Chattanooga Police Chief David Roddy said Tuesday he estimates that city police had up to 700,000 encounters with citizens in 2019 with 305 use of force reports filed. Of those, he said there were complaints filed on 18.
He said total calls for service were 242,000.
Chief Roddy said cutting $45 million from the police budget "would mean laying off about 200-250 officers - half the force."
Chief Roddy told members of the City Council preparing for a budget vote that he is continuing to tighten policies dealing with use of force by police.
He said, "We do not tolerate (unreasonable use of force). But we have to hear about it, and we have to investigate it."
Chief Roddy said he recently was told by a police supervisor about suspicions of city officers mistreating citizens. He said he personally called another agency and asked them to look into it.
Councilman Darrin Ledford said, "Defunding the police department is something we cannot have."
Councilwoman Demetrus Coonrod said there are many "good cops" as well as a few "bad cops." She said her granddaughter Peyton got a favorable image of officers when "she saw white officers trying to save her daddy" when he was recently fatally shot. She said, "Now Peyton loves officers. When she sees them she wants to run over and hug them."
Councilwoman Coonrod said there will still be the problem of "bad cops" despite whatever policies or new programs are put in place. "There will be ones who put their shoulders on their necks and kill them or shoot you while you are running."
She also said of a plan by Mayor Andy Berke to set up a new Department of Community Resilience, "I appreciate it, but it's not a true fix." She said the solution is finding a way to weed out the "bad cops."
Councilman Anthony Byrd also spoke of "getting the wolves in sheep's clothing out of there." He said giving additional powers to the newly formed police review panel could help with that.
He said, "We still don't know who is the racist cop and who is the good cop."
Councilwoman Carol Berz said, "What I keep hearing is the need common decency and respect for people. And not having officers 'messing with people.' "
Lisa Maragnano, CARTA executive director, told council members, "The last thing I want is to have money take from the Police Department and given to CARTA."
The City Council was told that the McKamey Animal Center is being taken out of the police budget since it works more often with code enforcement.
Officials said in a final "scrub" of the budget that $86,000 was taken out of the 911 program projected budget, which is part of the police budget. The agency will get the same amount of funding as last year.
The Office of Community Resilience is described as "a resource within local government for helping communities heal from trauma and minimize their contact with the criminal justice system. It will provide activists, advocates, and allies with a forum to plan for a safer, stronger, more resilient Chattanooga."
Specifically, this new office will be responsible for several functions:
Social work, including supporting victims of violent crime.
Recidivism reduction programs, including assistance with felony record expungements and job training.
Support for justice-involved youth, including new mentoring and diversion initiatives.
Neighborhood-based planning, through partnerships with RPA, CDOT, the Office of Economic Development, and other departments that can assist residents with planning processes that result in visions for businesses, public spaces, and other assets that communities need to thrive.
Independent budget analysis and policy recommendations about municipal government expenditures related to public safety and law enforcement, like 911 response mapping and fees and fines for non-violent offenses.
The Office of Community Resilience will combine some of the existing functions of the Office of Public Safety, the Family Justice Center, and other programs currently administered by the city, supplemented with $150,000 coming from the Office of the Chief of Police.
Later this month, Mayor Berke said he will appoint an inaugural advisory board for this office and will begin the process of recruiting a full-time director to lead it.