A report on the alleged police brutality incident involving Brandon Johnson could come as early as Friday.   IMPD officials tell me they are being very thorough in their investigation, however details are still hard to come by.  My political instinct tells me that the report will likely find that there was enough  blame to go around and that both parties probably crossed a line they shouldn’t have.

With that said, a noticeable portion of  the outrage in Black community has been directed at IMPD with a lot of people playing Monday morning police chief.  I think what some of these critics are missing though is the reason the cops were called to the scene in the first place.   There were neighborhood reports of a break-in in broad daylight. That individual being Brandon Johnson’s brother.

This is not excusing any excessive force that may have been used, but I think in the zeal to crucify the police department  some local community activists are forgetting  that had Brandon’s brother not been reportedly breaking the law, the cops would have never have had to come out in the first place and none of this would have occurred.

I still have a hard time trying to figure out  why this attitude is still sticking around.  Does anyone in this town want to hold these young men accountable for their actions?   Nine out of ten times when a young black man is killed in this town, it’s another young black man?   However, when reasonable people try to hold these young men accountable, you get claims of racism.  When reasonable people want to improve the schools these young people go to, they are accused of trying to destroy public education.  When reasonable say stop having children you can’t afford to take care, they’re accused of being uncaring.

No offense, but if the same people who make excuses for bad behavior would spend as much time trying to correct the bad actors as they do going after the critics, this town would be in much better shape.  But I guess it’s hard to grasp the big picture when you only see what you want to see.

Is there anybody capable of  forming a coherent public policy thought over at Marion County Democratic Party headquarters?  If there is, will you please get out of the building before all the intelligence is sucked out of your brain.  I cannot believe the party that has a lot of pretty bright people in its ranks can have such bumblers as leaders.  Allow me to explain.

As I wrote yesterday, two Democratic members of the Waterworks Board have missed the last three meetings, holding up a vote on the proposed transfer of Citizens Gas as well as $4 million worth of other water projects.  This has annoyed Republicans who say they will introduce and ordinance transferring the Board’s power to the Public Works Board.

County Chairman Ed Treacy told the Indy Star, with a straight face, that he couldn’t believe that the Republicans would stoop to such a low level and when they don’t get their way, they change the law.  Someone needs to remind Ed that at least the Republicans showed up for work.

Treacy also went on to say that by not showing up, Democrats are trying to put pressure on the Board to provide more answers.  So let me if I get this, you want more answers to your questions, so you decide the best way to get them is not show up?

You’re kidding, right?

I’ve never understood the Democrats political strategy on their opposition to the water deal.  Maybe it’s because they don’t have one.  On one hand they say they want more answers so they don’t show up to meetings and vote not to keep the dialogue continuing.  On one hand they complain about the deal and call it a rate increase, on the other hand they’re secretly calling the Mayor’s office begging to make sure their roads get fixed if the deal goes through.

I don’t know who’s in charge, but they need to put down the political crack pipe.  A coherent strategy should have been in place a long time ago.  The only Democrat with a somewhat coherent argument against the deal is mayoral candidate Brian Williams, and even Brian’s arguments fall somewhat short, but at least he put something on the table.  Favored candidate Melina Kennedy can’t speak out about the deal, because her law firm, Baker & Daniels is helping move it forward.

Democrats privately admit that the proposal will likely move forward without their support.  With that knowledge you would think they would be offering amendments to fine tune the deal.  And that way, should it pass, they can show up at the ground breaking and deny the Mayor the opportunity to take all the credit.  But instead, the Marion County Dems are being shortsighted and  demonstrating a clear lack policy formation.  But then again, isn’t this the same type of thinking, and I use the term loosely, that got the City in this situation in the first place?

I thought so, too.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Officials demonstrated their use of force techniques to the media and public Thursday in order to clear up confusion over when force is determined to be reasonable or excessive.   They demonstrated a “force continuum” which ranged from verbal commands to use of deadly force and the circumstances among which are used.  You can hear the audio from that news conference below.

IMPD #1

IMPD #2

IMPD #3

There may be some changes coming to the make-up of the Waterworks Board.  The Board hasn’t been able to reach a quorum because Democratic appointed members Frank Short and John Bayt, are having problems showing up to meetings.

