Can you say ‘boondoggle’?!
The City of Madison created the Police Civilian Oversight Board three years ago this month. Its creation is outwash from the suicide by cop of Tony T. Robinson Jr. in 2015. Its animating myth is that trigger-happy Madison police prey on black and brown people such as Tony Robinson. The social justice warriors running city government paid $360,000 to a Berkeley public policy boutique to fix the cops. As its standard, all-purpose go-to, the Berkeley group proposed a civilian oversight board to monitor the police. It would be the oppressed victims’ avenging angel to finally bring Madison’s killer cops to heel. (Irony Alert!)
Because they represent the oppressed, the City pays the 13 members of the Oversight Board $100 a month. It is the only citizen commission to be financially compensated. By ordinance, at least one member must have run afoul of the law. Blaska sued to get its original racial quotas lifted. After several false starts, the board hired a full-time police monitor in October 2022. The three-person monitor’s office is budgeted at $385,600 annually. Another $50,000 is set aside to subsidize complainants.
In all that time, there have been no complaints. Zero. Zilch. None!
We asked full-time police monitor Robert Copley what was his caseload. He answered:
At present, the Office of the Independent Monitor (OIM) has not had any “cases” presented to it by MPD or the public.
There has been one member of the public that reached out to the Police and Fire Commission (PFC) with a request for MPD to re-open an investigation. As this would be fitting for OIM, rather than PFC, the message has been forwarded to OIM. An OIM investigation into the matter has not been opened at this time however. The Office is working on its memorandum of understanding with MPD (I’ll be providing an update on this at the full board meeting on Thursday) and, once access to MPD records is established in the agreement, the Office can begin conducting investigations.
— Sincerely,
Robert Copley (he/him)
Independent Police Monitor
City of Madison | Office of the Independent Monitor
Why no complaint form?
Web pages for the civilian oversight board and its police monitor are frozen in 2022. The announcement of the monitors’s year-ago hiring IS posted. Nothing else. No welcome message, no photograph, no contact information, no mission statement, no complaint form. Might there exist a fire hose of complainants out there who are unable to get in? Doubtful. Copley told Blaska Policy Werkes:
The manner by which these investigations will be conducted may still be subject to change. The PCOB [Police Civilian Oversight Board] plans to have public listening sessions at the end of October to better understand what the people of Madison would like to see in OIM investigations. In other words, we want to make absolutely sure that the procedure discussed by the PCOB complaint process subcommittee earlier this summer meets the expectations of the public.
— Robert Copley, independent police monitor
How difficult can it be to write a complaint form?
• What’s your name?
• What happened to you?
• Who did it?
• When and where?
• How can we get ahold of you?
We asked two other questions:
• Why so difficult to find you on the city website?
• Website does not appear to have been updated in over a year.
The Oversight Board appears to have last convened on 08-24-23. One month later, no minutes have been posted. The board meets two days hence, Thursday 09-28-23 but no agenda yet. The website carries application form for board membership. Applications, the post indicates, are due September 16, 2022. (Blaska applied but was denied.)
Mr. Copley responded: “Both our recently hired program assistant and myself are scheduled to be trained in managing the City webpages for OIM and PCOB in mid-October, after which we will have the ability to edit and update the pages.” (We thought the city had a web master for that.)
Blaska’s Bottom Line: Always doubted the need for yet another police oversight mechanism. Madison police are not trigger happy. They are not racists. Barack Obama’s Justice Department held up our police department as a model for the nation. We question, also, the PCOB’s utility. Under state law, municipal police are governed by police and fire commissions. City government enjoys the power of the purse.
Blaska created a program audit function on the Dane County Board to determine if government agencies were effective.
26 responses to “Madison police oversight board does no business”
Just another way The City can waist the tax payers money and feel good.
[…] This post originally appeared at https://davidblaska.com/2023/09/26/madison-police-oversight-board-does-no-business/ […]
“Who monitors the police monitors?”
The Gotch Custodes Ipsos Custodes…gratis!
But, but, but, but, but, but, but, but, but, but didn’t the talented Rollie (pronouns available with paid subscription…) say, and The Gotch quotes: “the solution for poor performing police departments is always MORE MONEY“? (bolds/caps/italics mine)
Would the solution for GREAT PERFORMING Police Departments be less money?
