Oregon’s ongoing police reform effort just lost a key figure.
Former Oregon Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul De Muniz—a vital member of a team that’s overseeing changes spelled out in the police bureau’s settlement with the federal government—said today he’s leaving the effort because of a health issue.
“I am sorry to inform you that as a result of a private and personal health issue, on the advice of my doctor, I have withdrawn from this project effective immediately,” De Muniz wrote in an e-mail to members of a citizen board watching over reforms. “It has been a pleasure to get to know each of you and wish you every success.”
The departure leaves big questions for the city’s nascent efforts to change a police force the feds say has a pattern of beating up mentally ill people. De Muniz was a central reason Mayor Charlie Hales and Commissioner Amanda Fritz cited for hiring a team of researchers largely based in Chicago to oversee police progress under the settlement. The group beat out two other finalists for the contract, over the objections of members of a selection committee.
“I understand that fear and concern that experts from somewhere else might not have the grounding in Portland that’s needed for this work,” Hales said when announcing he’d selected professor Dennis Rosenbaum and other researchers to comprise the so-called Compliance Officer/Community Liaison (COCL) team “That’s why the critical importance of Paul De Muniz. He’ll provide that link to the community, that deep understanding of Portland.”
As the only team member based in Oregon, De Muniz had several roles. He was to be a listening ear for community concerns and the chair of a citizen board that’s also scrutinizing reforms.
Here’s what we wrote when the COCL team was chosen back in November.
Having De Muniz on board satisfied one of the biggest concerns with Rosenbaum’s team: that despite its dominance in statistical analysis and deep national experience working on police accountability issues, it seemed to lack a local face and champion with sufficient gravitas. That engagement piece had many members of the selection committee strongly drawn to [competing candidate Daniel] Ward—even as others questioned Ward’s lack of a team familiar with analysis and oversight.
In followup interviews, Rosenbaum’s team was able answer concerns about its local face by emphasizing De Muniz. Ward, however, wasn’t able to articulate who’d be on his team. He indicated, in answers to supplemental city questions, that he’d wait to do that until after getting the job.
De Muniz’s short tenure wasn’t without controversy. As reported by the Mercury, he’d begun working out of a city property partly occupied by the police bureau’s Traffic Division, after a planned office in an East Portland community center fell through. The move angered some advocates, who didn’t like the message sent by a supposedly independent police watchdog working so close to cops. City staffers are still trying to find new digs for the COCL team.
The news of De Muniz’s resignation came as a surprise to Hales, says spokesman Dana Haynes.
“The justice brings great gravitas, and he will not be easy to replace,” Haynes tells the Mercury. But the mayor is sticking with the selection of Rosenbaum and company, even without the former justice. “He has great faith that members of the COCL will find the right person for this task.”
Update, 7 pm: The COCL has released a statement regarding De Muniz’s departure. It reads:
Today, Community Oversight and Advisory Board (COAB) Chair Paul de Muniz announced his immediate resignation, due a private and personal health issue on the advice of his doctor.
“The COCL team has nothing but praise for Chair de Muniz and his work. He stepped into a challenging role to lead community-driven oversight of the City’s Settlement Agreement with the United States Department of Justice—an oversight model that’s the first-of-its-kind for these agreements.
“We thank Paul for his leadership, dedication to public service, and support for the members of the COAB, and we wish him well.
“The COCL team will consult with parties to the Settlement Agreement in the coming days, as we determine how to best fill this key Community Liaison role, and support the important work outlined in the Settlement Agreement.”