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2021 08 24 BPAC MinutesMINUTES OF THE BAYTOWN POLICE ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN August 24, 2021 The Baytown Police Advisory Committee of the City of Baytown, Texas, met in a Regular Meeting on Tuesday, August 24, 2021, at 6:00 P.M. in the Council Chamber at Baytown City Hall, located at 2401 Market Street, Baytown, Texas with the following in attendance: Raphael D. Montgomery Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher Vice -Chairperson Richard Hunsinger Committee Member Dr. June Stansky Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno Committee Member Yulanda Braxton Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa Committee Member Kevin Troller Assistant City Manager Angela Jackson Acting City Clerk Trevor Fanning General Counsel Mike Holden Interim Police Chief Chairperson Raphael D. Montgomery convened the August 24, 2021, Baytown Police Advisory Committee ("BPAC") Meeting with a quorum present at 6:03 P.M., all members were present with the exception of Committee Member Cpl. Steve Ocanas and Committee Member Yulanda Braxton, who were absent. 1. MINUTES a. Consider approving the minutes of the Baytown Police Advisory Committee Meeting held on July 27, 2021. A motion was made by Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher and seconded by Committee Member Dr. June Stansky to approve the minutes of the Baytown Police Advisory Committee Meeting held on July 27, 2021, as submitted. The vote was as follows: Ayes: Chairperson Raphael D. Montgomery, Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher, Committee Member Dr. June Stansky, Committee Member Richard Hunsinger, Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno, and Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa Nays: None Other: Committee Member Cpl. Steve Ocanas (Absent) and Committee Member Yulanda Braxton (Absent) Approved Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes August 24, 2021 Page 2 of 7 Chairperson Montgomery noted that the agenda would need to be taken out of order and they would need to proceed to consider Item 3.a. prior to Item 2.a., in order to allow additional time for the individual to come online that has requested to speak under Citizen Input. A motion was made by Committee Member Dr. June Stansky and seconded by Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno to move Item 2.a., Citizen Input, further down on the agenda until the speaker who signed up to speak was available to present their comments. The vote was as follows: Ayes: Chairperson Raphael D. Montgomery, Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher, Committee Member Dr. June Stansky, Committee Member Richard Hunsinger, Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno, and Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa Nays: None Other: Committee Member Cpl. Steve Ocanas (Absent) and Committee Member Yulanda Braxton (Absent) Approved 3. BUSINESS ITEMS a. Consider decals for self -identification of potential mental health issues. Interim Police Chief Mike Holden presented the item and noted that at their places on the dais, he had provided all of the Committee Members with different sets of decals that were designed based on the input from the BPAC and the Police Department Mental Health Unit. The first artwork he referred to was the single patch sticker of the nationally known mental illness symbol, the green ribbon, with the phrase "Baytown Cares" written across it horizontally. He noted that the consensus of the committee was for it to include the city logo along with the Baytown Police patch or logo. Interim Police Chief Holden further noted that the decal would have a reflective material on the background, as shown in white on the artwork, in order to capture the attention of officers approaching a vehicle or home that would have it displayed. He indicated that he was opened to any suggestions on behalf of the committee members in regards to the artwork, and informed the Committee that the reason they went with the SymbolArts company for the design is that they are a national company that do graphic designs for various entities and they can purchase the rights to the artwork, as opposed to if they went with a local company who may go out of business. They would initially purchase approximately 250 or 500 of the decals and have them available with the Community Service Officer at the police station. In regards to the different designs provided for the autism decal, Interim Police Chief Holden noted that he felt they were all in agreement to utilize the national symbol for autism with the puzzle pieces incorporated into the design and the phrase "Baytown Cares" going across it as well. Vice - Chairperson Bolenbaucher asked if the reflective material could be incorporated in the puzzle piece background of the autism decal the way it is on the mental illness decal. Interim Police Chief Holden indicated that they can only use the reflective materials on white shaded areas so they could possibly integrate it on the white letters on the decal. Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes August 24, 2021 Page 3 of 7 After a brief discussion from the committee members providing their input for the decal designs, Interim Police Chief Holden noted that he would like to get the decals ordered by the following week so that they can have them available to show the clinicians when they meet with them in regards to displaying the self -reporting mental health illness forms at their offices. A motion was made by Committee Member Dr. June Stansky and seconded by Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno to utilize the same design for the mental illness decal and the autism awareness decal, with the exception of incorporating the green ribbon for the mental illness decal and the puzzle piece ribbon for the autism awareness decal. The vote was as follows: Ayes: Chairperson Raphael D. Montgomery, Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher, Committee Member Dr. June Stansky, Committee Member Richard Hunsinger, Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno, and Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa Nays: None Other: Committee Member Cpl. Steve Ocanas (Absent) and Committee Member Yulanda Braxton (Absent) Approved Committee