After 11 years, Miami-Dade on the brink of having civilian police review board again

Miami-Dade on Monday moved to the brink of reviving its police review board after county commissioners passed compromise legislation that Mayor Carlos Gimenez said he wouldn’t veto.

Backers of the Independent Review Panel agreed to spare county employees and elected officials from subpoenas issued by the civilian panel, and Gimenez gave reluctant support for allowing the new law take effect.

He had vetoed two versions with subpoena power in 2018 and in July, when sponsor Barbara Jordan used momentum from protests tied to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis to try and revive an oversight board last in operation 11 years ago.

“This item has responded to everything that would cause it to be defeated,” Jordan said ahead of the 8-5 vote passing it, one vote shy of a veto-proof majority. “The community has been asking for this.”

Miami-Dade last had a functioning police oversight board in 2009, when the commission agreed to eliminate its budget under then-Mayor Carlos Alvarez, a former police director.

Like similar boards in Miami and other cities across the country, the Miami-Dade panel would have the ability to publicly review allegations of police misconduct but not impose discipline on officers.

“I ask that we use this platform to create accountability,” county resident Danny Callegos said ahead of the vote, when members of the public were given one minute to address commissioners. “The people want it.” Miami resident Yvette McCleod noted state law requires Miami-Dade to move to an elected sheriff by 2025. “We need to have this in place” before then, she said.

Jordan always had the votes to bring back the review panel, but not enough to overcome a Gimenez veto. After vetoing Jordan’s legislation on July 17, he said he’d sign a law that protects county employees, including commissioners and the mayor, from subpoenas from the review board. Jordan revised her legislation to meet that demand, and it passed its final vote before the commission on Monday.

“I will keep my promise to you, Commissioner Jordan. You made the changes you said you would,” Gimenez said before the vote. “But I still say this entire process is unnecessary You’re handing over a process to a group of people who are not elected. ... It’s our job to do this.”

Commissioners do not review allegations of police misconduct, as the review board previously did in Miami-Dade before it was defunded during a budget crisis in 2009. As described in the new law, commissioners would appoint members of the panel.

With passage by the commission, the ordinance becomes law after 10 days unless Gimenez vetoes the legislation. Miami-Dade still needs to approve funding for the board. Jordan’s legislation instructs the Gimenez administration to find public dollars to pay board staff. Jordan’s item includes a budget of about $800,000 for the panel’s staff and operations.

The panel is authorized to investigate misconduct allegations and use of force by police, as well as make recommendations on law enforcement policy and review all closed cases by the police department’s Internal Affairs division. The panel meets in the public, and its reports become public records.

The issue divided the two commissioners running to replace a term-limited Gimenez, the Republican candidate for Florida’s 26th Congressional District. Daniella Levine Cava joined the majority in voting for the proposal. Esteban “Steve” Bovo Jr. was one of the five No votes, along with Jose “Pepe” Diaz, Joe Martinez, Rebeca Sosa and Javier Souto.

Diaz said he didn’t want to impose another burden on police in 2020, a time he said officers are treated “worse than us — politicians.“

This story was originally published August 31, 2020 at 5:44 PM.