Huron Township police review 41 use of force incidents in 2022

By Scott Bolthouse | The Huron Hub
ScottBolthouse@HuronHub.com
Posted Feb. 23, 2023

In an effort to be transparent with the public, the Huron Township Police Department released their annual use of force report.

“As a public safety organization, we understand the importance of transparency in policing. I also believe that sharing our efforts will ultimately build trust with our community stakeholders. These reviews not only allows us to make sure that all policies are strictly followed, but it also give us an avenue of self-reflection,” said Everette Robbins, Huron Township director of public safety.

Pursuant to Huron Township Public Safety Policy 300.9, three separate use of force board meetings were convened throughout 2022 to review use of force incidents involving police personnel.

The board met on the following dates and had the following participants at each: 10/26/2022 – Deputy Mark Neumann, Lt. Leo Girard, Lt. Jon Bettendorf, Sgt Ahmed Kassem, Sgt. Thomas Smith.
12/13/2022 – Lt. Leo Girard, Lt. Jon Bettendorf, Sgt Ahmed Kassem, Sgt. Thomas Smith.

The Board reviewed a total of 41 incidents pertaining to use of force in continual effort to answer or attain the below listed questions and goals.

Were any departmental directives or training violated?
Is departmental training adequate?
The relevant Policies are clearly understandable and effective to cover the Incidents?
Identify unique problem assignments, activities, or locations.
Is further investigation warranted?

The above listed use of force board members has reviewed the incidents outlined in this report and found that none of the incidents violated Departmental policies.

All involved staff received a memorandum notifying them of the Board’s findings and a copy of each memorandum was placed in the use of force file for each incident. The files are secured in a locked cabinet in the public safety director’s office by calendar year.