If so, that would dovetail flawlessly with LaLaLoopyLoonyLeftyLand illogic, am I right?
Anywho, stay tuned; perhaps Rollie will grace us with some of…um…their wisdom…
The Gotch
I’ll grace you with wisdom, as requested.
“I just had a customer say the craziest thing!” “Oh yeah? What did they say?”
Note the use of the word “they” in plain English when the speaker doesn’t know the gender of the person they’re talking about. It is strange that conservatives have become so confused and agitated about using the word “they”.
To further loony logic, the incomplete quote you used, which contrasted funding policy for police vs education, has no relation to the topic at hand. Loony logic indeed! No need for logical thought when you can just spew catchphrases!
Looney logic is accepting the idea that one can choose their gender in the first place. It’s ridiculous.
Oh yeah; it’s EVIL Conservatives who are the confused ones.
The Gotch hopes you’re being intentionally obtuse, the alternative (Cognitive Slippage) would be far more concerning.
In an earlier Blaska post, YOU mentioned corporations, The Gotch (ever humbled by your wisdom and forever seeking more) comments on corporations.
Here, the subject is LE, and tangentially, its funding, and YET AGAIN, that subject frames of part of his comment.
Enter THEY/THEM (READ: Rollie) slobbering profusely Who You’s gonna Believe, Me Or Yer Lyin’ Eyes.
Buddy; seriously consider a Check-Up From The Neck Up!
Anywho, we all knew that Lefty’s handlers would have to create some sort of new lunacy to rally the lock-steppin’ glassy-eyin’ unquestionin’ moronic base after grinding Everything is RAYcist into worthlessly meaningless dust, non-binary confusion seemed to be the next illogical step…DOWN; to wit:
‘He’s Got a Gun!’ Bystander Arrested For Misgendering Non-Binary Shooter
The nagging question which eerily haunts every White Guilt inundated career Lefty? After this fad passes (a fad it is and pass it will!) what then…….?
The Gotch
Yes, I said large corporations would not exist if people had to take personal responsibility for their actions. Feel free to rationally argue against that claim.
“I said large corporations would not exist if people had to take personal responsibility for their actions.” (bolds mine)
Isn’t Personal Responsibility frowned upon (by certain demographics) as Acting White?
Why yes…YES…Personal Responsibility IS frowned upon by certain demographics as Acting White!
Anywho, so you’re saying that if people acknowledged/embraced Personal Responsibility (i.e.: delayed gratification, self-respect and respect for others, NOT stealing everything not nailed down, emphasizing education, NOT embracing behavioral/cultural pathology, hard work, eschewing controlled substances, NOT being an absentee father/parent, NOT blaming/making excuses for one’s lot on RAYcism, NOT p!$$ing-n-$#!tting in public, etc., etc., etc.), large corporations would not exist?
Or (cart before the horse/back @$$wards) if large corporations did not exist, we’d be silly with Personal Responsibility?
Whichever, THIS The Gotch HAS to hear; please elaborate, and thank you in advance.
The Gotch
Yeah, I can say ‘boondoggle’. What I am stuck on is the new State Supreme Court Judge’s name, and quit trying to make us spell it Dave!!
Could it be The oversight board has endorsed the saying “if you can’t say anything nice say nothing at all.” Could that be the real reason they have been silent? It certainly couldn’t be incompetence, could it? I could be quiet for $100 a month.
;iughpuivfghvs
Covfefe
“How difficult can it be to write a complaint form?”
When the forms are culturally biased, don’t account for the ever-increasing number of illiterates the race-obsessed MMSD is cranking out with all deliberate speed, and aren’t DIE certified, you tell us…
The Gotch
You should write it; with all your experience bitching it would be great.
This post is, of course, making incompetence claims out of routine matters for political ends. I don’t even live in your city nor know anything about this office and I can see right through this.
Blaska answered is own question regarding the complaint form: “The Office is working on its memorandum of understanding with MPD (I’ll be providing an update on this at the full board meeting on Thursday) and, once access to MPD records is established in the agreement, the Office can begin conducting investigations.”
It would be strange to have a form posted prior to the legal framework through which to conduct investigations. And it takes two to enact a MOI – which side is dragging their feet?
