Boulder narrows police oversight panel's power

State of play: Police monitor Sherry Daun told the panel at its Nov. 10 meeting that she would close certain cases without panel input when both she and the department's professional standards unit (PSU) determine complaints are unfounded or officers should be exonerated.

• Daun said she made the change in consultation the City Attorney's Office and that the ordinance gives her "sole authority to classify those complaints."
• She framed the move as a way to conserve limited resources and speed up case reviews.

How it works: Previously, the police oversight panel would get a summary from the police monitor of all cases referred to the PSU and decide which ones to discuss.

• While the panel had no disciplinary authority, it could make recommendations to the department.

Flashback: Boulder created the Police Oversight Panel in 2020 after a widely publicized incident involving a Boulder officer and a Black Naropa student.

• The panel temporarily shut down in 2023 amid controversy over who could serve and what cases it could review, prompting a rewrite of its ordinance.

Friction point: Several voiced concern that Daun's new approach contradicts both the letter and intent of that ordinance.

• "It feels like a pattern is emerging of the panel's role becoming smaller and more limited," co-chair Lizzie Friend said. "We think this is a really concerning trend."
• Co-chair Maria-Soledad Diaz, who helped write the ordinance, said its intention was "clear": The panel should review all cases. "We can't just make things up," she said.

Behind the scenes: The NAACP's Boulder County branch was instrumental in the panel's creation but has since dissolved after a dispute with the national organization.

• Former local NAACP member Darren O'Connor told Axios Boulder the goal was "to include the voices of traditionally marginalized community members in police oversight."

• If Daun's approach stands, he told us, "I do feel the purpose of the panel has been lost."

The big picture: The policy change lands as the Boulder Police Department separately moves to encrypt its police radio communications, limiting access for the public and press.

• Following criticism, police chief Stephen Redfearn issued a a lengthy statement saying Boulder "deserves a police department that is both transparent and effective, accountable and safe," adding that the oversight panel offers "multiple layers of accountability."

The other side: But Friend during the Nov. 10 meeting said Daun's policy "relegates the panel to an optional advisory body."

• O'Connor praised the panel for publicly pushing back but said: "It would be better to have no community oversight than to have one that the city manager and city attorney's office undermine to such a degree that the oversight is in name only."

What we're watching for: The city manager is slated to conduct a full review of the oversight panel and its operations in 2026.