CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- For the second night in a row the chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department faced tough questions from the community.
- Chief Putney says they are reviewing policy changes
- He confirms that the two responding officers were not trained in crisis intervention
- Some people in the community say the officers are not sensitive to Black people
Many people in the room felt compelled to come out to hear from Chief Putney after seeing one of his officers take the life of 27-year-old Danquirs Franklin.
“I think the chief did a great job handling a lot of the questions. I know he's put in a very tough spot because he's limited on what he can comment on,” community member Larry Subramanian said.
While the chief is getting high marks for being open and accessible to the community, the department continues to face criticism. One person said the officers are not sensitive to Black people.
“I feel like as a melanated person I'm still going to be targeted and they are still going to be covered for. I like the fact that they are opening up and starting to talk to us, however, it's just not the ones in the office. It's just not the chief. It's the officers,” attendee Maria Crank said.
Some attendees say these meetings are still a step in the right direction.
“It's making a difference. I think it's being upfront and kind of preventing anything that might come out negative so he's being upfront with it and I think he's doing a great job, but it takes more than that, it's been embedded for years,” resident Ronald Dean said.
Chief Putney says they are reviewing policy changes and taking in everything they've heard from the community. As for Franklin's case, Putney confirms that the two responding officers were not trained in crisis intervention. He also says that the criminal investigation could take about six weeks, even longer for the internal investigation.