Phoenix council approves contract to expand OAT mediation program after questions on data and measures of success

PhoenixCity Council on Sept. 3 approved a contract to supplement the Office of Accountability and Transparency(OAT) mediation program aimed at creating facilitated, one-on-one conversations between impacted community members and individual officers, despite council membersexpressing reservations about data, metrics and oversight. The motion to approve item 31 passed 7-2.

The approval authorizes the city to supplement OATstaff with outside mediators as needed; council members were told the funds would come from OATbudget and would only be spent if OAT determines external mediation services are required. Councilwoman Hernandez said she was not comfortable voting without more information, and asked OAT for additional demand data and clearer success measures before the city relies on mediation to deliver officer accountability.

OATinterim director Shannon described the program as designed to allow "individual officers to sit down with impacted community members for them to have a facilitated conversation that allows for that 1 to 1 accountability." Shannon said OAT has completed five department-level mediations so far and is building an operations order to enable individual-officer mediations, which implicate human resources,…