Joliet citizen police board still in the works

The city is working on a citizens board, which at least in theory could review such matters as the police shooting that occurred this week.

Just what role the board would have in the department is still to be determined.

But Councilman Terry Morris said the city is moving ahead with a proposal to develop a citizens board that would have a role in police matters.

Morris heads the City Council Land Use and Legislative Committee, which would review the proposal.

“I hope it’s sometime in January,” Morris said, noting city staff is still working on it.

Morris said such a board would be created to add citizen involvement in the police department but stopped short of suggesting it would have a role in reviewing police shootings like the one that occurred Tuesday night.

“I don’t think they would get involved in any investigation of police shootings,” Morris said, although he added that the board’s role in police was still to be determined.

Joliet police shot Joseph Casten, 19, of Naperville, multiple times when he pointed what turned out to be a BB gun at them after bringing police to the scene with a 911 call, according to the Will-Grundy Major Crimes Task Force, which investigated the shooting. Casten died in the shooting.

The City Council ultimately will determine what a citizens police board does, said Assistant City Attorney Chris Regis.

Regis is developing a proposal that he said is based on a model put out by the Fraternal Order of Police, a union that represents police officers.

“There are a lot of options in it,” Regis said, noting that the model will provide the basic structure for a citizens board. “What the duties and powers are is up to the City Council.”

Will County Progressives and a group of residents have been pushing for a citizens board as one of several changes in the Joliet Police Department.

The proposals were made this summer in the aftermath of the release of a video showing police handling of Eric Lurry, who died from what the Major Crimes Task Force determined to be a massive drug overdose that occurred after Lurry swallowed drugs during his arrest.

The proponents of reform have voiced frustration with the time taken to act on their proposals, which included body cameras for police.

The City Council has been exploring body cameras since 2019 but is still pursuing a funding source. Body cameras are not included in the 2021 budget, although city officials intend to seek federal grants for body cameras.