It’s about time.
It took the murder of yet another black man at the hands of police, this time it was George Floyd in Minneapolis, to come to this. It took the 
tear gassing of peaceful protesters exercising their right to denounce the brutal killing. It took the arrest of passionate student demonstrators, sitting on the sidewalk in front of Florida International University, met with a police state-like response one would see in Cuba or China.
But, finally, and arguably too late, county leaders are talking about police reform like it’s the new cool kid at school you wanna be best friends with.
Last week, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Chairwoman Audrey Edmonson made a breathless announcement that they were going to support Commissioner Barbara Jordan‘s longtime effort to create an independent civilian panel to review complaints and incidents when the police se las pasan. Because they do. Not all the time. Not even usually in most places. But sometimes. And too many times in some places.
It’s up for a vote at Tuesday’s commission meeting — and how much do you wanna bet it’s unanimous?
But Gimenez wasn’t keen on the idea two years ago, when he vetoed legislation sponsored and passed by Jordan to reinstate the board, which hasn’t been active since around 2010. He said it was because he wanted the members of the board to be 
appointed solely by commissioners and not by community organizations and stakeholders. In other words, he wants to stack it with handpicked lackeys.
And now that Jordan has real leverage and doesn’t have to compromise, she is?
Her 2018 version of the panel was to have nine members, five nominated — and approval by the commission required by five community groups: The Community Relations Board, the Community Action Agency, the Miami-Dade County League of Women Voters, the Miami-Dade Bar Association and the Miami-Dade Chiefs of Police Association. Those five members would then nominate four more.
Read related: Cubans should follow Puerto Ricans in demanding justice for George Floyd
The new version has 13 members, one appointed by each commissioner. “However consideration should be given to appointing a retired member of the judiciary, judge or magistrate, and retired or active professionals in the following fields: (1) human resources; (2) faith-based; (3) social justice; and (4) law enforcement,” the ordinance reads.
But it’s not the only change from the 2017 version of the panel. This panel also won’t be able to request the sworn testimony of the supervisor of Miami-Dade Police’s internal affairs unit.
So, basically, they are taking away any pretense of independence and/or teeth. What is it going to be good for? Is it going to be like another ethics commission, without any real power?
Ladra has another idea? How about we force Miami-Dade State Attorney Kathy Fernandez-Rundle to do 
her job? Why do we need a civilian panel to investigate police abuse? Why isn’t there a whole unit at the SAO just for that? To investigate not only county police complaints but also questionable arrests and police action in other cities. Although they may get tied up too much with Sweetwater and Hialeah.
It won’t be the only talk about police abuse of power.
Commissioner Esteban “Steve” Bovo will present a resolution establishing county policy that would prohibit the Miami-Dade Police Department from hiring any sworn officer who has been the subject of a sustained finding or an adjudication of unauthorized or improper force as a result of action taken while serving as a sworn police officer.
“The tragic death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man in 
Minneapolis, Minnesota who was handcuffed and pinned to the ground by a police officer’s knee for almost 9 minutes during an arrest, has reignited a national conversation about policing, community relationships, and the necessity of use of force in the context of police action,” said a press release from his office.
“Sworn police officers are given a significant amount of authority and responsibility, and the potential for abuse of that authority should not be ignored,” Bovo said. “My legislation ensures the Miami-Dade Police Department is not hiring officers who have been the subject of a sustained finding or an adjudication of unauthorized or improper force.”
“We are blessed to have one of the best police departments in the nation, and we must preserve our reputation with accountability and transparency.”
There will be push-back from the police union and other law enforcement groups. 
There already is.
Already on Monday, the Miami-Dade Police Department issued an open letter to the community about their policies, which include a ban on chokeholds and strongholds and a duty to intervene if another officer uses excessive force. The department cited other policies, such as “exhaust all alternatives before shooting,” which seems like something they shouldn’t have to put in writing.
Read related: State Attorney should investigate illegal arrests of 4 peaceful FIU protesters
“While we have come a long way through the years, we realize that there is more work to be done, and we are committed to working in partnership with our community to be the model law enforcement organization in the nation by being 
responsive and blending strategic planning with community concerns,” the letter ends.
The model of law enforcement? Really? The model of law enforcement doesn’t arrest peaceful protesters sitting on the sidewalk, like they did earlier this month with four FIU students .
Why would any department with nothing to fear be against a civilian review panel? Their argument — that the panel would not be accountable and could persecute officers for no good reason — is thin. Civilian review panels already exist in municipalities across the nation, including the city of Miami.
We used to have one in Miami-Dade, too. Then the commission decided not to fund it in 2009.
Miami-Dade moves forward with police reform post Floyd protests added by Ladra on
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You see the racism in Florida , in Miami and I say this as an anal retentive , law / order person who is worse then his grandparents , lol.
One example of many that all of you see are ” Monster trucks ” .
When you take a pickup truck or any vehicle and you make it taller , wider , change anything that is different then what is on the registration the vehicle is now illegal ( not to mention dangerous) .
