This week’s City Council meeting featured robust discussion about policing. Many community members spoke during public comment asking for transparency about arrests and force used by East Lansing police during Michigan State University’s welcome week, while others praised ELPD’s handling of violent incidents that they say have become common downtown.
The discussion took place as the city prepares to finalize changes to the ordinance governing its independent police oversight commission.
The changes, which city officials have said are required because of a new contract with a police union, have been put in place since the contract was approved and strip the commission of some of its powers. The changes include redacting officer information from reports, limiting what commissioners can talk about publicly and delaying the timeline the commission receives information about complaints on…