Des Moines City Council to discuss racial profiling ordinance

Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie talks with Iowa State Daily News Editor Amber Mohmand about Des Moines Police Department tactics after a candlelight vigil held May 31 in honor of George Floyd.

Amber Mohmand
June 7, 2020

The Des Moines City Council could pass a racial profiling ordinance Monday. 

“Biased Policing means discrimination in the performance of law enforcement duties or delivery of police services, based on personal prejudices or partiality of employees toward classes of individuals or persons based on individual demographics,” according to city documents. 

A group of 1,000 people marched to Mayor Frank Cownie’s home, spilling out onto the streets and into neighboring yards. Matthew Bruce, a protest leader and member of Des Moines Black Lives Matter, read off a list of demands to Cownie:

  1. Lift the mandatory curfew in place in Polk County from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.

  2. Free those detained in Polk County Jail for peacefully protesting.

  3. Support an anti-racial profiling ordinance in the city of Des Moines.

  4. Restore the voting rights of felons.

The drafted ordinance defines the role of the police services as “actions and activities that contribute to the overall well-being and safety of the public.” The ordinance would prohibit racial profiling that pertains to those who are seen as a suspect or potential suspect of a crime.

The ordinance does not include  “non-governmental person initiated conduct, which may result in a claim of other illegal discriminatory practices specified in Chapter 62 of this Code.”

Any officers who violate the ordinance could be fired as a result, according to the Des Moines Register, and the Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards will handle racial profiling complaints submitted by the public. Complaints can also also be submitted to the Des Moines Civil and Human Rights Commission, but it would forward the complaint to the Office of Professional Standards.

According to the Des Moines Register, the Civil and Human Rights Commission lacks the jurisdiction to investigate complaints, but it can work with the people who filed it to file another racial profiling grievance with the State Civil Rights Commission, the proposal states.

The Council meeting will take place at 4:30 p.m. Monday on Zoom.