Statement from Council President Shannon G. Hardin on Saturday's Protests and Reforms in Policing
[COLUMBUS, OH] The following statement can be attributed in
full, or in part, to Columbus City Council President Shannon G. Hardin:
"I’m angry and frustrated. Folks are being shot down while
jogging and suffocating under the knee of injustice. Today, I saw with my own
eyes that 99 percent of protesters were just trying to make their voices heard,
while some individuals in the crowd were attempting to take advantage of the
situation. I also saw police going too far, and that’s unacceptable. The people
have spoken, and I hear you. The time for commissions and studies is over. The
time to institute real police reform is now.
"Columbus needs to establish independent investigations into police use of
force, including negotiating a Civilian Review Commission into the next police
contract. Columbus needs to change the use of crowd dispersal techniques, as
recommended by the Matrix report. And
finally, Columbus needs to quickly move forward to implement the Community
Safety Advisory Commission’s recommendations and the rest of the Matrix report."
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