview of the city?s Conduct Complaint Management System, which was initiated last fall. The meeting was moved from a small 11th-floor conference room at City Hall to the larger room where the City Council conducts study sessions in order to accommodate the expected large crowd, city spokesman Rob McNair-Huff said. The posting attributed to Jeff Sinclaire on the Portland Independent Media Center Web site exhorts readers: ?Let?s continue to pressure Tacoma to refuse to allow the military to use our port to export immoral and illegal war and occupation. Police made 37 arrests during the 12-day protest over the loading of the ship with 300 Army Strykers and 700 other vehicles headed for Iraq. The ship and its cargo sailed on March 14. At least 19 people are charged in Tacoma Municipal Court with a variety of offenses, Assistant City Attorney Jean Hayes said. Most involve failure to obey a police officer. More charges are pending. Internal Affairs detectives completed their investigation of a run-in between police and University of Puget Sound student Joseph La Sac, but the results have yet to be reviewed and approved by commanders, police spokesman Chris Taylor said. La Sac complained that a uniformed officer told him he couldn?t use his video camera to film the protest. The 22-year-old student posted an edited version of the altercation on the Web site YouTube.com under the title ?Film is not a Crime.? On the video, an off-screen police officer is heard telling the student to ?shut if off or you?re going to be arrested.? That?s the kind of specific case the Citizen Review Panel can?t rule on. But the touchy issue of whether police were prudent or heavy-handed during the anti-war protests can be studied in the larger training and policy context. ?I think it?s a very healthy thing to look at the policy knowing? that the city is getting complaints, King Stargel said. Any allegations of misconduct by police will be investigated thoroughly, assistant police chief Bob Sheehan said. Sheehan, who was at the port during each day of the protest, said Tacoma?s officers acted professionally and effectively. There were some minor injuries, including to a Tacoma officer, but ?all in all this was a safe event,? he said. Time will tell just how effective or powerful the citizens group is at spotting trends and recommending policy changes, La Fond said. But he added, ?I think most of us expect that we will make a significant contribution to the community. I don?t think any of us wants to serve on a board that is ineffective and pro forma.? What: Meeting of Tacoma?s Citizen Review Panel When: 5:30 p.m. Monday Where: Room 16 in the Tacoma Municipal Building North, 733 Market St. Open to the public? Yes On the agenda: Tacoma police training and protocols for responding to protests and other such events. The issue of how police handled recent anti-war rallies at the Port of Tacoma is expected to come up, but the panel won?t discuss specific allegations. For information about the city?s Conduct Complaint Management System, go to www.cityoftacoma.org/complaints . Port protest by the numbers Kris Sherman: 253-597-8659 kris.sherman@thenewstribune.com Staff writer Stacey Mulick contributed to this report. © Copyright 2007 Tacoma News, Inc. A subsidiary of The McClatchy Company