On May 25, 2020, George Floyd was murdered by then-police officer Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis. Then came protests in the streets, condemnation from public officials, and tough conversations. A year later, what's changed — and what could change?
On this episode, a look back — and a look forward.
First up: checking in with a proposed citizen review board for the City of Wilmington, which would (in theory) provide accountability for officer misconduct from outside both the police department and the city. But, to really do its job, the board will need the power to see personnel files and law enforcement video — and right now, two state laws stand in the way. (You can find a draft of the board's set-up, below.)
Next, WECT anchor Frances Weller, talking about a very difficult year, and the opportunities for new conversation that have emerged from it. In newsrooms across the county, the personal and the professional collided for many Black journalists and Weller gives us a candid insight into that experience.
Then, law enforcement veteran and radio host Marc Benson discusses criminal justice reform from a cop's point of view. What makes a good cop and what happens when you have bad cops? How did the relationship between the police and the communities they serve — especially Black communities — got so strained, and can it be fixed? We get into it.
DRAFT - Wilmington Citizen Review Board by Ben Schachtman on Scribd