The two haven’t shown up for weeks, delaying a vote on the transfer of the city’s water and waste water facilities to Citizens Gas.   However, an unintended consequence of  Short’s and Bayt’s inability to show up is that their absences are putting close to $4 million worth of water projects on hold which could cost the city thousands of dollars in penalties.

Waterworks director Matt Klein, would not offer an opinion on why Bayt and Short weren’t showing up but he did outline what was at stake with board members being absent.

Matt Klein

The fact that Short and Bayt haven’t been able to show up, has caused some Waterworks Board members to ask the Mayor’s Office about what action can be taken.  According to Council ethics rules Board members can only be removed for cause, and attendance can fall under that category.

However, since Short and Bayt are Democratic appointments, the more likely scenarios are the Council could dissolve the Board, expand the Board membership and give the Mayor more appointments or simply eliminate the Board’s power to vote on the deal.  The Waterworks Board was created by ordinance, not state statute, so it exists at the pleasure of the Council.

But this is the perfect reason why water company should not be in the hands of politicians but professionals who know what they’re doing and don’t play games with the ratepayers time and money.

A group of local pastors and community leaders are calling on the Justice Department to investigate allegations of police brutality by IMPD against 15-year old Brandon Johnson.

The group is not saying it doesn’t trust IMPD’s internal investigation but says a third party is necessary to restore faith in the community.   The group also wore T-shirts with photos of Johnson’s injured face and had several youth there wearing the shirt as well.

Call me cynical, but while I have no problem with the group calling for the FBI to get involved, I do have an issue with pimping children for your cause.  Listen to this exchange as one of the teens was being interviewed by RTV 6’s Derrick Thomas.

pimpin the kids

Like I said, I have no problem with the FBI looking into the matter, but I get a little cynical when you start pimping kids to make your point.

By the way, IMPD says it will gladly turn over its finding to the Justice Department once its investigation is complete.

There’s an interesting piece in the most recent edition of NUVO Newsweekly regarding the pay and working conditions of adjunct faculty here in Indianapolis.   For those of you who don’t know exactly what that means, an adjunct faculty member is someone who teaches part-time at the college level.  They usually have a Master’s Degree or better in their field.  Some people use the adjunct position as a way to land a full-time teaching gig at a school, some do it to stay busy, others do it because it’s a nice way to make a few bucks on the side.

As many of you know I teach part-time at the University of Indianapolis in its MBA program and also at Ivy Tech where I’ve taught communications,  political science and English.   The NUVO article focused on the pay and benefits of some adjuncts and horrible they are treated in some instances.  One of the big sticking points was the lack of benefits.  No offense, but it’s a part-time job.  Albeit an important one, but still a part-time job.

I know of very few part-time jobs that offer insurance, sick leave, guaranteed raises etc., etc.  There is no reason why part-time teaching should be any exception.  The last part-time job I knew that offered anything close to full-time benefits was Starbucks.   Maybe people who don’t like their teaching jobs can go work there.

When you took the job,  you knew what you were getting into.   It seems to me a little late to start complaining.  Maybe that’s where the real lesson is.

I’ve had a couple weeks to think now about the potential closing of Monument Circle to vehicular traffic as part of a possible city plan to turn the Circle into a destination spot and increase pedestrian activity.  After some careful thought and talking to a lot of people who use the Circle frequently, I don’t think closing off the Circle permanently to auto traffic is the best idea.  I do think the city can achieve its goals, however, without a total closure.

Part of my logic is simply economical, both the Indianapolis Symphony and the Columbia Club (which I am a member in the interests of full disclosure) would be hard hit financially by any closings and I don’t think using the side doors would be enough to mitigate the loss.  By the way, the Columbia Club is not just a place where rich and elites go to workout, have cocktails and smoke cigars.  It has actually turned into a mini-conference center and hotel that generates a nice bit of change for city coffers.   Secondly, as I’ve stated before, Monument Circle is basically an insurance company, bank, radio station two sandwich shops and a utility company.   If it were multiple retail venues, that would be different, but it’s not, so closing off the Circle won’t do much to get more people to come downtown and pay their electric bills.

I think the City can achieve its goals of making the Circle more of a pedestrian destination, by doing a couple things.  First, eliminate non-valet parking off the circle, especially motorcycle parking. If people can’t park somewhere, they generally tend to avoid it with their cars.  Besides, how often can you really park on the Circle anyway?

