Residents press Decatur leaders for immediate action after third‑party police review

Residents and community activists used the public‑comment period at a Decatur City Council meeting to demand immediate implementation of recommendations from a third‑party review of the Decatur Police Department and to call for accountability for officers and leaders named in the report.

The complaints centered on the Green Research & Technology (GRT) review that the city commissioned and later released in redacted form. Speakers said the redactions — which city legal staff recommended — obscured information the public needs to judge whether the department has changed. Many speakers urged the council to remove Chief Todd Pinion or place independent oversight over the chief.

Why it matters: speakers tied the review to recent violent incidents and to what they described as ongoing cultural problems in the department, saying failures in internal‑affairs processes and in use of an early‑warning system (IAPro) let misconduct continue. Council members said some procedural changes have begun but that personnel decisions require a formal process and a supermajority vote.

Multiple residents described the review as proof of…