You honestly think if the vast majority doing this weren’t White ( like skin Cubans like we are) , the police would look the other way ?
If these were Blacks , everyone would have been ticketed and vehicles towed .
M .Lopez ,
” Let marijuana smokers drive high and kill your relatives ” , are you joking , have you seen the way people here drive ?
Never mind marijuana the most savage , depraved and probably drunk drivers going (drunks Fri to Sun nights ) you find in Miami .
Drivers text as they drive in front of police and police ignore it .
Police here are substandard on their best day . Would love to see most replaced .
Have you ever lived outside of Miami ? This is NOT a real police dept .
Speed traps and other nonsense to look like they are doing something isn’t what we need , we need police who actually PATROL .
This is a disgrace .
I work at night and WOW what insane drivers while countless cops in this zero accountability Cuban run banana republic ( yo soy cubano) are hanging out behind shopping centers , etc .
No patrolling at all, no police accountability .
This is NOT a police dept .
Sure you have real police here who do their jobs but from I have seen the years I have been here they are the minority , this is the ” hang out ” most of their shift policia , puro miami .
Btw , I do not smoke pot but with drivers like Miami already has especially drunks mostly on weekends to me that isn’t going to add to the problem .
Our County Needs Only $ 2 million to pas The Citizen’s Review Board ? The Problem is FIX , The COE Commission on Ethics Budget is That Amount and They HAVE NOT done Anything but to cover Up our politicians MIA Protocol , Mayor and Family Etc. Just Transfer the budget !
When you have a system that doesn’t weed out the “bad apples” reform is required. No reasonable person is asking to disband the police force so the reaction by some talking about criminals running amok misses the mark. Reforms must include getting rid of the qualified immunity and creating a better process of selection, even if it requires increasing the pay scale, and creating an environment where it will become more difficult for the “bad apples” to remain on the force.
Hard times for the Police.
Hard future for victims of violent crime.
Cure is worse than the problem.
I submit we need to focus on REOPENING THE ECONOMY, and on the health risks of 5 G, and of probable forced vaccines to come.
Sincerely,
Jackson Rip Holmes
An Oversigh Board is not reform. It’s just another “club” the members of which will get paid for coming to meetings much like many of the Boards around now.
Reform Don’t Defund. Get rid of Rogue Cops. Put Cops back on foot patrol.
Let’s be realistic: societies need policing no matter how socially conscious they are or lofty their goals; violent criminals aren’t going to get magically converted into behaving because we are having a “Lovefest”. .
The Jordan Review Board sound like More of The Good Old Boys Club normal County Boards and Departments , The CAO , The OIG , The COE None of them work For their Citizen’s They are Poppets of The Mayor and BCC .
Appointees is Like BOTELLAS Positions normally given to Friends and Campaign workers in MDC. We need a State Attorney that Follow The Law and We Don’t have It, Too Many Conflict of Interest . Easy Solve Get a Sheriff and State Attorney!
We can create all the boards we want and the problem will never be solved. As much as police departments try to weed out bad cops some will always fall through the cracks. No amount of training will take out racism out of a man’s heart.
There are now thousands of videos showing police killing civilians. Most dead civilians were NO threat to the police. Thank goodness for cell phone cameras! They have shown the world what oppressed people have known for years.
My, My, Ladra..I have an idea…Why do we not appoint you to the oversight
board, then we know, that things will be done right!..After all we know where
you are coming from!
Better off yet, let the criminal element run amok. Let them sell dope openly, not only in Liberty City and Overtown, but in Coral Gables, Coco Plum, Aventura and Saga Bay. Let the 3% hard core criminals in our community who will never reform burn your business, raid your house while they smile at you and eat from your freezer. Let marijuana smokers drive high and kill your relatives. Let all wife beaters have a field day. Just don’t send in cops to stop any of those activities because when they take action and it goes bad, you will have them dragged in front of 13 leftist types who will put them in jail for life for trying to enforce the law. There is a system in place in every police department in this nation. Any citizen can file a complaint against a police officer. Of course it is easier to accuse all cops of being racists and burn the Wendy’s of this world than use civility to obtain justice.
I totally agree with M. Lopez. Every media outfit is clamoring for police reform, but I would love to see a complete 10 year analysis by a “credible” news media showing how many police officers were “murdered” at the hands of blacks,anarchists and supposed “peaceful demonstrators”, and by major city. I will venture to say that the ratio is in the realm of 5 to 1, or maybe even 10 to 1 – officers lives being taken. Where are the mass funerals, and calls to take down statues of black americans (including but not limited to all the marxists in their ranks).
I would also like to see in the future Miss LADRA, after each and every politicians name either a D for Democrat or R for Republican, so that myself and every other reader can filter thru any commentary bias. For too long, and NYC is the perfect example, we target the one or two bad apple republicans, while letting the mass corruption and idiocy of left-wing Democrats go unchecked, only because no one REALLY focuses on their party affiliations.