Aurora Seeks Residents’ Input To Craft Police Policy Reforms

AURORA, IL — Aurora city and police leaders are asking for hundreds of residents to make their voices heard at upcoming sessions to draft recommendations to reform police policies.

City officials announced Friday they will open up registration on Tuesday for 10 sessions, with five devoted to the department’s use-of-force policy and five devoted to its training policies. The 10 sessions are set to take place in July, after Illinois has moved to phase 4 of its reopening plan, which would allow for sessions of up to 50 people, said Clayton Muhammad, a spokesperson for Mayor Richard Irvin.

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City staff members, police officials and moderators will be present at the sessions, leaving room for about 40 city residents to participate in each, Muhammad said. Four sessions for each set of policies will be held on weekdays at various times, with the fifth to be scheduled on the weekend, Muhammad said.

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Officials have selected a dozen community leaders and activists to moderate the discussions, including Aurora Housing Authority Director Ralph Jordan; Nick Thompson, a community organizer and communications coordinator for the city; attorney Sharon Roberson, who has organized protests in recent weeks; and activist Kyle Welton.

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The policy-review sessions are part of Irvin’s CHANGE police reform initiative, which he announced June 9 after weeks of protests throughout the country. In addition to reviews of the Aurora Police Department’s use-of-force and training policies, Irvin’s initiative calls for Aurora officers to wear body cameras and the creation of a civilian review board to investigate police misconduct and complaints against officers.

The city is preparing to publish a request for information about body cameras, which would give companies 30 days to provide details about logistics and the cost of instituting body cameras across the force, officials have said. Aurora Police Chief Kristen Ziman has publicly backed Irvin’s calls for body cameras and a civilian review board.

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Aurora Deputy Police Chief Keith Cross on Friday said the department's public portal for residents to easily view complaints against officers and the outcomes of police misconduct investigations "is coming very soon."