Tag: Nashville Community Oversight Board

Business as Usual for the Metro Community Oversight Board as Bill to Disband Awaits Lee’s Signature

Mac Roberts

The Metro Nashville Community Oversight Board (COB) held what could be its final meeting Monday night as a bill to disband the authority awaits Governor Bill Lee’s signature. The measure comes after months of criticism of the Board’s makeup and activity.

State Executive Director of the Tennessee Faith & Freedom Coalition, Aaron Gulbransen told The Tennessee Star, “Nashville’s Community Oversight Board and those like it in other localities have been lambasted by individuals on both the Right and the Left. I think the Tennessee General Assembly made the right call regarding the legislation they passed.” Previously, Gulbransen was a senior reporter at The Star. 

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Social Justice Cliques: Inside Tennessee’s Community Oversight Boards and Their Relationships with Local Police Departments

Corinne Murdock

Any time an officer-involved shooting or alleged police misconduct occurs, community oversight boards are thrust center stage. In response to activists’ social justice demands over the years, some of Tennessee’s major cities – like Memphis, Knoxville, and Nashville – have established versions of community oversight boards to review police misconduct and accountability. It comes as no surprise, then, that the majority within these community oversight boards share similar social justice inclinations. 

A large portion of members’ concerns has to do with race, such as racial profiling in arrests or traffic stops, or concerning officer-involved shootings. In its latest meeting, Knoxville’s community oversight board expressed surprise that no racial discrimination claims were filed per their quarterly report. Other popular topics include equity, restorative justice, immigration, and mental health.

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Verified: Remainder of Community Oversight Board Are Registered Voters in Accordance with Law

Corinne Murdock

The remainder of Nashville’s Community Oversight Board (COB) are registered voters in Davidson County. The Tennessee Secretary of State’s office confirmed this information with The Tennessee Star.

The Star inquired initially after discovering that a recently-resigned member of the COB, Ovid Timothy Hughes, isn’t a registered voter. Hughes was convicted of a felony in 2008 – mail fraud committed against a previous employer. Not only did Hughes not disclose this information, he stated falsely before the Metro Nashville City Council that he was a registered voter.

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Vice Mayor Shulman Says Metro Council Will Revisit Verification Process for Community Oversight Board Members

Corinne Murdock

Metro Nashville’s Community Oversight Board (COB) members aren’t vetted prior to appointment – officials say they’re taken at their word. However, the shakiness of this method was exposed/ proved unreliable after The Tennessee Star discovered that recently-resigned member Ovid Timothy Hughes isn’t a registered voter, as he’d claimed and as was required of him by law. Hughes is a convicted felon, tried and charged in 2008 for mail fraud. He racked up over $78,000 of fraudulent charges against a previous employer using stolen credit card and account information. 

Nashville Vice Mayor Jim Shulman spoke with The Star about this revelation. He assured us that they would be taking extra steps in the future to verify all COB applicants’ voting eligibility.

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Executive Director of Community Oversight Board Not Responding to Questions About Vetting Board Members

Corinne Murdock

Not all members of the Nashville Community Oversight Board (COB) have been entirely truthful with the public they serve – or the police they’re entrusted to hold accountable. Over the weekend, The Tennessee Star uncovered information that a recently-resigned member of the COB, Ovid Timothy Hughes, may have misled officials about his voting status in order to be appointed. COB Executive Director Jill Fitcheard hasn’t responded to The Star about why he wasn’t vetted prior to his appointment.

The COB is tasked with investigating police misconduct allegations, as well as issuing reports and recommendations based on research of misconduct, public safety, and the administration of justice. Those responsibilities necessitate a series of requirements for membership. Individuals must be registered voters in Davidson County; residents of the county for at least one year; and be nominated by a community organization, a petition of at least 50 county residents, or at least one Metro City Council member. Members can’t be current law enforcement members or have been one in the last five years, elected officials, or the spouse of any of the former. Members must also agree to continuous trainings in areas such as civil rights, equity, criminal justice, policing practices, cultural diversity, sexual harassment awareness. However, it is unclear if members are vetted prior to their appointment.

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Nashville Community Oversight Board Member Who Resigned Unexpectedly Has Lengthy Criminal Record

Corinne Murdock

Up until last week Ovid Timothy Hughes was a member of Nashville’s Community Oversight Board (COB), dedicated to enforcing police accountability. However, Hughes wasn’t your typical concerned citizen on the COB – he has a lengthy criminal history himself. 

Between 2001 and 2002, Hughes racked up several felony charges for burglary. He was sentenced to two years in the private prison Corrections Corporation of America, now known as CoreCivic, and two years’ probation. Then in 2008, Hughes was arrested and charged for mail fraud. Hughes had reportedly stolen credit card and private account information from his previous employer. From 2006 to 2007, Hughes used the information to spend over $78,000 on items such as computer equipment and designer clothing.

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Nashville’s Community Oversight Board to Offer Executive Director Job to Chicago Civil Rights Lawyer William Weeden

Jason M. Reynolds

Nashville’s community oversight board has turned to someone outside of the community – Chicago, to be exact – to lead the organization’s oversight of police. The oversight board voted Tuesday to offer the executive director job to Chicago attorney William Weeden, Nashville Public Radio said. The board selected Weeden over four other finalists. Weeden is a civil rights attorney and a former prosecutor and professor of law. He served eight years as a leader of the Independent Police Review Authority in Chicago, Nashville Public Radio said. Metro Nashville’s website says the board has the power to investigate allegations that MNPD officers have committed misconduct against members of the public. That’s not all of its powers: The Board has the option to forward resolution reports that produce factual findings of criminal misconduct and civil rights violations to the District Attorney, Grand Jury, or U.S. Attorney. The Board shall have all powers, including the power to compel, identified in Section 18.10 of the Metropolitan Charter. A biography on Weeden’s law practice website says his previous stints included working for the Cook County (Illinois) State’s Attorney Office and serving as Assistant Attorney General in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, where he prosecuted felony…

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Police May Have to Get Counseling, Per Nashville Community Oversight Board

Chris Butler

Members of Nashville’s new Citizen Oversight Board will have access to police files. They can interview witnesses and police officers. They can send reports with recommendations about allegedly problematic officers to Metro Nashville Police Chief Steve Anderson, according to a new report in The Tennessee Tribune. “Those recommendations could be counselling or something stronger like a letter of reprimand, suspension, or even firing,” the website went on to say. “Anderson is required to respond to the COB but under the City Charter he retains authority to discipline members of MNPD. While the COB’s powers to investigate are considerable, it’s power to enforce any resolution to a particular complaint or enact policy changes remain advisory.” Nashville Mayor David Briley has selected former state Democratic Attorney General Bob Cooper and American Baptist College administrator Phyllis Hildreth to serve on the COB, the website said. Members of the Metro Council will select nine more members from a pool of nearly 200 applicants. Board members will then hire an executive director to select six staffers to investigate complaints and review police policies and procedures, The Tennessee Tribune reported. Also needed are two research analysts, a legal advisor, three investigators, and one community engagement liaison, according…

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