Provo City

Objective Review of Police Department


PROVO MAYOR:  POLICE DOING GREAT JOB, BUT REVIEW NEEDED

Provo, UTAH--November 18, 2010--Provo City Mayor John Curtis announced today more details about a four-part process to evaluate the police department.  Curtis stated last month that despite having great respect for the department, he would initiate an objective review consisting of four elements:  1) an audit by an outside agency, 2) a citizens committee to oversee the audit process, 3) specific methods for citizens to submit feedback on the department, both positive and negative, and 4) a contract with the department chaplain to meet individually with every employee in the department.

Provo City's crime rates are among the lowest in the nation, and earlier this year a remarkable 98% of residents surveyed said they considered it a safe place to live.  "Our police officers do a great job overall," stated Curtis, "but I understand that those closest to a situation sometimes miss things, and I don't want to rely on our own assessment." 

The city had already budgeted for a resources assessment of the department, which operates with fewer officer now than than it did 20 years ago, but recent unrelated incidents of alleged criminal behavior by a few police officers convinced the mayor to start with a focus on professional standards and related matters.

"Allegations of criminal behavior are acted on immediately, and investigated and prosecuted by outside agencies," explained Curtis.  "This objective review is going beyond that to look at whether there are any policies or practices that have contributed to this unusual number of incidents.  We might find that we are doing many things well, and that we could be doing some things better."

The city has formed a six-member citizens committee, which met for the first time last week to review the city's process for selecting a consulting firm to conduct the audit.  The city has selected Citygate, a general government consulting firm from California with experience in law enforcement reviews, and the audit will start December 6.

The city has also created phone numbers and email addresses that members of the public can use over the next six weeks to share with the citizens committee experiences they have had with the police department, either positive or negative.  The email addresses are report@provo.utah.gov for English and informes@provo.utah.gov for Spanish.  The phone numbers are 801-852-6900 for English and 801-852-7111 for Spanish.  The committee will decide how best to incorporate the feedback into the overall review. 

Feedback may also be submitted anytime through other methods, including contacting Mayor Curtis at jcurtis@provo.utah.gov or 801-852-6100.

The citizens committee consists of six individuals:  Neighborhood Chairs Bob Allen and Bonnie Morrow; local business owner Arturo Soza; Community Action Services and Food Bank Executive Director Myla Dutton; Provo Municipal Councilmember and former Provo City police officer Rick Healey; and Utah State Representative, local attorney, and former San Diego police officer Lorie Fowlke.  All committee members are Provo residents except Fowlke who lives in Orem and  chairs the committee. 

The police department is supportive of the objective review.  "We see this as an opportunity to find out what we're doing well and where we might improve," stated Police Chief Craig Geslison.

Read more about the consulting firm Citygate here.

Read more about Mayor Curtis's thoughts on his blog here.