“We thought the city had a web master for that.” In other large municipalities it is not typical for a single person/department to manage the content on all departmental webpages – it is typically the departmental staff that manage content while the webmaster manages the overall infrastructure. Perhaps this training should have occurred earlier, but if an out of date webpage is the best critique you could come up with…
“One month later, no minutes have been posted.” In my experience it is typical for minutes to be approved in a subsequent meeting prior to being posted to the public.
“The board meets two days hence, Thursday 09-28-23 but no agenda yet.” There is a statutory deadline for posting agendas, and it is typical of many municipal departments to post at that deadline. This is because there is usually a bunch of last minute items being added and removed by the chair and staff. A former county board member would probably know this, so this reads like a cheap shot. Did they miss the deadline? If so, then they can’t have the meeting and it would be a valid critique.
Sure, go ahead and dislike the concept of civilian oversight, but why not base it on reasonable arguments instead of all this political bs? Instead of using this platform to improve politics, you’re perpetuating the worst of our political tendencies.
High Five Rolllie. In your face crotch. All to do now is spike tha ball and jump into the stands.
You know, I’m not here to dunk on conservatives, I’d like to encourage higher quality discourse. I dislike the “gotcha” (no pun intended) tendencies in our modern political media (but I do sometimes get caught up in it too and have to try and reflect and keep myself in check). Most WI conservatives seem to have gone off the MAGA deep end and are lost causes. But there are at least a few who read this blog who can rationally discuss policy. While I might not agree with them, I do want conservatives to make quality arguments that are rooted in rational, logically consistent thinking. I don’t want everyone to agree with me, and I don’t fault anyone for disagreeing with me – I want to live in a healthy democracy.
OT, but 09/28/2023 U.S. Drought Monitor/Wisconsin shows our area has been upgraded to Moderate Drought
One more thing.
Vegas Oddsmakers Know What We Know: The bares Are The NFL’s WORST TEAM
In related news:
*Water’s wet
*Heavy objects (like Tank Abrams) submit to gravity, and
*Jeffy Epstein didn’t off himself
GO PACKERS!!!
The Gotch
off topic
BAAAAHAAAAHAAAAAA… The boo-birds are back in GB.
“Can you say ‘boondoggle’?!”
The Boondoggle Of The Future for the 77 Square Miles Surrounded By A Sea Of Reality?
The Bus Rapid Transit, in the On Deck Circle and just rarin’ to apply a tourniquet to the wallets of TAXPAYING Madisonians, will make Lefty pipe-dreams Edible Landscapes, Trollies, Light Choo-Choos, and Inclusionary Zoning seem positively Mensan by comparison.
The Boondoggle Of The Future, 2.0?
The Public Market.
Ah Lefty; so MUCH crushing hubris, so little time!
The Gotch
I see you have finally woke up from your coma after last nights debates. You can watch the whole thing again on You Tube. Just type in s#$t show gop.
But remember Mayor Paul Soglin said the Public Market will bring in $22 million yearly to the city. I wonder if we will get to that amount building it?
“But remember Mayor Paul Soglin said the Public Market will bring in $22 million yearly to the city.”
Happy Horse $#!t, that!
“I wonder if we will get to that amount building it?”
Um…
CommonSenseless Council Members SEEK $3.3 MILLION MORE To Keep Public Market On Track
It gets worse.
The 1st Street/East Wash location is Two (2) Miles east of the square.
How do people get there?
Dedicated BIKIE Path/Lane/Trail/Boulevard/Bridge hub…BRT stop…cab vouchers?
FFsS…Madison taxpayers are being shaven by a drunken Lefty barber…and paying for the privilege!
The Gotch
Wow; are you guys still in a coma over thar Pecker loss? Pretty quite here today. Ya’all hit the trifecta today. Gov’t shutdown, Biden Impeachment f#$ked up, impeachment a sh#$tshow. VOTE FOR ME!!! Dumb-asses. You Repub fools could govern a corn-dog stand. Carry-on fools.
Of course this group isn’t going to get anything done. It may still be worth it to pacify the SJWs. The money pales in comparison to the public funding that the Freedom Incs get. And that pales in comparison to the entitlement programs and military budgets. I really wish there was a smart discussion about the government shutdown.