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NAACP report gives most supervisors D or C grades on criminal justice issues

Officers from the Mason Police District speak at a forum on police/community relations in October 2016 sponsored by Communities of Trust, an initiative of Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova and the Fairfax County NAACP.

The Fairfax County NAACP gives most of the county’s supervisors a grade of C or D in supporting policies aimed at reducing racial disparities in the criminal justice system.

No one got an A grade, and only two, Chair Sharon Bulova and Catherine Hudgins (Hunter Mill), got a B.

Mason Supervisor Penny Gross got a D+. Rounding out the bottom, with grades of D, are Pat Herrity (Springfield) and Kathy Smith (Sully).

John Cook (Braddock) and Dan Storck (Mount Vernon) each got a C+, and C grades went to John Foust (Dranesville), Jeffrey McKay (Lee), and Linda Smyth (Providence).

The NAACP gave Fairfax County Police Chief Ed Roessler a B and Sheriff Stacey Kincaid a C+.

The organization’s Criminal Justice Report Card looks at how well the supervisors and law enforcement leaders understand or enforce policies and propose solutions to these issues aligned with the Fairfax County NAACP agenda:

  • Equitable use of force: The report notes that 47 percent of all use of force cases in Fairfax County (in which police use physical force to compel an unwilling subject) involve African Americans. 
  • Diversity of the Police Department: The percentage of minority members of the department has remained flat, at 15 percent, since 2013. 
  • Civilian oversight/accountability: The NAACP evaluated county officials’ degree of support for the civilian oversight committee, the police auditor, and the use of body cameras. 
  • Support for incarceration alternatives: In Fairfax County, blacks make up 8 percent of the county population but 33 percent of the inmate population. The report looks at how well county officials understand the causes of this disparity, propose solutions, and support alternatives to incarceration.
  • Minority community outreach: “Given the well-publicized, long and troubled history of the nation’s law enforcement relations with communities of color,” the report states, “it is imperative that law enforcement and elected county officials alike make a concerted effort to engage these communities to understand their concerns and strengthen relations.” 

In explaining why Gross was given a D+, the report says she “hedges on the most critical criminal justice issues,” and “while she supports the recommendations of the Ad-Hoc Commission, her support usually comes with conditions or reservations, some of which we found troubling because they were attached to negative stereotypes about African Americans.”

For example, the report states, while she agreed that the disparity in the use of force is troubling, “she appeared to defend the data during our interview by insinuating that younger generations have ‘an attitude problem.’”

And while she expressed support for greater diversity on the police force, it says she did not want to “lower the standards for joining the force in the process, again introducing a negative stereotype that blacks may not be as capable of meeting the current standards.”

“On the issue of police oversight, Gross was equally ambivalent and only willing to support these initiatives with constraints and reservations,” the report notes. For example, Gross supports limiting the power of the Civilian Review Panel “to ensure that the BoS maintains ultimate final oversight and prevent the CRP from putting political pressure on investigations.”

While the report gave Gross a grade of D on the first three issues, it gave her a B on incarceration alternatives, citing her support for the Diversion First program, and a B on minority community outreach, citing her “kaleidoscope” initiative aimed at bringing diverse members of the community together to discuss issues of concern.

9 responses to “NAACP report gives most supervisors D or C grades on criminal justice issues

  1. Gross should consider herself lucky they gave her a D+, she deserves an F for her performance as a supervisor in Mason.

  2. If “black on black crime” is top of your mind as some kind of excuse—for what I don’t even know—after reading this article, you should take a long look in the mirror. For your future reference, this is what a racist looks like.

    1. Just an observation, the post by Anonymous of 2:28 pm is not necessarily a new sentiment in the discussion of race. And, it is a position even made by some African-Americans. I point to the following article from late 2015 written by John McWorter, an African American who was an associate professor at Columbia University at the time.

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/10/22/black-lives-matter-should-also-take-on-black-on-black-crime/?utm_term=.fe7808b83704

      While focused on BLM, the article makes some valid points that can be applied here – the dialogue and actions need to be holistic and introspective as compared to what may be perceived as a singular, outward narrative.

      Perhaps naively, I hope 2:28 pm's intent was similar in nature to that article but I agree the entry left a lot to be desired in terms of mature, respectful authorship and dialogue.

      I would also offer that simply because someone questions a study or offers criticism, it does not necessarily make them a racist. Those who almost automatically use titles like racist, bigot, sexist etc in response to criticism and counterpoints are almost as obstructive and divisive as those who truly are bigots, misogynists, homophobes, xenophobes etc. It reflects the same type of judgemental attitude that
      many groups have fought against for years. Why do we all try to exercise our rights by trying to squash or demonize the opinions or rights of others? Don't get me wrong – there is some dialogue that is so egregious that it needs to be demonized. In most cases, however, the dialogue needs to be mature, respectful, well-researched, and reflective of an understanding and acknowledgement of everyone's emotions (fear, frustration) and their causes.

      If we are ever going to really progress, we all need to cast aside generalizations, fears, and the projection of labels and titles simply because someone offers a different opinion or position. Further, if we are to really look at some of the issues that communities across all demographics face (education, poverty, jobs, drug use, crime, etc.), the causes are very similar. Those who like to lay blame on these issues at the feet of predominantly African American or other minority neighborhoods/areas haven't looked at what is happening in much of what has been "white" America. There is so much similarity that we, across all demographics, can no longer look at these problems through lenses that are colored by discrimination or the well-being of our own demographic. We need to come together and figure out a way to make it better across the board.

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