Click here to download the Mayor’s Roadmap for Public Safety Reform. The full visual presentation will be available here when meeting materials are posted by the city clerk.

At an informal meeting of Richmond City Council on Monday, Mayor Stoney presented his local roadmap for reimagining public safety, a plan for the restructuring and reform of city policies, procedures and practices to ensure a truly safer city for all. 
 
The Stoney administration is pursuing a human services-centered approach to public safety, strengthening and creating new partnerships between the city and community organizations. 

“Of course, we need officers to respond to violent and criminal acts, but we cannot expect our police officers to serve as social workers, psychologists, child trauma experts and mental health workers, responding to every non-criminal call for service because America hasn’t properly prioritized other service providers,” said Mayor Stoney. “It does not make our country, or our city, safer.”
 
The elements of the roadmap fall into five main buckets: policy, accountability, programs, community healing and engagement, and governance.
 
Policy:
 
The Richmond Police Department (RPD) has updated and strengthened their Duty to Intervene policy, which ensures that officers are legally and morally obligated to intervene when they believe an officer or supervisor is about to use excessive or unnecessary force or observe other inappropriate actions.
 
The RPD has also updated their long-standing ban on chokeholds to provide greater specificity for officers.
 
Accountability:
 
A Civilian Review Board is generally charged with the duty of reviewing complaints about officers and recommending disciplinary action after police departments have completed their own investigations and made their own recommendations.
 
The mayor has established that it should be independent of the police department and representative of the Richmond community at large. To that end, he has requested that Richmond City Council play an active role in engaging constituents and drafting the legislation to create the board.
 
The Stoney administration has committed to hosting two community engagement meetings before the ordinance is drafted and introduced and is encouraging city council to do the same.
 
“This is my goal: over the next few weeks and months, we will collectively engage the community, seek input from RPD, review best practices and present an ordinance for introduction,” said Mayor Stoney.
 
Programs:
 
The city will create a formal crisis alert system, called the Marcus Alert. The Richmond Behavioral Health Authority (RBHA) and RPD will implement a responsive citywide alert system that allows the two agencies to work collaboratively to address calls about mental and behavioral health crises, ensuring residents get the help they need.
  
Community Healing and Engagement: 

In order to facilitate community healing and engagement and meet the commitment he made in signing Barack Obama’s Mayor Pledge to review and reform the city’s use of force policy, the mayor has founded the Task Force for Reimagining Public Safety.
 
The task force will bring together more than 20 individuals from the activist, legal, academic, law enforcement, mental and behavioral health and other communities to agree on a set of actionable steps forward within 90 days of the first meeting. 
 
It will focus on making public safety recommendations that build toward equity and justice in five core areas: police policy, practices and culture, police accountability, community healing and engagement, officer training and education, and officer and community wellness.
 
The Stoney administration has also committed to removing the city’s monuments to the Lost Cause. The state allows municipalities to begin the removal process July 1, though the mayor has stated that he supports immediate removal. 
 
Governance:
 
Racial equity should be a core component of city policies and practices. Councilmembers Newbille and Robertson have worked alongside the administration to develop a racial equity strategy for the city, which includes staff training and an equity study, among other measures.
 
As part of this work, Mayor Stoney has asked his executive cabinet to report back to him with several ways in which policies and practices within their portfolios can be changed to actively advance equity.
 
“The issues we have with our public safety system, and with creating racial equity and justice more broadly in our community, do not have an easy or straightforward solution,” Mayor Stoney told council. “It’s going to take compassion, conversation and teamwork to create meaningful change in our city.”
 
“But, the work cannot and will not stop here,” continued Mayor Stoney. “We have to remember that public safety is not the only system that needs to be reformed. We have work to do to ensure that our kids are receiving a high-quality education, that affordable housing opportunities are available across the city for all residents, that city services are delivered in an effective and efficient manner, and that we provide pathways for economic mobility. This is our time, our chance, our opportunity to renew Richmond — to give it new strength and spirit.”

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The Office of the General Registrar of the City of Richmond has issued a record number of absentee ballots through the mail and wants to facilitate the return of those voted ballots.
 
The office will have a “Drive Up and Drop Off” post curbside on the 9th Street side of City Hall for voters to drive up and hand their absentee ballot to staff. The service will operate from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Monday, June 22, 2020.
 