Member Dr. Moreno inquired if the officers would wear patches with the same design as the mental illness decal on their uniforns and Interim Police Chief Holden indicated that the officers would wear a green ribbon lapel pin or pocket pin to notify the citizen or consumer that they are Mental Health Officers. b. Discuss and consider the presentation of the Baytown Police Advisory Committee's quarterly report to the City Council. First Assistant City Attorney Trevor Fanning presented the item and noted that at their previous meeting, City Attorney Karen Horner had provided theirs with the proposed PowerPoint presentation, which is included in their agenda packet. They made minor changes, which included the removal of the decal design shown on the presentation, pending their approval of the final design, and updated the number of meetings the BPAC held as well the number of opportunities provided for citizen input. A motion was made by Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher and seconded by Committee Member Richard Hunsinger to approve the presentation of the Baytown Police Advisory Committee's quarterly report to the City Council on Thursday, August 26, 2021. The vote was as follows: Ayes: Chairperson Raphael D. Montgomery, Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher, Committee Member Dr. June Stansky, Committee Member Richard Hunsinger, Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno, and Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa Nays: None Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes August 24, 2021 Page 4 of 7 Other: Committee Member Cpl. Steve Ocanas (Absent) and Committee Member Yulanda Braxton (Absent) Approved C. Receive a report and discuss the status of police outreach, community policing, officer training and policies and procedures. Interim Police Chief Holden presented the item and noted that earlier in the meeting they had received the updated information in regards to the decal stickers. The self -reporting mental health illness form would be on the back side of the pamphlet that they will provide the clinicians, which was provided to them at their previous meeting. Once they receive the decals, then they can schedule some time to visit with the clinicians in Baytown to have them display the pamphlets in their offices. In regards to the CORE program, Interim Police Chief Holden indicated that the last update he received was that the interlocal agreement was being reviewed by the Harris County Legal counsel after the City's Legal Department recommended some changes, and they are waiting for those to get resolved. However, once the program is approved by Council at a future meeting, they would still have to train the officers that will be participating in the CORE program before they implement it. He reiterated that all the funds needed to participate in the CORE program would be covered by the Harris County grant and the City of Baytown will not have to contribute any funds. As it relates to community policing, officer training, policies and procedures, Interim Police Chief Holden reiterated that policies and procedures are always being reviewed. They anticipated in the upcoming budget the additional training for mental health officers. However, it entails finding the right people for that, somebody who has the willingness to want to do that and participate in the CORE program. He further noted that every officer is required to go through Block Training in a two- year cycle. He attended the day before, which was focused on de-escalation for eight hours, and today it basically focused on ethics and dealing with mental health issues and dealing with society as a whole. They also have a responder mental health program planned for next year and they are working out a contract with a third -party vendor, but it will take a while to get 175 officers through that training. Committee Member Dr. Moreno inquired as to whether diversity or cultural diversity training was part of the ethics training covered at the Bloc Training. Interim Police Chief Holden answered that cultural diversity training is provided all the way through when an individual becomes a police officer and they re -update that through certain levels of their certification, from intermediate to advanced training, and through Block trainings. Assistant City Manager Kevin Troller noted that there are various definitions that the City uses for cultural diversity, such as diversity inclusivity, and City Manager Davis calls it cultural appreciation. The City's Human Resources department has been tasked with developing training for the whole City, some of which is available online, however, they believe cultural appreciation training should be provided through in person training rather than online and the Police department has some internal things that they do inherently. Committee Member Dr. Moreno asked how the trainings are being evaluated or is there any kind of evaluation process as it pertains to these trainings. Mr. Troller indicated that the cultural diversity training is still being developed at this time; however, it entails finding topics, structures, and facilitators that can get people to be fully participative which will be a better judge of how successful Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes August 24, 2021 Page 5 of 7 it was by how well the attendees participate. Vice -President Bolenbaucher wanted to take this moment to thank Chief Holden for everything that he has done with the advisory committee, his diligence, and for bringing them viable information through the education process for approximately the past nine months. Interim Police Chief Holden stated that it had been a privilege for him to work with the committee and thanked each and every one of them for taking the time to want to participate and to know more about the Police Department as that is vital since it takes everybody, a community, and a village to correct the problems or whatever that may be in place. However, he looks forward to hopefully continue to work with them into the future. Chairperson Montgomery noted that they would consider Agenda Item 2.a. at this time. 2. CITIZEN INPUT a. Receive citizen input concerning police outreach, community policing, officer training, as well as policies and procedures. Chairperson Montgomery noted that