Council Member Holds Police Relation Forum After Controversial Tweet

CHARLOTTE, NC — A lot of passion and pain shared at a forum Charlotte City Council Member LaWana Mayfield held on police relations in the black community.

Former CMPD Chief Rodney Monroe got a standing ovation when former CMPD Chief Rodney Monroe apologized to Meko McCarthy, whose son died when a CMPD officer tased him in 2011.

“Mistakes are made in law enforcement, and we should be willing to own up to those mistakes to be willing to apologize for the mistakes and move forward,” said Monroe.

Mayfield says she chose him to speak at her forum to give a police perspective without concern of compromising a job.

“We cannot get to racial healing and reconciliation without having real conversations,” said Mayfield.
In March, she was accused of stoking racial tensions between police and the black community.

She posted on Twitter a link to a news article about the police shooting death of Stephon Clark and wrote: “Being Black in America under #45 has created homegrown terrorist wearing blue uniforms. #AReckoningIsComing”

“We’re not talking about the good officers out there,” said Mayfield. “If it is not my responsibility to address it and hopefully get my colleagues to understand that we have the responsibility to change policy, then what exactly am I doing?”

She says Friday’s forum was not in response to that but to help Charlotte share the pain of some police encounters to start to heal.

“Any time that blue light comes on, i have a fear, and I have a fear based on the history of what I lived through,” said Robert Dawkins, SAFE Coalition.

There were no uniformed police officers in the crowd, and this was one of the only times former Chief

Monroe has spoken since retiring. He says he travels to teach departments community relations.

“The stronger that relationship is with all citizens., the safer that we’re going to be,” said Monroe.

He brought a virtual reality program that allows officers to experience an arrest from the citizen perspective. You can even program your own encounter complaint.

“I think it’s important citizens see it and experience as well as police, and that this may be my one and only encounter back here in Charlotte,” said Monroe.