Board of Police Commisioners - Aug 28, 2025

Call to order

The meeting was called to order at 3:02 pm

Roll Call

Eva Garza Dewaelsche (Chair)

Darryl Woods (Vice Chair)

Tamara Smith (District 1), Tardy

Linda Bernard (District 2)

Cedric Banks (District 3)

Willie Bell (District 4)

Willie Burton (District 5), Tardy

Lisa Carter (District 6), Absent

Ricardo Moore (District 7), Excused

Robert Jones (At-large)

The approval of the meeting's agenda and the previous meeting's minutes were moved by Commissioner Woods.

BOPC Officers’ Report

The Board awarded a resolution posthumously honoring active Detroit Police Department Corporal Rhonda Morris, who passed away August 18th, 2025.

Chief of Police Report by Assistant Chief Franklin Hayes

Assistant Chief Hayes reported that violent crime statistics are down with a 12% decrease in homicides and a 25% decrease in non-fatal shootings. Hayes also reported a decrease in non-violent crimes such as robbery and carjacking. He then discussed recent cases of the week, including the non-fatal shooting of a teenage girl, a fatal shooting at Henry Ford Hospital, a drug bust on MapleRidge Street, and a car crash that left two DPD officers injured. A commissioner noted that Hayes’ microphone wasn’t properly working throughout his report and zoom listeners couldn’t hear what he was saying, after which he moved to one that did work.

Commissioner Burton asked Hayes if DPD is collaborating or has units collaborating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, in the city. Responding, Hayes said “Through the chair, we are not.”

Public Comments

Minister Eric Blount of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church began public comment by revisiting the issue of police misconduct that he raised during a BOPC meeting from earlier this month, stating that discussions of crime and “resolutions honoring employees that are not employees of this board” are diversions from addressing police misconduct. Blount also claimed he was missing from the minutes of last weeks meeting despite attending and that there was no record of the meetings transcript, adding that his omission is “no mistake.” He also said he had a conversation with Chief Bettison about the rape of a twelve year old boy in a Wayne County Jail, saying he believes “It could happen very easily under DPD,” while Bettison disagreed and offered to give Blount a tour of the DPD jail facilities. Despite this, Blount says he hasn’t heard from Bettison since. Assistant Chief Hayes responded, saying he would reach out to Blount next week for the jail facility tour. Commissioner Woods then apologized and stated that last week's meeting minutes will be looked over and fixed if there were any errors.

Following Blount, a woman claimed that DPD hired ex-felons to become police officers. She stated that the FBI should be contacted on the matter.

Victoria Camille, a resident of District 7, said she wanted more transparency if a relative is detained at the Detroit Detention Center. Specifically, Camille said she wanted better public access for medical issues/conditions a relative may have to ensure they get the proper medications and care while they’re held at DDC.

Another speaker discussed an upcoming Detroit Continuum of Care meeting to be held at the Northwest Activity Center on September 8th, raising concerns about holding this meeting in a community space where children are often present when a CoC board member is a registered sex offender. Multiple commissioners shared the concern and said they would pass the information on to Corporation Counsel Conrad Mallet.

The last speaker noted that there were still persistent audio/mic issues before he said that he hopes DPD takes steps to reduce wrongful arrests.

DPD Budget Report (FY Q4 Apr-June 2025) by Chief Financial Officer Nevrus Nazarco

Nazarco began his report by reviewing the budgeted amounts per item compared to what was spent during the fourth quarter of this year. Multiple commissioners noted or asked about the consistent variance of budgeted expenses being higher than what was actually spent. Nazarco explained that this is a normal occurrence because budgets are made based on historical data and “the history is not a good indicator as to the future revenues.”

Nazarco reported the overall budgeted expenditure for the fourth quarter was $424.4 million, while the spending was $420.6 million. The overall budgeted revenue for the fourth quarter was $92.8 million, while actual revenues were $88.3 million.

Commissioner Burton remarked that he wanted to see more funding go to the Harbormasters and Neighborhood Police Officers because they both have gotten “the short end of the stick.” Nazarco said budget decisions are ultimately made by the Chief’s office, with Assistant Chief Hayes adding that both units have seen an increase in size, funding, and equipment over the years.

Office of the Chief Investigators Backlog Investigation by Rev. Jerome Warfield

Chief Investigator Warfield gave a report on this years effort to clear legacy (backlog) Citizen Complaint Cases while not neglecting new cases. His report showed that there has been a significant amount of cases closed this year compared to 2024, with only 530 cases closed last year compared to 3,429 cases closed in 2025 despite a higher amount of cases being received (1,307 cases received in 2024 compared to 2,027 in 2025).

Commissioner Bernard noted the increase in complaints this year and asked if there was a way to decrease the number. Warfield said the majority of complaints regarded service, demeanor, or procedure, and trends in complaints that follow a certain department or shift are sent to a disciplinary body to be dealt with. Bernard then asked if there were incentives in place to lower these numbers. Warfield said there wasn’t, while Assistant Chief Hayes said the incentive was the privilege to wear the DPD badge and uniform. In response, Commissioner Bernard said, “Good, I agree with that. But it doesn’t change the numbers.”

Report from Board Secretary Lydia Garnier

Secretary Garnier reviewed the upcoming meetings for the body, including the next BOPC meeting September 4th at 3pm at the Detroit Public Safety Headquarters and a community meeting September 11th at 6:30pm at Marathon Oil Michigan Headquarters. Commissioner Woods raised a concern about collaborating with a corporation like Marathon. Assistant Chief praised the public-private partnership with Marathon, saying that the corporation has bought scout cars for the Fourth Precinct and supported fallen officers. Commissioner Woods said he didn’t care about the support and thought an independent public body shouldn’t work so closely with any corporation. Commissioner Bell and Bernard disagreed with Woods and didn’t see an issue. Commissioner Dewaelsche asked Woods if he wanted to call a vote to change the location, which he dismissed.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 4:40 pm.