On Tuesday September 3rd, 2020 the Urbana Civilian Police Review Board (CPRB) held another special meeting for training purposes. Dr. Michael Schlosser of the University of Illinois Police Training Institute returned to give a presentation on de-escalation. Schlosser was previously criticized by CPRB members and members of the public after…
On Monday August 3rd, 2020, Urbana Mayor Diane Marlin put forth an appointment for the City Council seat left vacant by Eric Jakobsson’s early resignation. According to Marlin, four residents applied for the Ward 2 seat, but only two of those applicants qualified based on the residency requirements: trivia host…
After nearly two months of complaints from residents about the Urbana Police Department, two weeks after the killing of George Floyd, and one week after marching in the streets with thousands of people concerned with police violence, Mayor Diane Marlin decided that Urbana’s public records requests would be best handled…
In an effort to manipulate the conversation on police misconduct, Urbana Mayor Diane Wolfe Marlin violated the Illinois Open Meetings act by limiting the public input session of the June 8, 2020 City Council meeting. Among the items on the agenda for the June 8, 2020 City Council meeting was…
Mayor Diane Wolfe Marlin issued an update at the May 11th, 2020 Urbana City Council meeting regarding the Aleyah Lewis incident. Her update was the latest attempt by the city to appease outraged citizens. On April 10th, 2020, Urbana Police Officers carrying rifles physically attacked an unarmed Aleyah Lewis (article…
Sixty-six citizens attended the April 20th, 2020 Urbana City Council Meeting that was held electronically via Zoom. Attendance was unusually high as citizens voiced their concerns and outrage at the brutal beating of an unarmed woman by Urbana Police Officers. On April 10th, 2020, a video (article here) of Urbana…
Urbana Police Officials didn’t waste any time attempting to save face and deflect blame after a disturbing police brutality video went viral on April 10th 2020. The video quickly made its rounds on social media, garnering widespread criticism for the Urbana Police Department from local citizens. Just 18 hours later,…
On April 10th, 2020, a video of Urbana Police Officers physically assaulting an unarmed woman, Aleyah Lewis, surfaced on social media. Within two days, the video received tens of thousands of views and thousands of comments by concerned citizens. Around 4:30pm on April 10th, Urbana Police Officers responded to reports…
On January 29, 2020, the Urbana Civilian Review Board (CPRB) held a special appeals hearing meeting for Complaint 2019-06. The appeals hearing is part of the civilian police complaint process – the mechanism by which civilians can file complaints concerning Urbana police conduct. The CPRB is tasked with hearing appeals…
On January 22, 2020, the Urbana Civilian Review Board met to review a recent Taser discharge and continue the discussion initiated at the last meeting regarding the citizen complaint process. Ricardo Diaz, Scott Dossett, Mikhail Lyubansky, Darius White, and Darrell Price formed the quorum. Chairperson Grace Mitchell and Megan McGinty…