Mr. David Isaac had signed up to speak regarding this item and asked him to come forward to present his comments. Mr. David Isaac initiated by commending the board or giving their time voluntarily for them. He also thanked Mr. Holden for his service as it has been impeccable during this pandemic and during an experimental time and this is a shining example of what they are capable of doing together. He noted that he wanted to give his comments today from the perspective of a young individual, just so happens to be black in Baytown. As a matter of representation, he thinks it is important that he speak, even though many of there, whether warranted or not, are afraid to do so. He then shared a story of a personal experience he had while in Tokyo, Japan, in regards to their public service. In summary, Mr. Isaac commented that they need to look at this department of public service, as a matter of caring for people. They do not see that very often, especially as they leave police out of this frontline worker conversation, but they are part of the front line and they are taking care of them and they need to see that for what it is. He had three components to give explicit advice for although he did not get to it, but he will see them next month. Chairperson Montgomery thanked Mr. Isaac for his input and concerns, and noted that the committee will definitely take what he communicated into advisement as they continue to move forward in this work of building a bridge between the Police department and our community. Chairperson Montgomery returned to the regular order of the agenda with Item 3.d. under Business Items. d. Consider setting any tasks and processes for future meetings. Assistant City Manager Kevin Troller indicated that this item was on the agenda as a placeholder in order for the Committee to request consideration of certain topics or items they would like to place on their future meeting agendas. Committee Member Dr. Moreno indicated that they still had buckets of concern that they need to Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes August 24, 2021 Page 6 of 7 discuss and consider. Committee Member Dr. Stansky alluded to the training Chief Holden had previously discussed in regards to equity training and asked if they could possibly see outlines or the curriculum of those types of training that the officers partake in, as an education component for the committee. Interim Police Chief Holden noted that they do have outlines of the classes as well as the criteria curriculum for what is taught at the Police Academy that he can share with them at their next meeting. Committee Member Dr. Moreno also noted that she would be interested in looking at their evaluation process for officers, if that is possible, since typically HR departments have an evaluation process that they have in terms of how often do they evaluate the police officers. For example, what kinds of evaluations do they do? Do they evaluate based off the trainings? Are they implementing the trainings and the things that they have learned? All this infonnation would be helpful because that goes back to one of the committee's bucket items, which is accountability. Interim Police Chief Holden pointed out that civil service employees are not evaluated yearly, but they are evaluated on a daily and weekly basis from the supervisors. Chairperson Montgomery also requested they discuss public outreach and how they publicize or advertise to the citizen as to what the Police Department is doing in regards to community positive engagement. He would like to know if they are listening to the community to get ideas as to what they can do to be more engaging with the communities. 4. MANAGER'S REPORT a. The Baytown Police Advisory Committee will be presenting its Quarterly Report to City Council on Thursday, August 26, 2021, at 6:30 P.M., in the Council Chamber at Baytown City Hall, 2401 Market Street, Baytown, Texas 77520. b. The next Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting is scheduled for September 28, 2021, at 6:00 P.M., in the Council Chamber at Baytown City Hall, 2401 Market Street, Baytown, Texas 77520. Assistant City Manager Kevin Troller addressed the need for citizen input at all of the Committee's meetings as that is the key for them as a community to embrace the voice of the citizens and for them have open dialogue so they can share their concerns or issues. He also thanked Chief Holden and all that he has done, the information he has shared, and the fact that he represented himself and the Police Department very well. Mr. Troller reminded everyone that the Committee will be presenting its quarterly report to City Council on August 26'h and that their next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 28`t' at 6:00 P.M., in the Council Chamber at Baytown City Hall. A motion was made by Committee Member Richard Hunsinger and seconded by Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa to move the scheduled meeting date for the next Baytown Police Advisory Committee Meeting from Tuesday, September 28, 2021, to Tuesday, September 21, 2021 at 6:00 P.M. The vote was as follows: Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes August 24, 2021 Page 7 of 7 5. Ayes: Chairperson Raphael D. Montgomery, Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher, Committee Member Dr. June Stansky, Committee Member Richard Hunsinger, Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno, and Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa Nays: None Other: Committee Member Cpl. Steve Ocanas (Absent) and Committee Member Yolanda Braxton (Absent) ADJOURN With there being no further business to discuss, a motion was made by Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher, and seconded by Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno, to adjourn the August 24, 2021, Baytown Police Advisory Committee Regular Meeting at 6:50 P.M. The vote was as follows: Ayes: Chairperson Raphael D. Montgomery, Vice -Chairperson Eric Bolenbaucher, Committee Member Dr. June Stansky, Committee Member Richard Hunsinger, Committee Member Dr. Marissa Moreno, and Committee Member Lt. Rene Hinojosa Nays: None Other: Committee Member Cpl. Steve Ocanas (Absent) and Committee Member Yulanda Braxton (Absent) IL J-'L� Angela Jac son, Acting City Clerk City of Baytown ! V .saw°ya° �rGCN FOF;�W