Dear Mayor Moore:

Having convened our committee after listening to and soliciting the concerns and
suggestions of the community, we have prepared a list of actions that the community
would like to see done to begin the hard work of mending relations between this
community and the Elkhart Police Department.

Our action committee would also like to convene a meeting with Mayor Moore
next week at 4pm on any of the following dates to further discuss solutions to the
existing issues surrounding community and police relations in Elkhart. August
18, 19, 20, or 21.

We believe that the items on the list can be executed and implemented with minimal
effort, and offer our assistance and resources to assist if needed. Given the shortage of
officers, we believe that the salary monies not in use by the shortfall would be properly
served if spent on implementing these requests. We look forward to ways to
continuously work with the City and the Elkhart Police Department, and would like you
to share with us your plans to work towards this shared goal of better relations.
1. We request formal and public affirmation and ownership of the responsibility of
the city to dedicate their resources to seek out solutions as a natural extension of
their service to us, their constituents. While willing to assist and offer our ideas,
we believe the onus is on the city to ensure this is actively and rigorously
pursued.
2. We feel every community would be better served by officers who live in the
same community and have knowledge about the area outside of what they deal
with in their police capacities. To make this more of a reality, we would like to see
the following explored:
a. Geographically centered hiring incentives (with emphasis placed on
hiring from residents of South-Central Elkhart, as it currently lacks
representation on the police department).
b. Community Oriented policing models with officers residing they serve
c. Discussions about what can be done to have officer representation more
closely mirror the ethnic/socioeconomic diversity of the communities they
serve
3. Ethnic sensitivity and diversity training for all officers to assist those who are
not from a particular community better understand the history and cultures of
those they serve and protect. We request that this training become a regular part
of training sessions.
4. A standardized and publicized Code of Conduct which all citizens can readily
access so they know the professional standards and conduct to expect when
interfacing with our officers.
5. A safeguard policy to prevent further spikes in patrolling, similar to those that
occurred on the weekend of July 4
th
, 2014 in the Garfield Avenue area.
6. A full and public review and investigation into the alleged misconduct of officers
in the Garfield Avenue area following the assault of Corporal Dustin Young.

7. Full implementation of on-officer video cameras, such as the Taser AXON.
These cameras assist in evidence gathering for prosecution, and keep all parties
accountable and honest. A randomized control study done in Rialto, California by
the Police Foundation has shown an 88% decrease in police complaints, and a
60% decrease in use of force.
(http://www.policefoundation.org/sites/g/files/g798246/f/201303/The%20Effect%2
0of%20Body-Worn%20Cameras%20on%20Police%20Use-of-Force.pdf)

Sincerely,
The Elkhart Community Roundtable Action Committee