N.O. Inspector General and Police Monitor go their separate ways

On Wednesday, October 14, Councilmembers Jared Brossett and LaToya Cantrell met with the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and the Independent Police Monitor (IPM). Inspector General Ed Quatreveaux and Independent Police Monitor Susan Hutson reached an agreement that sets a structure for the operations of the two offices moving forward. Under the agreement which was signed on October 14 in the office of Councilmember Jared C. Brossett, both parties will support an amendment to the Home Rule Charter which will separate the two offices and better clarify the accountability structure and funding of each office. The Inspector General will also immediately rescind his request to the Ethics Review Board for the termination of the Independent Police Monitor. The Ethics Review Board oversees both the OIG and IPM.

“I am very proud to have hosted Mr. Quatreveaux and Ms. Hutson today,” Brossett said “The agreement reached today will allow the OIG and the OIPM to operate independently and effectively. We need to have both a strong and independent police monitor and a strong and independent inspector general. This is clearly in the best interests of the City of New Orleans and in my view reflects what the voters hoped for and intended when they supported the creation of these two offices.”

“I am hoping that this agreement will restore the public trust in the OIG and IPM offices,” said Council Community Development Committee Chair and District “B” Councilmember Cantrell. “Now more than ever, we need both agencies to move forward and fully implement the work their offices were created to do through a public referendum.”

Currently, the Office of the Independent Police Monitor is a division within the Office of the Inspector General. Pursuant to the charter, the OIG presently receives 0.75 percent of the City’s annual general fund budget. The charter amendment, which will be introduced at the October 15 Regular Council Meeting, specifies that 0.16 percent of the general fund currently allocated to the OIG will go with the OIPM. As part of the agreement, the OIG will allocate 0.16 percent of the general fund to the OIPM in its 2016 budget and provide $92,500 in remaining 2015 funds for the OIPM’s relocation expenses.

“The IPM has been grateful and inspired to see the community rally behind police oversight in the past few weeks, and we look forward to a new era of adequate funding, connection with the public, and leadership by impacted communities,” IPM Susan Hutson said in a statement Wednes-day. “To all of you who spoke up about your vision for police oversight, we heard you, and we look forward to having the budget and autonomy to further collaborate and fulfill your vision. The role of citizen oversight of law enforcement is vital to police integrity, and many of you laid the groundwork for the IPM to even exist. We will honor this history in all of the work that we do.”

Quatrevaux said that his office will continue to monitor NOPD operations tonsure that the department carries out its duties by the book, Over the past three years, the OIG has submitted 22 reports on the NOPD and recommended that the NOPD hire civilians to perform office duties in order to free up additional officers for street patrols.
Voters will weigh in on the proposed change to the city’s home charter in April.

“Understanding the high stakes involved in police reform and the need to be fully committed to it both in principle and action, the Urban League of Greater New Orleans is pleased with the agreement reached between Inspector General (IG), Edward Quatrevaux, and Independent Police Monitor (IPM), Susan Hutson,” the Urban League of Greater New Orleans said in a statement last week.

“The Office of the Independent Police Monitor and the Office of the Inspector General are both essential to providing the checks and balances needed to promote effective and transparent government in New Orleans. The IPM is essential in improving the service of the NOPD and restoring the public’s trust in the Department. It requires both adequate funding and autonomy to fully execute the role of the Office. This agreement and the proposed charter amendment strengthen the IPM’s ability to perform its duties at the highest level, and respond to the community’s demand for a more accountable police department. The Urban League of Greater New Orleans supports this outcome and encourages residents in New Orleans to vote in favor of the amendment to the Home Rule Charter, providing the true ‘independence’ we always envisioned for our Independent Police Monitor.”

This article originally published in the October 19, 2015 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.