The five-member committee that has been formed to look into the possibility of consolidating the Baton Rouge Police Department and East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office is meeting this afternoon for the first time.
Metro Councilman Joel Boé, who spearheaded an effort to form the committee, says the meeting will be largely “organizational” in nature.
“I’d really just like to see us do some roundtable brainstorming and give all the members a chance to meet one another and set a game plan for going forward,” he says.
Council members Tara Wicker and John Delgado are also on the committee, along with BRPD Sgt. Jonathan Dunnam and EBRSO Col. Lawrence McLeary, representing the law enforcement agencies. Boé says the committee will meet no less than once a month, and he anticipates today’s meeting will be the first of many.
“This is going to be a long process, and it’s not going to be easy,” he says.
Consolidation of the agencies would have to be approved by voters, and Boé notes the next parishwide general election is not scheduled until the fall of 2014. The committee could try to push for a special election before then, he says, but it might take until next fall to put together enough information for voters to make an informed decision.
“I would hope to see the committee bring the council some sort of resolution to move forward with a study or evaluation of consolidation from a financial and legal perspective,” he says. “That’s going to have to come from an independent third party if we’re going to get the confidence of voters and the council. Of course, one caveat is that’s going to take money—and it’s going to take time.”
Boé says a consolidation study was completed under former Mayor Bobby Simpson, and he’s working to get a copy in hopes it may aid the committee. As the committee meets today, recently fired Baton Rouge Police Chief Dewayne White is pushing to be reinstated through a civil service appeal, while Mayor Kip Holden is moving forward with trying to find White’s permanent replacement.
The Office of State Examiner has tentatively set a May 22 date for eligible applicants to take the civil service exam for the job. The local Municipal Fire and Police Civil Service Board is considering approving applications at its April 18 meeting.
White was fired by Holden on Feb. 18. On Monday, Metro Council member C. Denise Marcelle sent a formal request to the U.S. Department of Justice to find out whether the feds will investigate allegations made by White concerning the police department after he was fired.
The committee convenes today at 2 p.m. on the third floor of City Hall, 222 St. Louis St., and the meeting is open to the public.
Today’s poll question: Has the recent firing of Baton Rouge Police Chief Dewayne White made you more inclined to support consolidation of the police department and the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office?
