Last week the ACLU of Virginia initiated a conversation with the Chief of the Richmond Police Department (RPD) about the way in which the RPD is policing protests. As we said in our first letter on the subject, given recent events and the upcoming election in November, the topic is an important one because rallies and protests are likely to be a frequent occurrence in Richmond for the foreseeable future. The issues that we identified and underscored in our second letter this week that we look forward to discussing further with the Chief include the importance of ensuring that:
1) Officers present at rallies and protests are easily identifiable to the public (by name or badge number). Officers on duty should never be anonymous, and the public should always be able to identify easily who is policing them.
2) Officers policing public events understand that members of the public have a constitutional right to use the public sidewalks and, unless they are clearly obstructing officers in their duties, cannot and should not be asked to keep moving or leave the area.
3) Ensuring that officers policing events (particularly events in which emotions are running high) take affirmative action to protect people involved in a public demonstration from harassment and physical intimidation by those who disagree with their points of view. It is the rights of the speaker to speak (no matter the view being voiced) that the police have an obligation to protect.
In addition to the concerns we raised with the Chief directly about the policing of protests, a recent news story and our letter to the editor in response, raised additional concerns about advice the RPD is giving Richmonders stopped by police.
The Chief’s initial response to our first letter about the policing of protests focused more on the detail and process than the underlying substantive concerns outlined above. We are hopeful that a candid and forthright discussion of our concerns about these issues at an already scheduled meeting with the Chief can yield positive results both for the RPD and for the people that the department is charged with policing.
