TOWN OF HERTFORD SPECIAL CALL MEETING PUBLIC DISCUSSION-PUBLIC HEARINGNOTE TUESDAY, JUNE 1, 2021 6:00PM HERTFORD COMMUNITY CENTER(in person and on Zoom)  The Town Council of Hertford held its Public Discussion Public Hearing/Vote on  Tuesday June 1, 2021 at 6:00pm. COUNCILORS PRESENT Mayor Earnell Brown Councilman Frank Norman  Mayor Pro Tem Ashley Hodges Councilman Jerry Mimlitsch  Councilman Quentin Jackson (left prior to adjournment)  STAFF PRESENT A quorum was present  Town Manager Pam Hurdle, Clerk Olga Simpson  Mayor Brown called the meeting to order. Councilman Jerry Mimlitsch gave the CITIZENS CONCERNS (Proposed Dissolution of the Hertford Police Department) Matthew Cyr - (Supported) thanked Mayor Pro Tem Hodges for explaining the financial state of the budget. He believed it was a good idea to disband the Police Department and contract with the Sheriff. The Town can save money and get better protection without having to raise taxes. The model has been working in Lakewood, CA  invocation which was followed by the pledge of allegiance.  for 67 years.  -Martha Borders - A transcript of her concerns are attached to the minutes. -Murielle Harmon (Undecided) questioned if the county was on board, and whether there was a $350,000 contract. She also wanted to know what made the difference -Tim Brinn (Supported) -1 feels the Sheriff's deputies are more familiar with the residents than Hertford's police. He compared the years of service of each. Two of the Hertford officers have already been hired by the Sheriff's Department. Currently there are only two sworn officers with the Police Department. Itis expensive to train and certify new -Sarah Winslow (Supported) - Strongly supports law enforcement and feels the Town can no longer adequately support a police force. The budget has been the highest,  between the $550,000 and the $350,000.  personnel.  there is excessive turnover and the infrastructure is in dire straits.  1    -Paul Hazen - No longer wished to comment..  -Jack Brooks (Opposed) He is a former law enforcement officer from the Eastern Shore ofVirginia. He does not think Council has enough information to make a decision. He feels the Town can be policed by five officers and ify you give them adequate salaries, good benefits, and raises, they will stay. He also suggested making them sign a two- Councilman Frank Norman (Opposed) He did not receive the documentation in advance. He thought the Police Department was the most fiscally responsible department in the Town. Chief left because he did not feel he had the support of the Council. It was wrong for citizens to have to pay for law enforcement services that they  year contract.  were already paying for with their taxes.  COUNCIL CONCERNS incident occurs in the County.  -Councilman Mimlitsch - Commented on the type of coverage that can be expected. He said coverage will be strictly for the Town unless there is an emergency or major -Mayor Brown - The decision to disband the police department was extremely difficult and she was concerned about the loss of jobs. No one has lost their job. There will be equal or better law enforcement service with a contract that provides dedicated service. -Mayor Pro Tem Hodges - Gave a financial history of the police department and despite Council's huge investment in the department, it has had a high turnover, although some of the turnover was attributed to weeding out some bad apples. The police department was crippled by overhead expenses which was not their fault. He further explained the Councilman Jackson - He did not agree with the information provided by Mayor Pro Tem Hodges. He did not believe that he and Councilman Norman had received sufficient information. He felt other departments like Public Works had turnover. Pay raises had been given despite the budget crisis. He questioned why give Allison Platt the money she is being paid if the Town is financially strapped. He thought they should hold the vote since some members of Council had charges pending with the Hertford -Councilman Norman - He reiterated that he did not get the information ahead of time and since the attorney was not there he could not ask if what they were trying to do was -Mayor Pro Tem Hodges - He said the intent was to share the information ahead of time and get it to the attorney also sO he could be here. However, he did not get the contract until today. He said they were working on the budget. The Town will get more by contracting. Council can elect to keep the police department and pay more for less  difference between the $550,00 and the $350,000.  Police Department.  legal.  2    coverage or go into a contract and buy dedicated support with the sheriff's office at a lower cost. He was asking Council to move forward, not with the contract, but simply to say "Council has made a decision to retire the police department, move forward with the contract agreement with the sheriff's department and that contract will be discussed and ratified in a future meeting. This would not bind Council. They are not committed to Councilman Jackson moved to suspend the rules based on the time for this agenda item. Eight minutes per Council member is not enough time. He has questions and wanted time to have them answered and the answers on the record. Councilman Norman seconded the motion. In the discussion on the motion, Mayor Pro Tem Hodges opposed the motion saying all presentations and reference information were provided to all Council members. Questions had been answered in the Town hall meeting. The purpose of this meeting was to hear citizens' concerns. Councilman Jackson opposed being given a week to review the information and make a decision. He complained about the use of the attorney without that being voted on by the whole Council. The motion failed by a vote of 3 against and 2 for. The voice vote was as follows:  retiring the police department until Council ratifies a contract.  