2 locals join Tacoma's Citizen Review Panel

Tacoma City Council appointed two local residents to the City of Tacoma’s Citizen Review Panel on Tuesday.

The seven-member, policy-focused board aims to help ensure transparency and accountability in the way the Tacoma Police Department operates. The Citizen Review Panel is responsible for reviewing police policy at the request of Tacoma City Council or Tacoma’s City Manager; receiving and reviewing policy complaints by members of the public; and providing advice to Tacoma City Council, Tacoma’s City Manager, and Tacoma’s Chief of Police on Tacoma Police Department policy matters. The panel also provides community outreach and education through public hearings and other efforts.

Qualified applicants are screened by a criminal background check and must be a registered voter; have lived in Tacoma for at least two years immediately before applying; not hold any other elected public office; not currently serve as a member of the Tacoma Police Department; or be an immediate family member of a department employee.

Citizen Review Panel members include William King (District 5); Keith James (District 3); Michelle Franklin-Wilson (District 3); Jean McCord; and Ryan Webster (District 2).

The City of Tacoma issued a call for applicants in July. Four candidates applied to fill one unexpired term and one three-year term: Steven Balogh (District 3); John “Jack” Cameron (District 2); Katie Evans (District 3); and Daniel Thomasson (District 4). Tacoma City Council’s Public Safety, Human Services and Education Committee interviewed the applicants during a public meeting Thurs., Aug. 28. The committee recommended Evans and Thomasson be appointed to the Citizen Review Panel.

On Tuesday, Tacoma City Council approved a resolution to confirm the appointments. Evans has been appointed to a three-year term that will expire on Sun., Dec. 31, 2017. Thomasson has been appointed to an unexpired term that will expire on Thurs., Dec. 31, 2015.

“We interviewed four candidates and chose these two candidates,” said Deputy Mayor Victoria Woodards, who also chairs Tacoma City Council’s Public Safety, Human Services and Education Committee. “We thought they would be the best to represent the community, and we are happy to recommend them for appointment tonight.”

To read the Tacoma Daily Index’s complete and comprehensive coverage of Tacoma’s Citizen Review Panel, click on the following links: