The Dover Police Advisory board is meant to provide informed and constructive feedback to Dover police, but board members noted during their Thursday meeting that public involvement has been low for at least the last year.
They say this wouldn’t be notable if it weren’t for the high turnout at other community policing discussions, specifically pointing to a pair of events this year hosted at the Dover Public Library, which reported dozens of participants.
Crystal Chatman, Smart Justice Ambassador with the ACLU, says there could be several reasons for this.
“Some people are afraid to come out and voice their experience. Afraid of retaliation. And that’s just the culture of the times. Not everybody is educated, not everybody is social media savvy. They don’t know where to go to find these places.” she told DPM.
But Dover Police Chief Thomas Johnson Jr argues comparing those events to turnout for the Police Advisory Board may be unfair,
“The town halls, the listening sessions that were being referenced in the meeting, they were a little bit more regionally advertised, and they were a little bit more of a ‘10,000-foot view’ of the policing profession; as opposed to a thoughtful discussion about Dover policing and any particular concerns about this department.” he said.
Multiple board members suggest holding some meetings outside of the police department to make them more approachable.
They also raised the possibility of increasing their social media presence to promote their meetings and encourage turnout.
Chief Johnson notes he encourages the public to come to Advisory Board meetings, and regularly stays after to chat with people with concerns.
The next Police Advisory Board meeting is expected to take place on October 16th.