Councilman Mimlitsch Councilman Norman Councilman Jackson Mayor Pro Tem Hodges nay Mayor Brown  nay yay yay nay  Councilman Jackson made a motion to adjourn and Councilman Norman seconded it.  The voice vote was as follows: Councilman Mimlitsch Councilman Norman Councilman Jackson Mayor Pro Tem Hodges nay Mayor Brown  nay yay yay nay  Councilman Jackson left the meeting saying he received a text message that he had Mayor Brown restated Mayor Pro Tem Hodges earlier motion to retire the police department contingent upon, but not committed to until the contract is ratified by the Governing Board. Council Mimlitsch seconded the motion. The motion passed 3-2.  tested positive for COVID.  The voice vote was as follows: Councilman Mimlitsch Councilman Norman Councilman Jackson Mayor Pro Tem Hodges yay Mayor Brown  yay nay nay yay  *The Mayor stated that Councilman Jackson asked to record his vote as "no" even  though he was not excused.  3    Since Officer Polumbo is the next highest ranking officer, Mayor Pro Tem Hodges made an motion to designate him as the Interim Police Chief. Councilman Mimlitsch seconded  the motion. The voice vote was a follows:  Councilman Mimlitsch Councilman Norman Councilman Jackson Mayor Pro Tem Hodges yay Mayor Brown  yay nay nay (in absentia) yay  There was discussion on the proper procedure on someone leaving the meeting midstream and how his vote should be recorded. Council agreed to deem Councilman Jackson excused from the meeting and to record all his votes as "no." Councilman Mimlitsch made a motion to adjourn the meeting and Mayor Pro Tem Hodges seconded it. The motion passed 4-1. The voice vote was as follows:  Councilman Mimlitsch Councilman Norman Councilman Jackson Mayor Pro Tem Hodges yay Mayor Brown Meeting adjourned 8:31pm  yay yay nay (in absentia) yay  4    Martha Borders: Transcript Department.  Thank you Hertford' Town Council for allowing me to speak regarding the Hertford Police Last year when Mayor Pro' Teml Hodges first raised the idea of consolidating thel Hertford police into the Perquimans County Sheriff] Department, myi immediate reaction was surprise. Curiosity got the better of me and) Ibegan my own research. And some of the conclusions! Ireached are al bit disturbing. Small rural towns and counties all over our country can be ai target for an organization to move: in and virtuallyt take over regarding town govt. and police.' They] put their peoplei inj placel by vote, money, intimidation or any combination that works. Once an organization isi in control ofthese communities, they become al hubi fori illegal activity. Andi iti is not limited to drugs. Usually these towns or counties arel located in poor rural areas where the voting population isn'tvery attentive. Does that ringal bell? Just this morning II read: an article in' Thel New York" Times about Guernsey, Wyoming. Thej police were continually thwarted by town council regarding drug investigations until they eitherleft or werei firedl by council. The police couldn'tdot thej job they were Ourl local Hertford Town govt. is set up so two ort three council members can have as strongi influence over our Hertford Police Chief. If therei is al three person council quorum ito onlytake two votes to fire the Chief. Ifiti is ai five person council quorum it takes three votes. Seet thej problem? This situation could easilyl lead to abuse of! power bothi int thej police department and on council.Iam not comfortable with the present arrangement. Citizens are afraid to come forward withi information in such an environment. They could be retaliated against causing fear and distrust in our town. This antiquated thinking ofl leaving control with ai few council membersi is ripe for corruption. Lets instead movei into the 21 century andl be open to an educated and researched option. Wel have an opportunityto move our policing tot the county and from what hasl been indicated, we can: save money while maintaining reliable protection: for the citizens ofl Hertford.' The county Sheriff is elected every four years and: answers to allt the votersi including Hertford residents. He can'tbe fired because Hertford town council or the county commissioners. aren't happy withl how) he does] his job. The Sheriff answers tot thej people while thel Hertford Police Chief answers to' Town Council. The Sheriff can conduct his owni investigations without' Town Councill looking over his shoulders.I doubti ift the Sheriff would takel kindlyto any council membert trying tot tell him his job. Though there are: several on council that desire that control and also claim theyl know more about thel law. There is much less possibility for corruption if our police arei freet to do an honest, well trained, dedicated job Changei is part of life and Hertford is ripet tol break free from power centered among ai fewa and instead allowt the citizens tol have a votei in whoi is our Sheriff.. Ast town residents we: also pay countyt taxes that helpf fund the Perquimans County Sheriff] Department. Let's! hope that is taken in to consideration. WhileIdor not know thei final numbers needed tol balance thel budget, ifiti makes financial sense to  hired to do. No council should havet that kind of control.  to uphold thel law.  switch to county policing, let's doit.  Special Call Meeting Police Discussion Public Hearing/Vote  June 1, 2021  9