Akron awaits results on law enforcement policy review

Due to multiple fatal police shootings in Akron, the city has moved to have an independent review of its police department policies.

Throughout this year, Akron has begun one of its biggest efforts to address concerns surrounding police use-of-force methods. The movement has been looked over, debated and adjusted for months as it has been looked at by city leaders, community advocates, and citizens. An increase of reports of unnecessary force used by the Akron Police Department as well as calls from the public have caused the city to take a look at a possible reform of its police department. 

According to Ideastream, a report stated that there was a 57 percent increase in use-of-force incidents from 2023 to 2024. This caused questions to be raised, not just about specific incidents, but what was causing the increase. 

In February, Akron mayor Shammas Malik proposed a $640,000 contract with a consulting firm to conduct an assessment of the city’s use-of-force policies. Malik’s reasoning was that the city needed a strong independent review to make sure the police force policies were written in a way to protect the community. 

However, the mayor’s proposal did not have support from city council, citing the cost as the main concern. The council rejected the proposal in a 9-4 vote in February, but the mayor redeveloped his plan. By May, a new proposition came to be, and this one was significantly cheaper, at $350,000. This not only addressed the monetary concerns, but also the previous issue of hiring from outside the region. The new proposal was set to utilize local experts from the University of Akron’s Criminal Justice Studies Department. 

In June, the Akron city council approved the new contract by a vote of 10-3. In September, the city signed a contract with the Police Executive Police Forum for $328,873. PERF will work with the University of Akron to be able to review the city’s policies. 

Despite the proposal being passed and the review being underway, there is still a divide amongst citizens. Some believe that the expense paid to PERF was not worth it while others think a review on police policies is long overdue.

“I think there should be a look at the policies,” said Akron resident Jason Stowers. “I’ve always felt there wasn’t enough accountability for cops that use too much force, and after hearing that report, that’s certainly not going to change.”

Stowers says he has never been a victim of or seen a case of police brutality first hand, but he says being an Akronite, he has heard plenty of stories.

“You see it on the news all the time. Not all of them are bad cases or even cases where the police may have been excessive, but when you do hear it, it’s just that same feeling of, ‘Here we go again,’” Stowers said.  

When it comes to the expense of the review, Stowers has no concerns. “I don’t think that’s too expensive,” Stowers said. “I think the $640,000 dollars may have been a little much, but even at that, I still think it would have been worth it. I think there are certain things that need to be done regardless of the cost, and I think this is one of them.”

Elliot Madsen, an Akron resident, said he is not a fan of the passing of the proposal. “I don’t think it’s that big of an issue to where they need to be spending over $300,000 of the city’s money on this,” Madsen said. “There are plenty of other things that money could be going to. If they really felt the need to do that, they could have just had the university do it for much cheaper.”

Madsen went on to explain that the study, though it shows a trend in the wrong direction, should not be enough to spark a review on its own.

“That’s a big jump, percentage wise, but if all they have to show are those last two years, I don’ t think there’s a need to jump into this right away,” Madsen said. “This almost feels like it’s performative from the city, and that they’re only doing it to ease the public. I’m not sure if any change will actually come of it.”

Should PERF come back with recommendations for change, the city will need to implement different training programs as well as enhanced oversight. If that is the case, city council needs to prepare for more budgeting. If there are changes to be made to training and oversight, that will most likely cost the city more money.

The city is expecting to get the final PERF recommendations in early 2026. Once the recommendations are received, they will be reviewed and approved, a process that could take up to a few months. After the approval is completed, the changes will be implemented shortly afterwards, and the changes will be monitored.