Voters can only drop off their own ballot; they cannot drop off a ballot for another voter. The Registrar requests voters who have applied for an absentee ballot through the mail to return it, rather than to go to the polls on Election Day with the ballot. Returning ballots directly to City Hall does not require a wait or paperwork. Those who have been issued a ballot through the mail cannot vote that ballot at the polls. If they go to vote on Election Day, they will have to go through the process of voiding their ballot and surrendering it before being allowed to vote.
 
Please also be advised that while this Friday, June 19, 2020 is a holiday for the rest of the city, the Office of the General Registrar will be open for normal business hours on Friday, including in-person absentee voting.
 
Voted absentee ballots must be in the Office of the General Registrar no later than 7 p.m., Tuesday, June 23, 2020. For more information, please contact J. Kirk Showalter, General Registrar at (804) 646-5950.
 
 
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The City of Richmond will observe Juneteenth, celebrated on June 19, as a paid city holiday.
 
“I urge everyone to use this day as an opportunity for reflection, service and healing,” said Mayor Stoney.
 
Juneteenth began as a celebration of enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas in 1865 upon learning of the federal order for their freedom, which was actually issued over two years prior when President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This year marks 155 years since the origination of Juneteenth. 
 
For more information on the history and significance of this day, visit: https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/historical-legacy-juneteenth.

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The decision comes alongside a plan for reimagining public safety 

Today, Mayor Stoney announced that he requested and received Chief of Police William Smith’s resignation. The mayor has appointed Major William Jody Blackwell as the Interim Chief of the Richmond Police Department.
 
“I have high expectations of the Richmond Police Department,” said Mayor Stoney. “And at a minimum I expect them to be willing to come around the table with the community to reform and reimagine public safety.”
 
“Interim Chief Blackwell is willing and able to focus on necessary public safety reform, healing and trust building within the community,” said Mayor Stoney.
 
The mayor went on to outline a collaborative path forward.
 
He indicated he has spoken to Council President Newbille, and will follow up with a letter, outlining a request that City Council work with the administration, the interim chief and the community to develop legislation to create a citizen review board.
 
“My hope is that City Council will be proactive in collaborating with me and community leaders in all 9 of their districts to craft a citizen review board with complete community buy-in,” said the mayor.
 
He also indicated he will sign the Obama Pledge for Mayors, which commits the city to reevaluating its use of force policy. Beyond the immediate changes of strengthening the Richmond Police Department’s ban on chokeholds and duty to intervene policy, that pledge includes the creation of the Richmond Task Force on Reimagining Public Safety.
 
The task force will bring more than 20 individuals from the activist, legal, academic, law enforcement, behavioral health and other communities together to agree on a set of actionable steps forward within 90 days of the first meeting.
 
“The mission of this task force will be to make public safety recommendations that build toward equity and justice. Using a restorative justice framework, we can reimagine public safety to create a truly safer city for all – meaning both the members of the community and the officers that serve the community.”
 
The mayor indicated that the city’s response must be holistic, including immediate changes as well as long-term planning informed by community input and evidence-based practices.
 
Currently, police officers are asked to respond to every type of crisis, from homelessness to mental health crises. The mayor noted that reimagining public safety in the City of Richmond must include designing an emergency response system and empowering a social safety net that meet these needs.
 
“We can’t expect our police officers to serve as social workers, psychologists, and juvenile trauma experts, intervening in these situations because America hasn’t properly prioritized other service providers. It does not make our country, or our city, safer.”
 
Juneteenth, celebrated on June 19, will be observed as a paid city holiday. Earlier in the day, Governor Northam declared the day a state holiday. The mayor encouraged everyone to use the day for reflection, service and healing.
 
“One thing is clear after the past two weeks: Richmond is ready to reimagine public safety. There’s work to be done, so if you have been out on the streets, I invite you to join us at the table. I want to incorporate your experience and turn your pain into progress.”

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On Monday, June 15, the City of Richmond government facilities and offices will enter Phase Two of the city’s operating plan.
 
The City of Richmond workforce has been operative throughout the State of Emergency, providing essential services to residents and businesses despite the public health crisis. Phase One largely entailed the phasing in of limited in-person services in key city facilities. In Phase Two, the city will increase capacity for in-person services and open certain public amenities.
 
