Four ways policing in Columbus has changed five years after the death of George Floyd
Since then, the city and the Columbus Division of Police have ushered in a variety of reforms and changes designed to increase police accountability and change the way police handle situations from protests to mental health crises.
More: Five years after George Floyd protests, activists, Columbus officials say more work needed
Here are four of the key changes:
In November 2020, Columbus voters approved an independent civilian board to review accusations of misconduct. Voters also approved the creation of the Department of the Inspector General, which investigates police misconduct and excessive use of force.
Today, the Civilian Police Review board has 11 members.
Jacqueline Hendricks, a retired Detroit police officer and former investigator for the Detroit Office of Inspector General, was appointed Columbus' first inspector general in Feb. 2022.
Citizens can file complaints to the Department of Inspector General in person, online and by phone.
In 2022, the city selected 100 senior Columbus police officers with 25 or more years of experience for $200,000 retirement incentive buyouts. The city said these buyouts would offer officers resistant to change and reform a way out.
Four commanders, nine lieutenants, 28 sergeants and 59 officers were selected. They came from a variety of units, including the SWAT, basic training and community service unit, as well as the chief's office.
Most or all of the officers in the mounted unit were included in the list. The unit had come under criticism during crowd control for the George Floyd demonstrations.
The 100 officers came from 217 who applied for the buyouts. About 500 were eligible to apply.
After a $5.75 million settlement with injured protestors who sued police and an independent post-incident analysis that found flaws in Columbus' protest response, Columbus police sought to revamp its response to protests.
Working with international crowd psychology experts, Columbus police founded a Dialogue Team. Its officers wear bright blue vests and appear at protests. They say they work with protestors and demonstrators to find ways they can safely express their First Amendment rights.
Columbus also restricted officers from using tear gas, pepper spray and other 'control agents' against nonviolent protestors and set limits to use of 'less lethal' weapons like wooden bullets in a City Council ordinance passed in June 2022.
The ordinance codified a preliminary injunction restricting the use of those weapons by Chief U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley in the lawsuit from injured demonstrators.
Columbus has adopted several programs combining healthcare and social workers with emergency workers to better respond to certain non-criminal incidents, including crises that arise from untreated mental illnesses or addiction.
Today, Columbus has four Alternative Crisis Response Teams: the Rapid Response Emergency and Addiction Crisis Team, the Right Response Unit, the Specialized Program Assessing Resource Connectivity and the Mobile Crisis Response Unit.
The teams generally work by pairing social workers or healthcare workers with police to triage and respond to incidents, and by linking people suffering from crises to longer term resources to address their underlying conditions.
In addition, Mayor Andrew J. Ginther hired Chief Elaine Bryant in 2021 as the first person to be hired as chief from outside the department's current ranks.
Following the December 2020 death of Andre Hill, City Council passed Andre's Law, which requires officers to have their body cameras turned on and provide medical aid. Columbus also funded an upgrade to the department's body worn cameras.
Public Safety and Breaking News Reporter Bailey Gallion can be reached at bagallion@dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus police changes after George Floyd protests: What happened?
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