Chapel Hill police complaints on the rise

CORRECTION: Due to a reporting error, a previous version of this article attributed Chapel Hill Police Sgt. Josh Mecimore as saying the department holds community meetings every few weeks. The police department holds a series of meetings every year. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the error.

Complaints of police misconduct are on the rise, according to a quarterly report released Tuesday by the Chapel Hill Police Department.

From July through September, seven complaints were brought against the department.

The report compiles internal and external complaints about the police department from employees and town residents.

There have been 33 complaints through September, compared to a total of 39 in 2011 and 26 in 2010.

This year’s complaints include three for excessive force, one for improper arrest and 15 for improper conduct. The department investigates all complaints.

Sgt. Josh Mecimore, spokesman for the Chapel Hill Police Department, said he couldn’t give details about the complaints due to personnel laws.

But he said only one of the five improper conduct allegations in this quarter were found to be true.

He said in that case, the officer involved received counseling.

Mecimore said the reports have been posted online since 2011 to encourage transparency.

“Transparency is certainly something we know the public wants,” he said. “And it’s something we’re interested in giving them.”

Mecimore said to help meet that goal, a series of meetings are held each year throughout the community to discuss residents’ expectations for officer conduct.

He said the meetings are meant to reach people who do not have access to information on the department’s website.

The department has also been working to improve emergency communication — both internally and externally — since the Yates Motor Company building raid in November 2011. Residents criticized police for its heavy-handed approach.

But Ostella Torain Jr., a U.S. veteran, said he’s found it difficult to interact with police and feels police information isn’t easily accessible to him.

“I don’t really get involved,” he said.

Torain said he has had some bad encounters and tries to stay out of the department’s way. He also said he doesn’t think police are adequately addressing the issue of rising crime.

But John Hudson, a manager at Carolina Pride Sportswear on Franklin Street, said his encounters with police have been positive.

“I found them to be responsive, friendly and helpful,” he said.

But Hudson said he wants more information on the excessive force claim in the report.

“Who filed the complaint? What were they doing?” he asked. “How credible are they?”

Hudson said he understands the department must sometimes withhold information — but he worries the obscurity could be abused.

“I still think the Chapel Hill Police Department does a good to very good job,” he said.

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