A handful of people showed up at the Culver City police station on Friday, June 5, for an event held in support of the police and fire departments.
Following nationwide calls to defund police departments, the Culver City Council has decided it will tackle that controversial issue at its next meeting on June 15.
Across the country, many cities have started debates about defunding or disbanding their police departments in the wake of George Floyd's death in Minneapolis. Those who support slashing police budgets are asking cities to redirect more monies to communities, social services, schools, housing or healthcare.
Locally, several Councilmembers have expressed support for drastic changes in policing.
Councilmember Meghan Sahli-Wells posted on twitter: "Currently, 38% of our budget goes to policing. That's within our power to change. It's on the June 15 Council meeting agenda."
Councilmember Daniel Lee posted on his Facebook a story on the House Democrats' policing overhaul.
The police funding issue has drawn criticism from the Culver City Police Officer's Association.
In a statement, the police association denounced "the lack of support our police officer's association has received from the majority of the current city council members."
The association declared it agrees and supports "the view that there is no place for excessive use of force against any member of the public by law enforcement officers, that is simply unacceptable. That being said, our association members are saddened and disappointed that although members of the City Council have supported the protests, they remained mute on any form of support for the men and women of the Culver City Police Department."
The association said it forwarded its statement to the council members and received a prompt reply from Mayor Goran Eriksson, a strong police supporter, and Councilmember Thomas Small "who expressed his support for the men of women of our organization." Councilmember Alex Fisch indicated "his willingness to discuss the ongoing issues with representatives from our police department," the association said, adding it had not heard back from Sahli-Wells or Lee.
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