Public Safety Advisory Committee
Meeting Minutes
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Call to order
Chairperson Greg Wagner called to order the regular meeting of the Public
Safety Advisory Committee at 4:03 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, 2011 in the
Community Room of Public Safety Center.
Roll call
Deborah Gasaway conducted a roll call. The following persons were present:
Daniel Williams, Charles Kurtz, Laverne Lee Brown, Andrew Hollomon, Gregory
Wagner, Jeremy Hobbs and Genience Grandville.
Absent: Valerie Thompson, Margaret Shafter and John Pezold
Welcome and Introduction of Public Safety Committee Members
Chairman Wagner welcomes the committee. During the roll call Chairman Wagner
asks each member introduce themselves to each member of the committee.
Approval of minutes from last meeting
The minutes were approved as read by each member, motion by Daniel Williams and
seconded by Andrew Hollomon.
Chairman Wagner asked that a copy of the minutes be sent to him so he could
forward a copy of the minutes to Ms. Judy Wilkinson.
Chairman Wagner addresses the committee
Chairman Wagner explains to the committee that anyone can bring a complaint to
the committee and they will listen and try to direct them for help
Chairman Wagner explained the two issues Ms. Wilkinson had:
The way her case was investigated by Columbus Police Department
Alcohol Ordinance
Chairman Wagner explained the case has not been disposed of yet and the court
is still open, a pending case since Ms. Wilkinson has some complaints
concerning her case and could go back to court to have it heard.
Ms. Wilkinson would like the city to change the alcohol ordinance. The city is
looking at creating an Alcohol Ordinance Advisory Committee. At this time there
are two ordinances, State law and City, and the city is looking at their
ordinance, but at this time cannot supersede the State.
Handouts to the committee on the Code of Ordinances, Article XVIII. ? Public
Safety Advisory Commission, Section 2-234.
Chairman Wagner explains to the group that he has had meetings with the Mayor,
Chief Boren, Major Randy Robertson from the Sheriff?s Department concerning an
ordinance amending Section 2-234 of the Columbus Code, Public Safety Advisory
Commission, ?(n) Notwithstanding any provision of this Code section, the
Commission may by majority vote refer any citizen complaint to the respective
Department Head of any public safety department covered by this Article.?
A lengthy discussion between committee members on their concerns on how this
ordinance change will affect the committee.
Chairman Wagner explains that part of this ordinance came about because
citizens were going to City Council and complaining about different areas of
Public Safety which should have been forwarded to the appropriate public safety
departments and not been presented at the City Council Meetings.
Committee Members Discussion
Members discussed complaints on police officers and how it is handled by the
police department, the Office of Professional Standards.
The Columbus Police Department does training on how to treat the public.
How the police help the elderly.
How helpful the Columbus Police helps the public.
Group Discussion on Amended Ordinance, Section 2-234
Who or how is the group going to determine how the committee addresses a
complaint?
Is there an application that the complainant should present to the committee?
Who will make the decision on who gets referred or to get the person to the
right department or agency?
Chairman Wagner addresses questions on who can be referred
Anyone who has a complaint can be seen before the Public Safety Advisory
Committee.
A letter should be presented to the group explaining why a citizen would like
to speak before the committee.
A 30-day notice to the committee so a meeting can be set up on the next agenda.
A committee member will make a motion to refer a complaint and a vote among the
committee members on the appropriate area to refer the complaint.
Chairman Wagner addresses a question by Mr. Charles Kurtz.
A question was presented to Chairman Wagner from Mr. Charles Kurtz on the
committee going to different sites like the Fire Department, Sheriff?s
Department, and Marshal?s Office and having the departments give a presentation
to the members.
Several members suggested they would like to visit the different areas of
Public Safety. Several suggestions were provided:
Tour of the jail
Police Ride-a-long
Taser Training
FATS Machine
K-9 Unit
Discussion on public groups involved with police and the community
Committee members discussed the different groups that help within the community
National Night Out
Citizens Law Enforcement Group
Citizens Service Center
Discussion concerning safety issues in Columbus, Georgia
Committee members had lengthy discussion about the safety of citizens while
visiting the downtown area of Columbus Georgia.
Who provides public safety while in the downtown area of Columbus?
Columbus Police Department
Adjournment
Chairperson Wagner thanks everyone for attending the meeting and the next
meeting will be held on Thursday, July 21, 2011. A motion to adjourned the
meeting by J. Hobbs and seconded by D. Williams. Mr. Wagner adjourned the
meeting at 5:04 p.m.
Minutes submitted by: Deborah Gasaway
Minutes approved by: The Public Safety Advisory Committee on Thursday, July
20, 2011.
Attachments
No attachments for this document.