Metro Nashville Community Oversight Board
CoB overview
JurisdictionNashville, Tennessee
Employees15
Annual budget2,171,900
CoB executives
  • Michael Milliner, Chair
  • Phyllis Hildreth, First Vice Chair
  • Shawn Whitsell, Second Vice Chair
  • Drew Goddard, Secretary
Key document
WebsiteOfficial website

The Community Oversight Board (COB) of Nashville, Tennessee is an independent body to review cases of alleged Metropolitan Nashville police misconduct. It appeared as Amendment 1 on the November 6, 2018 ballot in Davidson County and was approved by voters by a margin of 134,371 votes in support (58.81%) to 94,129 votes against (41.19%).[1][2]

Members

The board has 11 members: 7 nominated by community organizations or private petitions of at least 50 Davidson County residents, 2 by City Council Representatives, and 2 by the Mayor.[3] At least 4 must come from economically distressed areas.[4]

On January 22, 2019, the Metro Council appointed the first members of the COB.[5] Of the Board's 11 initial members:

  • 7 were Black
  • 1 was Latino
  • at least 2 identified as LGBT
  • 6 were women, 7 were men[5]

As of October 2022, the Board was composed of:[6]

  • 4 Black women
  • 3 Black men
  • 3 white men

Current officers:

  • Chair: Michael Milliner
  • First Vice Chair: Phyllis Hildreth
  • Second Vice Chair: Shawn Whitsell
  • Secretary: Andrew Goddard
Members of the Community Oversight Board[6]
Name Background Nominated by Notes
Michael Milliner 27 years of combined governmental experience as a public administrator and union leader for governments and special districts.[7] community Chair
Joe B. Brown retired judge with five decades of judicial experience.[8] community
Andrew J. Goddard former head of the Environmental Practice Group of Bass, Berry & Sims and First Vice President of the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee.[9] Mayor Secretary
Phyllis Hildreth currently serves as Vice President for Institutional Advancement and Strategic Partnerships at American Baptist College, former Chief Counsel in the Office of the Public Defender for the State of Maryland.[9] Mayor First Vice-Chair
Walter Holloway retired Metro police officer with over three decades of experience.[10] council member
Alisha Haddock Senior Vice President at the Housing Fund.[11] council member
Makayla McCree Organizing Director at Organize Tennessee,[12] formerly worked in the office of US Congressman Jim Cooper. community
Maxine Spencer organizer with Workers’ Dignity[13] community
Demerrius LaShawn Whitsell writer, producer, director, works with Southern Word[14] community Second Vice-Chair
Mark Wynn 20+ years of experience as MNPD officer, works with the US Department of Justice[15] community
Vacant[16] community To be filled by 11/1/22[17]

Staff

The COB is budgeted a staff of 15 employees to support the work and mission of the Board. The staff are colloquially referred to as Metro Nashville Community Oversight (MNCO). In FY22-23, MNCO was staffed at the following levels:[18]

  • (1) Executive Director
  • (1) Assistant Director
  • (1) Administrative Services Manager
  • (1) Legal Advisor
  • (5) Investigators
  • (2) Research Analysts
  • (1) Data and Evidence Technician
  • (1) Community Liaison
  • (1) Social Worker
  • (1) Administrative Assistant

History

The Amendment was proposed based on a petition by Community Oversight Now. The Fraternal Order of Police sued, claiming that the number of signatures on the petition was too low. However, the Davidson County Election Commission voted on August 15, 2018, to add it to the November 2018 ballot.[2]

The Metro Council received more than 150 nominations for membership, and the Council's January 22, 2019, meeting to appoint members lasted 5 hours.[5]

General Assembly pushback

During the opening weeks of the 111th Tennessee General Assembly, many Republican leaders began openly debating limiting the powers of the Board. On February 4, 2019, Representative Michael Curcio (R-Dickson), the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, announced he would be introducing legislation to eliminate the diversity requirements of the board, including any requirements based on employment history, economic status, or demographics. It would also revoke the board's subpoena power. This legislation would apply to any community oversight board in the state, not just Nashville's.[19]

References

  1. ↑ "Nashville, Tennessee, Amendment 1, Creation of Metropolitan and County Government Oversight Board (November 2018)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  2. 1 2 Garrison, Joey (August 15, 2018). "Nashville police oversight board referendum cleared for November ballot; legal challenge by FOP awaits". The Tennessean. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
  3. ↑ "Metropolitan Charter Amendments To Be Placed on November 6, 2018 Ballot" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 18, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
  4. ↑ Hightower, Morgan (January 23, 2019). "Council selects members for Community Oversight Board". WKRN. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 Gonzalez, Tony (January 23, 2019). "Nashville Selects Diverse Members For Its First Police Oversight Board". www.nashvillepublicradio.org. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  6. 1 2 Metropolitan Clerk's Office (October 7, 2022). "Community Oversight Board" (PDF).
  7. ↑ "Community Oversight Board Appoints Michael Milliner as the Chairman of the Board". Nashville.gov. October 13, 2022. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  8. ↑ Prince, Kate (February 18, 2021). "Former Judge Added to Nashville's Community Oversight Board". TBA Law Blog. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  9. 1 2 "Mayor Cooper Nominates Andrew Goddard, Renominates Phyllis Hildreth to Community Oversight Board". Nashville.gov. December 18, 2019. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  10. ↑ Garrison, Joey. "Nashville council picks diverse group for new police oversight board". The Tennessean. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Staff | The Housing Fund". thehousingfund.org. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  12. ↑ Organize Tennessee [@OrganizeTn] (April 5, 2022). "We are excited to announce the hiring of Makayla McCree! Our new Organizing Director is strong, talented, and ready to protect TN voters" (Tweet). Retrieved February 22, 2023 – via Twitter.
  13. ↑ Max, Samantha (February 14, 2022). "Who will fill three open seats on Nashville's police oversight board? Here are the nominees". wpln.org. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  14. ↑ Everett, Laurie (January 17, 2022). "MAIN STREET MOVER: Shawn Whitsell, educator, poet, actor". Main Street Nashville. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Biography | Mark Wynn Consulting". Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  16. ↑ Metro Nashville Community Oversight Board [@MNCONashville] (October 4, 2022). "Attention Community! We have a COB Board member vacancy" (Tweet). Retrieved February 22, 2023 – via Twitter.
  17. ↑ @MNCONashville (October 4, 2022). "Attention Community! We have a COB Board member vacancy. We are seeking a Community member nomination to fill this seat. You can self-nominate by getting 50 signatures or a Community Organization can nominate you.Please spread the word and/or come serve on the Board" (Tweet). Retrieved October 18, 2022 – via Twitter.
  18. ↑ "Community Oversight Board Budget Information". Nashville.gov. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  19. ↑ Martínez-Beltrán, Sergio (February 4, 2019). "GOP Aims To Curb Nashville Police Oversight Board's Powers — And Its Diversity Rules". www.nashvillepublicradio.org. Archived from the original on February 5, 2019. Retrieved February 13, 2019.

Further reading

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