CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Law enforcement officials across North Carolina are seeking solutions to police professionalism by providing new recommendations for how officers should act in the field while dealing with the public.
The 2021 North Carolina legislative session saw multiple bills related to criminal justice reform, while state law enforcement leaders updated a report on recommendations for professionalism for officers to address policing matters.
The North Carolina Sheriffs' Association formed a working group on law enforcement professionalism to address those subjects, including chokeholds.
As recently as this week's Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners meeting, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings recognized how officers are perceived differently in the public eye following high-profile cases, including the murder of George Floyd.
"You are authority," Jennings said. "And our power comes from our citizens, and our citizens should have some say in how they are policed."
On the state level, the NCSA's working group consists of 10 sheriffs. They looked more closely into current practices to see how the profession of law enforcement could be changed for the better. The report admits there are areas to improve, including specific policy language passed in last year's legislative session.
The group recommended that law enforcement agencies adopt a policy that would require officers to intervene and report excessive use of force. The Rev. Corine Mack, president of NAACP Charlotte, said it's not enough.
"The reason I say that is, so now you have officers who may tell their superior, 'stop,' right?" Mack said. "And what are other negative aspects of something like that? What would happen?"
Mack said she'd like to see a straightforward policy that bans chokeholds. The Sheriffs' Association recognized that the term "use of force" needs to be defined in order to ensure a uniform collection of reporting offenses.
"Law enforcement has been perceived as heroes for a very long time," Mack said. "For me, as a Black woman understanding history, I know that the whole notion of law enforcement came out of slave patrols. This is based on the system in which it was built, there are some concerns. And we see every single day, instances where Black men specifically, and Latino men specifically, are treated one way versus our white counterparts."
Mack said if there's going to be real change, there needs to be an examination and review of the systemic racism of policing. She said it's up to departments to change their culture, and until it's addressed, nothing's going to happen.
"We need to look at the fact that in 2007, the FBI and CIA made law enforcement aware of the fact that white supremacists had intentionally joined police departments all over the country," Mack said. "Those things all bear concern for me, and I think it should be a concern for anyone in policing that we are not getting our fair treatment as people of color."
The Sheriffs' Association concluded it has made progress in creating an environment that will not tolerate racism in law enforcement.
Still, Mack said until there are noticeable real-world differences, law enforcement will be viewed the same way by minorities.
"We say there's not going to be progress that's going to escalate to the point where the Black and brown people feel safe when they see a police officer driving behind their car," Mack said. "We still have too many instances where there is disparate treatment, and so for me, it's important that we go to the root of the problem and cut out that root, which is racism and hate, and find ways to work together collaboratively in love."
Contact Jane Monreal at jmonreal@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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