Iowa City police outline community outreach plans, say funding cuts not affecting core programs

Trey Hall, community outreach staff with the Iowa City Police Department, told the Iowa City Human Rights Commission on April 22 that department outreach to immigrant, refugee and other community groups remains active and that planned programming is not currently affected by funding reductions.

Hall told commissioners that Joshua Debusu, the department’s immigrant/refugee outreach specialist, has been meeting with Hispanic pastors to plan youth partnerships, coordinating with an African association that invited the department to its summer festival, attending the Sudanese Iowans soccer club and the Immigrant Welcome Network’s Voice of Resilience events, and arranging building tours and squad visits on request. Hall identified Anne Thompson as the department’s victim services coordinator and said Thompson and other outreach staff recently staffed a booth for National Crime Victims’ Rights Week hosted at the library by the Johnson County Attorney’s Office.

The commission’s discussion focused on whether partner organizations’ reduced budgets had affected outreach. Hall said the department “doesn’t do a lot of activities that include necessary funding,” adding that most events are covered in routine budgets (for example, National Night Out) and that outreach “doesn’t operate on a high level of spending.” He said some items such as promotional materials or giveaway items are budgeted in advance and he did not foresee cuts to those line items.

Hall also described regular monthly meetings the department holds with the shelter house and its outreach staff, and said the department continues to coordinate with the county attorney’s CVI (community violence intervention) program on events. He said some future event dates were still being confirmed and that he would share flyers and scheduling information with commission staff when available.

Commissioners asked whether partner organizations had changed plans because of funding uncertainty; Hall said he had not observed changes in partners’ plans so far. The commission did not take any formal action on the report.

Less urgent details: Hall and commission staff discussed logistical follow-up (sharing flyers and scheduling information) and the department’s preference for low-cost community engagement. No budget amendments or formal referrals were proposed at the meeting.