Wichita City Council members have approved a contract with a Chicago firm for an independent, third-party review of the Wichita Police Department.
The firm of Jensen Hughes will look at policies and practices and the culture of the department. City Manager Robert Layton said this will be a professional assessment of the department’s culture, administrative policies and practices, standards of conduct, and efforts to ensure bias-free policing, as well as the process used by a citizens review board to look at complaints against the department. The city will pay over $214 thousand under a one-year contract.
The review is the result of recent incidents involving inappropriate text messages that were exchanged between police officers and a Sedgwick County deputy. Layton says the firm will help create a code of conduct, it will establish personnel policies that deal with off-duty conduct, and it will work on programs to connect with the public.
The firm will conduct face-to-face interviews, use focus groups, and hold community listening sessions. Layton said the review is expected to take about six months. The City Council will get monthly updates on the review.
The council approved the contract with a 6-1 vote, with Council member Jeff Blubaugh voting no.
