Probes begin into G-20 police actions [Post-Gazette]

Probes begin into G-20 police actions: Council launching fact-finding panel
Thursday, October 08, 2009
By Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Three efforts to explore the city of Pittsburgh's handling of demonstrations during the G-20 summit are gearing up, officials said this week.

The Citizens Police Review Board announced yesterday that it will hold a public hearing in Lawrenceville on Oct. 20 to get community input on police handling of demonstrations there during the Sept. 24 and 25 gathering of world leaders.

City Council President Doug Shields plans to formally launch council's G-20 Fact Finding Committee today. It will be expected to produce a report by May.

And Office of Municipal Investigations Director Kathy Kraus said her staff is reviewing the Web site YouTube's many videos of police interactions with demonstrators during the summit.

"There were so many cameras filming everything, everywhere," said Ms. Kraus. "We would review any footage that's available. What's on YouTube, we're reviewing that.

"We've never done anything like this before. Certainly, if we see something we have questions about, we would initiate our own investigation."

OMI has received citizen complaints against police stemming from the G-20, she said. The agency does not release its findings, which do not result in disciplinary recommendations or decisions, but which are passed on to department directors.

The Citizen Police Review Board plans a very public process starting with the Lawrenceville hearing at the Stephen Foster Community Center on Main Street at 6 p.m. on Oct. 20. The board hopes to find out what neighborhoods experienced during the summit.

It plans on scheduling a similar meeting in Oakland.

"When we're done with all of that, the board will probably hold a formal public hearing," said Review Board Director Elizabeth Pittinger. "We will subpoena parties to that hearing." Then the board will hold one or more public hearings on the 55 complaints it has received.

"We look at that whole week as being full of policy questions," she said. "We're looking at what [police] policies on crowd control are."

The Review Board hired security consultant Sam Rosenfeld to provide "the expertise on the ground that would give us information to analyze," said Ms. Pittinger, who was also on the streets during some of the G-20 protests. Mr. Rosenfeld and an assistant documented encounters between police and civilians, said Ms. Pittinger.

OMI opted not to put its dozen staff on the streets during the summit, said Ms. Kraus. "I don't believe it would have been productive," she said, adding that some of the police officers assigned to OMI were detailed to dignitary protection during the summit.

Mr. Shields said he will appoint council members Patrick Dowd, Bruce Kraus and William Peduto to the council committee. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, Public Safety Director Michael Huss and Controller Michael Lamb will be invited to appoint non-voting members to the committee.

Mr. Dowd said he will convene a meeting soon after Mr. Shields formally charges the panel with exploring the costs and benefits to the city from hosting the gathering of world leaders, and the planning and decision-making before and during the event.

"The longer it is that we don't have a charge, the more difficult it will be to secure the information it was created to preserve," said Mr. Dowd.

Rich Lord can be reached at rlord@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1542.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09281/1003885-482.stm

Permalink