Police Reform Working Group looks forward to working with Mayor Kenney

Rep. Morgan B. Cephas June 9, 2020 | 4:08 PM

PHILADELPHIA, June 9 – The Police Reform Working Group, a collection of elected officials and advocates working to bring accountability and transparency reforms to law enforcement, released the following statement in response to Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney’s commitment to police reform:

“To bring about true and meaningful law enforcement reform, we must work together with leaders at all levels of government so the voices of those we represent can be heard and forward-thinking change achieved. We’ve already had several conversations with Mayor Kenney’s administration and those discussions have been promising. We appreciate the mayor’s willingness to listen and believe that his announcement today is the first step in what will be a long, but productive, journey to reform.

“Specifically, the mayor’s commitment to an immediate update to the police use-of-force policies, creation of a deputy inspector general focused on deterring, detecting, preventing and eradicating waste, fraud and abuse within law enforcement, increased transparency regarding Internal Affairs investigations and changes to collective bargaining are well much-needed changes that will increase transparency and accountability while improving the safety of our communities. These are the type of changes necessary to stop the bleeding from centuries-old wounds of police brutality in Black and Brown communities.

“As Mayor Kenney said, we are only at the beginning of this process. We’ve seen and heard the anger of Philadelphians and Pennsylvanians across the state who are demanding change. As we move forward working with Mayor Kenney’s administration, we will bring those voices with us and ensure they’re heard. We will ensure that the voices we convey are just as loud throughout this long process of reform as they are in the beginning. We will not be satisfied with small victories, as small victories won’t put an end to the needless death of members of our communities.”

Members of the group include: