There has been a wave of resignations by Mayor Diane Marlin’s appointees to the Urbana Civilian Police Review Board (CPRB) in the past few months.
During the CPRB meeting on September 3rd, 2020, Chair Ricardo Diaz announced that board member Megan McGinty had resigned from the board. McGinty’s resignation came less than three months after her re-appointment by Mayor Marlin.
The CPRB had fallen into a decade-long state of dysfunction and has recently received criticism from residents, well summarized in this Public i article. Amidst the discussions of police misconduct and police reform, residents have brought to light the frequent denials of civilian complaints by the Urbana Police Department and City staff. Residents have been voicing their concerns about the administrative obstacles created by City staff to impede the complaint process and the failure of the CPRB to follow their mandate as written in City Ordinance (article here).
McGinty, is the fifth board member to resign since May. The CPRB, normally composed of seven board members currently has two vacancies.
Mayor Marlin has spoken on several occasions about the difficulties she faces in filling and keeping the seats of boards and commissions filled.
Potential CPRB members have voiced their concerns about serving on the board. Residents are questioning if their time investment as board members would be worthwhile, given the history of City staff working against the interest of the public by creating obstacles to the civilian complaint process.