Civilian Review

This Friday, St. Louis aldermen may take up a bill establishing a new civilian review board for the St. Louis Police Department. The issue of civilian review has sharply divided our City. Those sharp divisions will probably be reflected in the Board’s debate.

But, if the City is going to have a civilian review board, the Board of Aldermen, the Police Board, and I have to be on the same page. Whether we like it or not — and I don’t like it — the Police Board is a state agency. If the Board of Aldermen does not pass a bill that matches the plan for a civilian review board already approved by the Board of Police Commissioners, we won’t have a CRB. It’s that simple.

I support a useful civilian review board. Anything short of that is just play-acting.