Council forwards four Civilian Review Board nominees for formal appointment

Richmond City Council on Wednesday voted to forward four recommended nominees for the newly created Civilian Review Board to the council’s Sept. 22 formal meeting for final appointment.

RJ Warren, Council chief of staff, told council members the four names were provided by Joseph Lowery and that the council’s vote this evening would be a formal recommendation; final appointments will be completed at the Sept. 22 formal meeting after administrative paperwork is finished. Warren also said Resolution 2025-R20 must be adopted first to establish board policies and procedures and that resolution is on the consent agenda for the formal meeting.

The four nominees recommended for appointment are Evan Fineman (three-year term, First District), Yanny Hawkins (three-year term, First District), Angela Fontaine (two-year term, Fourth District) and Rafaela Veil (one-year term, Seventh District). The council approved forwarding the slate by voice/roll-call vote; the clerk recorded the recommendation as approved.

Councilmembers debated whether prior service on city bodies should be a disqualifier. Councilmember Gibson said she had noticed that the recommended nominees had previously served or were serving on other city boards and commissions and suggested the council consider conflicts-of-interest and the opportunity to broaden participation. Vice President Jeroden said he supports forwarding the nominees, arguing that prior board experience can be helpful for a new board with significant work.

Vice President Jeroden moved to forward the applications with recommendation; a second was recorded; the clerk then called the roll. The record shows each voting member present voting yes, and the clerk announced that the recommendation had been approved.

The clerk and staff described the procedural timeline: tonight’s recommendation authorizes staff to prepare appointment documentation for the Sept. 22 formal meeting, at which the council will adopt the enabling resolution and complete the official appointments.

The council’s action sends the four nominee names to the formal docket; the vote does not itself constitute the final appointment.

The CRB is intended to be an independent oversight body; council members said they expect the newly drafted board policies to spell out duties, terms and conflict-of-interest rules before final appointments are made.

The council concluded the CRB recommendation vote and moved on to other informal-agenda matters.