The city continues to urge residents to use available e-services. For questions about available city services, view this updated list.
 
First floor public access for walk-in services is provided in the following buildings for in-person payments:
City Hall; and
East District Center.
Please note that not all departments or agencies in each building will be open for walk-in services. For departmental specifics, visit this updated list.
 
The following city facilities will be open to the public by appointment only, access only by security in each location:
City Hall (with the exception of the Richmond Registrar’s Office and certain other first floor services);
730 East Broad Street;
Animal Care and Control;
Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities administrative building;
DPU plants and external campus;
DPW external campus; and
Richmond Police, Fire, and Emergency Communications headquarters.
Please note that not all departments or agencies in each building will be open to the public. For departmental specifics, visit this updated list.
 
To schedule appointments, residents should reference the city website or this list of city services available at this time.
 
Building security will assist customers on the first floor of facilities to maintain social distancing while receiving city services. The first floor of City Hall has a strict capacity limit of 45 to 50 people. Building security will allow entry to public areas based upon the number of persons seeking services.
 
As a result of capacity limitations, some customers may be asked to wait outside of city facilities until sufficient space is available. City staff will do everything possible to expedite potential wait times and appreciates the public’s patience at this time.
 
Face-coverings are required in all local government buildings and when interacting with government employees, as ordered by Governor Northam.
 
A limited number of face-coverings will be available in city hall for customers who do not have them, as supplies allow. It is strongly recommended that members of the public bring their own face coverings. Scarves, bandanas, handkerchiefs are all acceptable face coverings as long as the garment covers the mouth and nose.
 
Residents are encouraged to conduct business with the city electronically whenever possible.
 
City facilities and offices will be open to all employees, though capacity will be reduced to allow for adequate social distancing. City operational plans provide for staffing levels to meet anticipated demands for in person services. 
 
As a reminder, the Office of the Richmond General Registrar is open to the public for candidate filing, absentee balloting and voting related matters. Appointments are not required but are encouraged for matters other than in-person absentee voting, as only two people will be allowed in Room 105 at a time. Access to the Office of the General Registrar in Room 105 will be through the Ninth Street entrance only. Access to in-person absentee voting will be through the Broad Street entrance only, except on the last day to vote absentee in person, June 20, when access will be limited to the Ninth Street entrance.
 
The Department of Social Services will remain closed to the public. Clients should reference this document to learn how to best access services and apply for benefits.
 
The following is a list of changes from Phase One operating procedure that will go into effect June 15:
 
Richmond Public Library is offering contactless pickup of holds and requests. Contactless pickups are available Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Patrons may return items to the outdoor book drops.
 
Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities will begin a gradual reopening of tennis courts, basketball courts and public restrooms in public parks starting Friday, June 12 with the expectation of having all amenities available for use by Friday, June 19.
 
Starting Monday, June 15:
Rentals of picnic shelters will resume. Groups should be limited to 50% occupancy of the shelter space or 50 people, whichever is less.
Rentals of athletic fields for practice only. Interested groups will need to submit a plan of action to the department on how they intend to mitigate exposure, maintain at least ten feet between participants and instructors, and keep groups to 50 persons or less.
Limited parking will be available at Pony Pasture and Ancarrow’s Landing.
Parking lots at Texas Beach, Tredegar Green, 22nd Street, and 42nd Street will be open for use.
Entrance to the James River Park System at 21st Street will reopen.
BMX Bike Trail at Gillies Creek Park will be open for use.
Tennis courts and pickleball courts will be open for use.
Playgrounds will be open for use.
Dog parks will be open for use.
Manchester Climbing Wall will be open for use.
Skate parks will be open for use.
Outdoor basketball courts will have the hoops reinstalled over the next two weeks.
Limited restrooms will be available.
 
Please note that all parks remain open for recreational use. Social distancing in parks is required, and face-coverings are recommended in busier spaces where consistent social distancing is challenging.
 
The Department of Public Works will resume street cleaning services in the city’s residential areas starting June 22. Click here for a link to the street cleaning schedule. 
 
As of June 8, the Department of Public Works resumed residential parking district enforcement in the Fan, Carver, Randolph and South Mulberry Parking Districts.
 
For a list of available city services, click here.

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