It was a day of transition at Tuesday’s Riley County Law board meeting, with Board members sworn in by Riley County Clerk Rich Vargo. New on the board are Manhattan City Commissioners Karen McCulloh and Usha Reddi and Citizen at Large Craig Beardsley.
New officers were elected,with a motion presented by law board member and Riley County Attorney Barry Wilkerson for Robert Boyd to serve as Chair and Karen McCulloh as Vice-Chair. And since Boyd was absent, McCulloh presided over the rest of the meeting.
The Board also said good-bye to outgoing Chair John Matta, who told RCPD officials they do an outstanding job. Manhattan City Commissioner Rich Jankovich is also steping down from the Board.
Community Advisory Board members Don Slater and Carl Friedrich were also recognized as was retiring Corrections Officer Silvia Zappas. Officer Aaron Wright and his canine partner Dino received a letter of appreciation for 10 years of faithful service.
Body worn cameras for law enforcement personnel continue to capture headlines, but Riley county Police Director Brad Schoen reminded Law Board Members Tuesday the local law enforcement agency is ahead of the curve–having looked at possible usage before circumstances in Ferguson, Missouri. RCPD is currently working with 11 such cameras.
New Board Member Usha Reddi encouraged continual progress reports, saying she’s heard about Wichita switching over and the high cost involved. But she mentioned the advantage to having the police officer’s perspective, especially with so many people having their own cellphones and video capabilities.
Schoen says there have been some issues with downloading data–but indicates he feels pretty good about the body worn camera study they’re in the midst of. The Police Director however was NOT supportive of a recent piece of legislation being considered at the state level though, describing it as one of the worst pieces of legislation he’s seen in quite a while.
The matter came up during discussion and goals and action items for 2014, which Director Schoen went over with the board.
While most goals and action items were compelted, one which did not involves implementation of the first phase of work necessary to move the Department’s firing range from its current location to a new one. Law Board Member Ron Wells talked about work on the matter from his perspective as a County Commissioner, indicating zoning matters would need work to change the location. Wells indicated negotiations regarding a new lease had not gone well, but this would provide some options.
In other matters, the board decided to table discussion on RCPD Director Brad Schoen’s contract until the February meeting.
Law Board members Tuesday also heard updates on community engagement programs from Public Information Officer Matthew Droge, approved two banks as designated depositories, heard about a substation lease agreement renewal, and approved a budget preparation timeline with special meetings to be held in the evening hours in March.
