Tennessee Republicans look at axing subpoena power from Nashville's police oversight board

Tennessee Republican lawmakers are pursuing legislation that would let Nashville's new police oversight board remain but strip away its most significant power — the ability to compel witnesses during the review of complaints.

The 11-member community oversight board is moving forward after the Metro Council last week elected the individuals who will make up the new panel tasked with overseeing the actions of Nashville police. 

But a threat from leaders of the Republican-dominated legislature — which has a history of intervening in the affairs of Democratic-dominated Nashville — hangs over their upcoming work.

Under Amendment 1 to the Metro Charter that Nashville voters approved in November, the community oversight board has "all powers, including the power to compel" that other Metro government agencies, boards and entities have.

The subpoena power is a key tool in the board's charter mission to investigate allegations of police misconduct.

House Majority Leader William Lamberth, R-Cottontown, who has slammed the oversight board as a "multi-million-dollar boondoggle," said it's "up to Nashville on how they want to run Nashville as long as they don't bump into state law issues."

Subpoena power would cause 'witch hunts,' GOP lawmaker says

He said he doesn't anticipate the filing of Republican-backed legislation that would totally undo the oversight board.

But he said he does anticipate legislation that would create what he called a "safety net" to prevent "witch hunts" and protect the rights of police officers. He described a bill that would apply statewide and broadly define how police oversight boards could function in Tennessee and their limits.

"I think that's something that we would look at," Lamberth said when asked on The Tennessean's Grand Divisions podcast about whether the legislation would seek to roll back some of the board's authority, specifically its subpoena power. 

"I don't have an issue with a citizen board that advises the police department on the best way to interact with the citizenry and everything else," he said. "I do have a problem with a board with subpoena powers that could get into areas on literally just a witch hunt."

Lamberth said he and fellow lawmakers are still looking at what the legislation would look like.

State filing deadline next week

Prior to his leadership election this year, Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada, R-Franklin, warned of state intervention. But he stopped short of saying what a bill would do. 

The filing deadline for the new state legislative session is Feb. 6, but policy changes are sometimes pushed later in the form of caption bills.

The subpoena power is one of the areas most strongly disputed by the Nashville Fraternal Order of Police, which unsuccessfully campaigned to defeat Amendment 1.

Lamberth said he likes the idea of "objective evaluation and oversight" over law enforcement. But he said the courts, the TBI, the FBI and state comptroller perform these roles, making the community oversight board unnecessary.

"I don't want something out there that's going to just run roughshod over the right's of an officer and infringe on their ability to keep us safe," Lamberth said. "Where's the accountability for the police oversight board? Because at this juncture, I don't see any."

Briley says he's met with lawmakers several times

The oversight board, the culmination of a decades-long push from black leaders in Nashville, can issue reports assessing allegations of misconduct by Metro police and recommend disciplinary action to agencies involved in public safety.

Nashville Mayor David Briley's spokesman, Thomas Mulgrew, said the mayor, a Democrat, has had several meetings with state lawmakers about the community oversight board.

"Each time, the mayor has expressed the need for civilian oversight of law enforcement in Nashville to help build trust, stated that the people of Davidson County voted to create this board, and said that it is his honor and duty as mayor to ensure the will of Nashvillians is carried through," he said.

Briley originally expressed reservations about the board but has vowed to implement it following its approval by voters.

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Democratic senator asks for GOP to give new board at least one year

Two high-profile fatal shootings of black men by white police officers over the past two years served as a rallying cry for the board's formation.

"I was hoping that (Republican) House members would at least give it a year and see how things unfold before they started preempting our stuff," said state Sen. Brenda Gilmore, D-Nashville, who has been helping lead the fight against state intervention on the oversight board.

She said she pans to contact Lamberth about the representative's legislative plans. 

"It was approved with 59 percent (of the vote) in Davidson County," Gilmore said. "I wish they would at least respect the wishes of the residents of Davidson County. It seemed pretty well across the board that the COB got votes. It's not like it's just impacting African-Americans."

Gicola Lane, an organizer for Community Oversight Now, which worked to pass Amendment 1, said the group looked at best practices of cities with existing police oversight boards to make sure the Nashville panel can effectively function. 

"That was one of the best practices from all of our research, from everybody we heard from, to have some actual teeth for the board," Lane said. "So that we wouldn't have to persuade people to cooperate or anything like that — that this board is actually strong enough to do the job that it's designed to do.

Related:Community oversight board belonged on the Nashville ballot, appeals court says; vote stands

"Most Republicans believe in local government, and we think that they should do the right thing, and if they do not, there will be a legal battle," Lane said.

Executive director hire among first tasks

The panel is required to get started by March 29 under the language of the charter amendment.

In the coming weeks, Mulgrew said Briley plans to convene a meeting of the newly elected board members. The panel is tasked with securing office space and hiring an executive director, assistant executive director and legal adviser.

Each is required in the charter amendment, which also requires an annual budget of at least $1.5 million. 

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Staff writers Natalie Allison and Joel Ebert contributed to this report. Reach Joey Garrison at 615-259-8236, jgarrison@tennessean.com and on Twitter @joeygarrison.