A recently completed independent review of the State College Police Department makes 47 recommendations for strengthening policies and improving community relationships.
One of several measures undertaken following the fatal police shooting of Osaze Osagie in 2019, the borough approved a $60,000 contract with the International Association of Chiefs of Police last fall to conduct an independent review and assessment of the police department’s policies and practices and provide recommendations for improvement.
Osagie, a 29-year-old Black man with a history of schizophrenia and autism, was shot and killed by borough police during a confrontation at his State College apartment when officers came to serve a 302 mental health warrant. All three officers involved were cleared of wrongdoing by Centre County District Attorney Bernie Cantorna after an investigation by state police.
IACP team members presented an overview of the 72-page report to borough council on Tuesday.
The report generally found the department’s existing policies to be consistent with leading practices. But it did suggest, at times in granular detail, places where policies could be clarified or expanded and in a few instances have some more substantial changes. It also recommended opportunities for working more closely with the community on internal and external accountability.
IACP is a member-based nonprofit dedicated to ‘advancing the future of policing,’ program manager Meghann Casanova said. The review was conducted by law enforcement subject matter experts in policy and operations, community engagement and policing in university towns.
The review team collected and analyzed ‘information about the operations, procedures, culture and climate of the SCPD,’ including conducting interviews and surveys with department personnel and community members in January.
Jessie Lee, lead subject matter expert and former executive director of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, said recommendations were organized into two key areas: internal and external accountability and specific policy domains.
Community feedback showed a generally positive view of the police department, though about a quarter of the 257 survey respondents believe they have been personally discriminated against by SCPD to some degree. A similar percentage said they trust the department only a little or not at all.
The report recommended developing and furthering community collaboration to to seek ways to improve perceptions and experiences related to encounters between police and community members.
‘We wanted to make sure when we are making these recommendations that they are including the community as they work through these processes together on the front end and not on the back end,’ Lee said.
A survey of officers and command staff found that nearly all agree that department personnel are ‘highly ethical’ and that they would be inclined to report inappropriate actions. However, more than half of the 33 respondents said they did not believe that an employee who has engaged in inappropriate behavior would be held accountable regardless of rank or position.
‘Some officers indicated that they are less confident that lieutenants are held accountable for their actions, nor do they consistently hold officers accountable for theirs,’ the report stated.
About a 42% said they did not think discipline is administered fairly.
The report noted that citizen complaints are rare, and incidents involving internal issues that require intervention or discipline are ‘relatively infrequent.’
A committee of officers, which would also be involved with addressing promotion and evaluation concerns, should be used to engage with department and borough leaders on developing a policy related to ethical behavior and expectations, accountability structures for enforcing those behaviors and expectations about what happens when misconduct occurs, the report recommends.
Some officers, according to the report, also feel disconnected from and unappreciated by borough leadership and believe some borough council members have accused them of racism.
Officers consistently said they believed the department is unbiased in both its policing strategies and welcoming of employees, and the review team found no evidence to the contrary. However, while the department has tried to diversify its ranks for years, the report says it needs ‘a concerted effort to maximize diversity,’ stating that there is considerable data showing more diverse organizations are more productive and make better decisions.
That means, Lee said, not only diversity of race, ethnicity and gender but also of thought and life experience.
SCPD, the reports says, should develop community participation in the recruitment and hiring process, which in turn would also help strengthen trust between the department and community.
For internal and external accountability, body-worn camera video should be used in the personnel review process ‘to support early intervention with officers and reinforce training,’ Lee said.
The department also ‘should consider opportunities to improve transparency by making body-worn camera videos publicly available,’ when possible, Lee said. He added that such decisions need to be in alignment with state law, standards for open investigations and in conjunction with the prosecutor, but that making footage available when possible builds trust and openness.
Community involvement in oversight is one of the keys to ‘enhanced accountability,’ the report says. A community oversight board is one of several measures borough council agreed to move forward with in a resolution adopted in June in response to a list of demands from the 3/20 Coalition, an advocacy organization formed following Osagie’s death.
