The Detroit Board of Police Commissioners is Back in Power

The Detroit Board of Police Commissioners will resume oversight of the police force in December.

Detroit City Council in Session

Bre’Anna Tinsley/ WDET

The Detroit City Council unanimously passed a resolution this morning to reinstate full power to the Detroit Police Board of Commissioners.

The board lost oversight of the police department in the 2014 bankruptcy agreement.

William Bell is the Vice Chair of the commission. He says the board continued to meet every week, even though their power was stripped.

Some issue we could not be able to weigh in on because we did not have that legal standing. And now we have that legal standing. We want to look at, as we go forward, the policy. Just the whole politics and the procedure dealing with the board of commissioners and the chief of police and the mayor.

-William Bell, Detroit Police Board of Commissioners Vice Chair

Bell says the board has been actively engaged with the community, meeting with residents once a month.

The board resumes oversight of the police department in December. 

Author

  • Bre'Anna Tinsley
    Bre'Anna Tinsley is a reporter for Detroit Public Radio, 101.9 WDET. She covers city government and housing, as well as co-hosting the "Detroit Evening Report" podcast.