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Shock waves follow police treatment of black juveniles
(by Sue Reid - July 21, 2010)
Shock waves follow police treatment of black juveniles
By SUE REID
It's not just a black issue, Solon resident Geraldine Waters told Mayor Susan A. Drucker and City Council Monday. It is one everyone in the community should be concerned about, she said.
Ms. Waters' comments referred to the treatment of two black juveniles during a burglary in progress last month. Solon officers detained, handcuffed and questioned a 16-year-old Solon boy and his 12-year-old sister, called for backup, and, with guns drawn, ordered them to the ground. An internal investigation by the Solon Police Department into the incident found insufficient evidence to proceed with departmental charges.
Ms. Waters joined over 30 African-Americans who gathered to speak out on the issue, many citing feelings of pain, shock and embarrassment.
"My first reaction was anger, then a wave of sadness, and then I became afraid," said Ms. Waters, who has a 16-year-old daughter. "I look to the police to protect her, but who's going to protect her from the police?"
"It is an outrage how our Solon children were treated," Pamela Murphy El-Jamah said, "and the police department continues to say it's OK.
"When do our children become suspicious when they are walking down the street in the neighborhood that they live?" Ms. El-Jamah asked. "If we are going to condone this action, we should be ashamed of ourselves."
Police Chief Wayne E. Godzich said what happened when the juveniles were stopped by police "was innocently brought on by their suspicious actions of running, stopping, turning, walking backwards and running again." He said those actions were the reason they were stopped, along with the fact that the boy partially matched the description of the burglary suspect by wearing a ball cap.
Solon resident Mark Williams said he was "touched" and "shocked" after reading about the incident.
"I was disappointed in the event and the reaction to the event, but, unfortunately, I was not surprised," Mr. Williams said. A father of a 13-year-old boy and an 11-year-old girl, he said he worries about when he has to explain to them the "realities of life."
Mr. Williams said he could not imagine what was going through the juveniles' minds during the incident. He asked the mayor and council, "as leaders of this community, to be a little more circumspect and look at this a little bit more.
"We can deal with it as a community or let it go by," Mr. Williams said.
"Let's get behind these children," resident KingMan El-Jamah said. "These children are messed up for life over a mistake this officer made." He asked for the resignation of the officer involved in the incident. "If the police officer does not resign, it will send the wrong message to the community," he said.
"People make mistakes," resident Brian Smith said. "Let's face it, those officers made a mistake. It may have been procedure, but then the procedure is a mistake. Let's fix this."
Mrs. Drucker said she and Mr. Godzich are reviewing procedures in such incidents.
"This was an unfortunate set of circumstances, including a home being burglarized, an active crime scene, the police responding to the scene and observing unusual actions reported by the police officer and two children, through no fault of their own, in the wrong place at the wrong time," she said.
"We always feel terrible when any of our residents are involved in unfortunate circumstances and even worse when a child is involved," Mrs. Drucker said. "However, the recently completed internal investigation reported that proper police procedures were followed in this incident."
"Policies have to change, and a police culture has to change," said Lawrence Floyd, of Solon, who is a defense attorney with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and a former prosecutor. "That is not easy to do. Culture is difficult to change."
Mr. Floyd stressed the need for inclusion of African-Americans on the decision-making bodies in the city and the school board. "We need some inclusion" in policy decisions being made in Solon, he said. "There is not inclusion, and Solon needs to address that."
Mr. Floyd said he and Stanley Miller, executive director of the Cleveland branch of the NAACP, spoke with Mrs. Drucker, "and I know she is sincere to move Solon forward."
Mr. Floyd stressed the need to work together as a community.
"What is the council and city going to do?" he asked. "The challenge is with you."
"We should live and learn from this situation," said 16-year-old Brian Smith, who lives in Solon and attends school in Cleveland.
"I'm not saying to remove the police officer, but at the end of the day, we should discuss this," Brian said. "We should learn from the situation, but let's not forget it."
"The parents of Solon are very upset with this incident," said Parvati Hasan, president of the Alliance for Black Families. "We have to come up with solutions, and we'd be willing to work with council and the mayor to do that."
Mrs. Drucker said Solon is made up of a very diverse population, "and we pride ourselves in serving all of our community equally."
Councilman Richard A. Bell said most of the members of council have children and take this matter very seriously, as does the administration.
"If it was one of my kids, I would have been outraged," said resident David Glavin, who is white. "If we find the officer followed procedures, we need to review them, and they have to change," he said.
"You don't pull a gun and aim it at someone unless you are going to use it," Mr. Glavin said.
"I'm disappointed there is not one white parent who stood at this microphone and expressed outrage," Mr. Glavin said. "I'm disappointed in Solon tonight."
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