‘[The report] solidifies in my mind that we’re pursuing the right approach,’ Councilman Evan Myers said.
The IACP team also studied and made recommendations in eight policy areas, all of which ‘are consistent with at least minimum standards and often exceed standards,’ Lee said.
SCPD’s use-of-force policy addresses key elements and is consistent with state law, but has areas where it can be improved, the report said.
‘The model included in the policy can be cumbersome and somewhat confusing,’ according to the report. ‘The model does encourage officers to assess the amount of resistance that is present and determine the appropriate use of force that ranges from officer presence to use of deadly force. However the model offers little guidance on how to assess resistance and does not define the types of resistance, nor does the current model take into account officer response, the subject’s intention to harm or the potential for injury.’
While it reflects established practices in policing, the model should offer guidance on how to interpret resistance and other factors, according to the report.
‘There are a lot of new models, legislation, legal issues,’ Lee said. ‘We want to make sure we stay current with those and review them more frequently so the policies will reflect current use-of-force models.’
SCPD should partner with Penn State experts or other groups for expanded data analysis and reporting, Lee said. Close analysis, he said, is a tool for early detection of concerning behaviors.
‘It will bring about that impartial review, credibility and transparency as well,’ he said.
Use-of-force analysis also should be linked to other policies, such as when encountering an individuals who are exhibiting signs of behavioral or mental illness where crisis intervention is necessary.
For mental health and crisis intervention response, all officers already undergo initial training, but the report recommends expanded training and guidance for all officers — not just new hires. It suggests a data collection process to inform resource allocation and training needs. While the report says SCPD already has a strong relationship with Centre County government’s mental health programs, it recommends expanding partnerships and policy review with community mental health organizations.
Melanie Morrison, a 3/20 Coalition member, said the department’s current crisis intervention training ‘was clearly ineffective,’ in the Osagie case as officers ‘covered the peephole on a paranoid schizophrenic, didn’t identify themselves and screamed at a man with autism,’ prior to the shooting. The coalition has advocated for the divestment of firearms from service of mental health warrants and wellness checks.
In 2019 the borough and county formed a joint task force to review and recommend changes to the mental health crisis delivery system in Centre County. A report is expected sometime this fall, Centre County Administrator Margaret Gray said on Tuesday.
The internal affairs policy also conforms to standards but the report makes several recommendations for changes. Among them is development of an early warning/intervention system or risk management initiative to ‘detect patterns or trends in an officer’s conduct before it escalates.’
Such a system would include a number of measures ranging from vehicle stop data to use-of-force incidents to complaints to evidence suppressed by a court. It could result in remedial intervention such as training and intensive supervision, discipline, and/or an evaluation of fitness for duty.
The report also recommends creating a policy to require officers to self-report ‘any criminal, domestic violence, and motor vehicle citations,’ against them, regardless of where it occurred.
Recommendations also including clarifying or expanding policies on evidence handling and processing, search and seizure, domestic violence, pursuits and prisoner detention.
Lee said both the community and the department were ‘in total alignment’ on policy priorities.
‘That’s very rare,’ he said. ‘It tells me the pulse is there both on the police department and community side. Now it’s just bringing them both together and addressing those concerns together collectively.’
Leslie Laing, a 3/20 Coalition member, said policy priorities may be aligned, but the vision for the future is not, as of yet.
‘We are not yet in lockstep,’ she said. ‘We have a wonderful department. We have a wonderful borough. We have good people on our council. And the community is very vocal in trying to align ourselves. The last 18 months have been spent trying to align ourselves. I’m happy you have seen and have evidence of it in your report.’
Councilwoman Deanna Behring said the study and recommendations will help to bring the borough, police and community together.
‘To have these recommendations, both general and specific, as they relate to community engagement, improved accountability, improved transparency and the promotion of impartial and equitable policing I think are going to be really instrumental to get the community and police force together on positive change and action for our community,’ she said.
