Good, bad and ugly: Decatur community reacts to third-party police review [Video]

DECATUR, Ala. — All eyes are on a Decatur city council work session after last week’s release of a third-party review of the city’s police department, and residents spoke out about the department’s treatment of crime in recent years.

It’s been more than six months since the independent, third-party review was requested.

A Huntsville consulting company, Green Research and Technology, released a 43-page review which looked closely at in Decatur Police Department (DPD) policies, procedures, interactions, and body-worn camera video. While the report was not all negative, it found communication failures, improper usage of the city’s incident-logging software and overuse of ‘lawful orders.’

And, as it turns out, people in the city had something to say about how the DPD handles crime in their community. The Jan. 27 Decatur City Council work session was the first chance residents has to voice their thoughts to city leaders, but not until after …