August 8, 1998.

Group calls for civil rights review of cops

By David Rising, Standard-Times staff writer

NEW BEDFORD -- On the heels of an inflammatory trial, where police were accused of on-the-job racism, the NAACP is calling for the creation of a citizen's review board to keep the department in check.
"The vast majority of police do their jobs, but all you need is one or two rogue cops to put the whole department in disfavor, and that's doing a disservice to the public servants and the public," said Lee Charlton, president of the New Bedford National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

"There has to be a weeding-out process and it's been shown time and time again it can't be done in-house."
Mr. Charlton's remarks come after this week's 3rd District Court trial of Shawndre Grace and Brian Anacleto. The two were acquitted of resisting arrest, and Ms. Grace was acquitted of assault and battery on a police officer. Both were found guilty of disturbing the peace.
During the seemingly innocuous trial, however, witnesses testified that police officers used racial slurs while arresting Ms. Grace in 1996.
Attorney Donald Brisson, who defended Ms. Grace and Mr. Anacleto, said during the trial that police lied on the stand.
Yesterday, he said he supported the idea of a citizen's police review board, and called for an investigation into the officers' conduct.
"I think the judicial system and I think (Bristol county District Attorney) Paul Walsh has to make police officers more accountable," Mr. Brisson said. "There ought to be an investigation of the officers' testimony and if they are found to have committed perjury, they should be prosecuted."
Mr. Walsh could not be reached at his office yesterday afternoon, and Police Chief Arthur J. Kelly III said he would rather not comment on the merits of a civilian review board until he knew more details.
The chief also said he could not comment on whether the officers in the trial were being investigated by the police internal affairs unit.
In 1996, when Sheriff Thomas Hodgson was a city councilor, he proposed a "police commission" to be formed of four city councilors and the mayor to meet regularly with the chief. They would review police operations and manpower allocation and investigate allegations of misconduct.
Mr. Charlton said since people respected councilors enough to elect them, they would make ideal candidates for a citizen's police review board, and the mayor ought to be the one to set up such a board.
"I think you'd have to give the responsibility to your chief elected official," Mr. Charlton said. "If people put enough faith in him to elect him, he should have that duty, and I think civil rights ought to be at the top of the mayor's list."
Mr. Charlton emphatically added, however, that he did not want the independent review board to start an "us-and-them" mentality.
"I've got to believe in many cases it would vindicate what was done (by police) -- this would not be a civilian vigilante group to get the cops, it would be a group designed to get the truth."
He said he felt such a group was entirely justified. "We've had several judgments against the city for a lot of money," Mr. Charlton said.
"They have not been felt by the individual officers, they have been felt by the taxpayers, and if the taxpayers feel the pain, they should have a say."