Second, bring more events to the Circle.   Although it was before my time, I believe Circlefest was a big deal.  Use the Circle for concerts, festivals, and do it once a month as part of a summer series.  That way, you get more people downtown and you don’t make the symphony and Columbia Club take it on the chin.

I can respect and understand what the City wants to do when it comes to enhancing downtown.  I’m all for it.  I’ve lived in Europe for several years and can understand the town pedestrian square concept.  However, I don’t think that model would work with the Circle’s current makeup.  But I strongly believe by doing a little tinkering around the edges, the city can achieve its monumental task without closing off the Circle to vehicular traffic.

Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend.

The City of Indianapolis is coming to the aid of Indy Go.  Mayor Greg Ballard announced a plan to provide the financially ailing bus system with short-term cash, while city leaders look for long-term funding solutions.

From my vantage point, the big challenge for the city is going to be to convince people to actually use the system and I’m not quite sure how you make that happen.

I went to IndyGo’s website and did a little trip planning.  To go from the radio station here on the north side of Indianapolis to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway would take nearly two hours.  To go to Lucas Oil Stadium downtown is a 90-minute trip.   Compare that to Chicago’s mass transit.  I used their trip planner to plan a trip from my parents’ home on the south side to downtown and can get there in about an hour.

If  IndyGo wants to be viable and survive long-term, with as few subsidies as possible, it is going to have to figure out a way to make taking the bus worth someone’s time.  And a near two-hour trip to go from point A to point B is not going to cut it.

As we get ready to go into Memorial Day weekend, here are a few things to ponder…

• The Indianapolis Water Works Board apparently hasn’t been able to meet on the transfer of  the city’s water and waste water facilities to Citizens Gas because the Board can’t reach a quorum.   This has been going on for a while and it is starting to frustrate some city-county councilors, because the Board has to approve any transfer.  The Board is scheduled to discuss the water deal next Tuesday, however if they don’t, some councilors are threatening to dissolve the Board since it was created by the Council and not by state law.
• Recent reports of past disciplinary issues with one of the officers involved in an altercation with an area teen, won’t have any bearing on the pending review.  That’s according to Public Safety Director Frank Straub.  Oliver Clouthier has been assigned to desk duty following injuries received by 15-year old Brandon Johnson.  According to the Indy Star, Straub says Clothier has never been accused of excessive force and received numerous commendations. In 2007, the police merit board recommended Clothier be suspended for six months after being convicted on misdemeanor  stalking charges.
• The FBI is apparently back to snooping around Marion County looking for public corruption.  Apparently one their sources for leads has been the local blogosphere. That would explain why no one’s been arrested so far.

Indiana Democrats  are continuing their line of attack against Republican U.S. Senate nominee Dan Coats regarding his lobbying activity.

State Chairman Dan Parker Tuesday called on Coats to fully disclose the list of lobbying clients that he worked for while in D.C.  and said Coats can’t hide behind attorney-client privilege for two reasons.

First, attorney-client privilege as defined by the American Bar Association, of which I used to be a member, does not prohibit an attorney from disclosing the clients he lobbied for.  Secondly, the Democrats say Coats hasn’t been a registered attorney in Indiana since May of 2003.  They also say he never registered to practice law in Maryland, Virginia or North Carolina.

The Coats campaign tells me that he’s has never claimed attorney-client privilege prevents them from releasing an accurate list of clients. They say they are double-checking the list to ensure its accuracy and plan to release everything they can in time.   However, in an interview two weeks ago with ABC News, Coats did acknowledge some “difficulties with disclosure owing to attorney-client privilege.”

“I’m willing to sit down and explain it,” Coats said. “The problem is attorney-client relationship. So it’s a dilemma in the sense that you can’t — you’re not in a position to disclose the positive in any kind of detail of what you did for them, but you’re vulnerable to whatever the negative for whatever they say that it was.”

In addition, the campaign also accused the Democrats of attempting to change the subject away from Brad Ellsworth’s votes on health care and federal bailouts.

Frankly, if I were the Coats people I would put everything I could out right now while no one is really paying attention.  And then when it comes up in the fall, call it old news.  Otherwise this thing is really going to snowball out of control.