By Kelli Smith and Yamil Berard
Nearly five years since Dallas voted for an unprecedented overhaul of police oversight in Dallas, the entities tasked with carrying it out have been plagued by confusion and uncertainty.
The Dallas Morning News spoke with board members, city and police leaders, activists and national oversight experts to investigate how an initiative introduced with promises and high hopes unraveled in the past year.
The News identified at least seven obstacles facing Dallas police oversight.
The office’s budget is below that of many large cities with oversight
Dallas carved out $784,565 in its budget for the oversight office in fiscal year 2023-24. By comparison, New Orleans — which has a police department about a third of the size of Dallas’ — has an oversight office budget of about $1.2 million. Austin, with about half as many officers as Dallas, has an oversight budget of about $4.93 million. The police oversight budget in San Diego, which has about 1,100 fewer officers, is $2.2 million.
Gaps in communication between the city, the office, board and police
City Manager T.C. Broadnax, who oversees the oversight office, said it’s not the board’s job to be informed about oversight hiring. Some board members strongly disagree.
“If the city manager doesn’t want me to have that information, then I assume he doesn’t want my council member to have that information,” said board member Brandon Friedman. “My City Council member appointed me because he can’t do everything all the time … my council member asked me to conduct oversight of the police department and that’s what I’m doing to the best of my ability and it’s being inhibited by actions like this.”
Lack of transparency
Many board members said they were left in the dark about important matters including updates on investigations, staffing and budget decisions.
In a recent meeting, interim director Elaine Chandler said she received a “confidential opinion” from the city attorney’s office stating oversight was operating incorrectly and could not review any complaints that DPD hadn’t first investigated.
She refused to say who from the city rendered the opinion.
Board members were outraged, blasting how that interpretation meant DPD would act as a gatekeeper for all complaints.
High staff turnover over the past 12 to 18 months
Dallas’ first police monitor and oversight investigator left their positions in the months after Lane’s case was brought to light. The city manager refused to spell out why.
The city named a new mediation manager and complaint intake specialist after the former employees left, but board members said there’s a lack of experience necessary to be efficient.
Lack of urgency from city officials to find a new permanent police monitor
Dallas’ first director of the oversight office left her role in September, but officials didn’t list a job posting for her replacement for four months.
The office has hired other staff, but board members worry about their experience level.
The city manager told The News he’s in no rush to fill the role.
The interim director does not have an oversight background
Board members say the interim police monitor’s lack of experience in their field hampers their ability to conduct thorough investigations. Chandler’s background is in HR, not criminal justice, according to city officials.
The office’s prior monitor was a former criminal defense attorney who headed the New Orleans police oversight office before Dallas.
Civilian police oversight experts say the monitor has to be well-qualified.
“Having a monitor in place who is very familiar with law enforcement practices, constitutional law and civilian oversight in general, and then also who knows how to lead a staff is incredibly important,” said Cameron McEllhiney, executive director of the National Association of Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement.
Board members feel officials are dismissive of their concerns
Board members at times don’t receive follow-up materials, such as video and other information to help understand complaints.
Police officials don’t attend the monthly meetings in person, relegating it to Zoom even after the board voiced a plea last year for officials to attend in person.
Kelli Smith, Staff Writer. Kelli covers public safety and the Dallas Police Department for The Dallas Morning News. She grew up in El Paso and graduated from the University of Notre Dame with degrees in political science and film and a minor in journalism. Before joining the staff, she reported for the Chicago Tribune and KTSM, the NBC affiliate in El Paso.
Yamil Berard, Investigative reporter. Much of Berard’s work in California, Texas and Georgia has focused on trying to unwind complex financial topics, including public pensions, conduit bonds, hospital finance, tax incentives and public construction projects.
This story, originally published in The Dallas Morning News, is reprinted as part of a collaborative partnership between The Dallas Morning News and Texas Metro News. The partnership seeks to boost coverage of Dallas’ communities of color, particularly in southern Dallas.
