Dave Bicking censured by CRA chair

BY ED FELIEN

Civilian Review Authority (CRA) member Dave Bicking was censured by CRA Chair Don Bellfield at their meeting Feb. 3. Bellfield wrote a letter to Bicking asking him to resign as a member of CRA if he spoke out against the reappointment of Police Chief Tim Dolan at a public forum on March 3. On a vote of 5 to 2, the CRA board supported Bellfield.

Bellfield sent his letter to the mayor and all the members of the City Council. In it he said, “”With Mr. Bicking publicly stating his opposition to the reappointment of
Chief Dolan, he has again put the CRA in a position where our mission, credibility and integrity are brought into question.”

Bicking has been interviewed by WCCO TV and has publicly criticized the reappointment of Dolan, but he has always done this clearly as a private citizen making sure to clarify that he does not speak for the entire board of CRA.
The CRA has recently released an 18-page report on the performance of Chief Tim Dolan that rates him as far more negative than positive, especially in the area of imposing discipline on officers.

Tom Cleland, who writes an online blog, has said, “Under Dolan, the city has paid out $11 million in lawsuit settlements. I see a real racial component to police misconduct in Minneapolis.” Examples include the fatal tasering of Quincy Smith, the beating of Darryl Jenkins, the harassment of Somali cab drivers, and the $740,000 racial discrimination settlement with five high-ranking black officers. Dolan gave the Medal of Valor to the cop who shot Fong Lee.

The Civilian Review Authority actually has very little authority. Its function is to advise the mayor and City Council on police behavior. When the Civil Rights Department had authority to investigate matters of police misconduct, it had the authority to issue subpoenas requiring officers to testify and it had the power to award damages. In the period from 1975 to 1976, four police officers were indicted on charges of police misconduct and two were convicted.

There will be a public hearing March 3 conducted by members of the City Council on the reappointment of Police Chief Tim Dolan from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. in City Hall Council Chambers, Room 317.