Charlotte, N.C., Mayor Anthony Foxx is questioning how the city's Citizen Review Board handles allegations of police misconduct, the Charlotte Observer reports. The review board's chairman says the panel will consider drafting reform proposals for City Council to consider. Foxx asked Police Chief Rodney Monroe to respond to an Observer report that the oversight panel has ruled in favor of police every time in its nearly 16-year history.
City Council member Michael Barnes said officials should examine why the review board has only sided with police. “That seems like an imbalanced result,” said Barnes, who sits on the council's Community Safety Committee. “We need to look into it.” The Observer reported that people appealing police disciplinary decisions had virtually no chance to win because they must meet an unusually high standard of evidence for the board to hold a full hearing, and the review board has no independent power to investigate. Formed in 1997, the board was created to restore public confidence in the police department after unarmed African-Americans were killed in three separate incidents by white officers.