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Greenwood Merit Board to pursue ordinance tweaks rather than wholesale adoption of state statute, commissioners say
Summary
At its April 9 meeting, the Greenwood Police Merit Board agreed to preserve the board's current neutral structure while asking the chief to draft an outline of targeted ordinance changes for legal review; the board also approved minutes, retained officers and approved routine claims.
The Greenwood Police Merit Board on April 9 discussed possible updates to local ordinances to reflect portions of the state statute, but commissioners said they favor targeted tweaks over wholesale adoption.
Attorney Linda Meyer told the board she had no new updates on proposed ordinance changes. Commissioners who attended a two-hour meeting with the mayor, the police chief and city attorneys reported the chief's preference was to refine the local ordinance rather than adopt the state statute in full.
The board identified specific areas for clarification, including language distinguishing administrative leave from suspension without pay. Commissioners expressed concern that unclear wording could expose the City of Greenwood to liability or be interpreted as creating a double-jeopardy issue in discipline and dismissal procedures. The panel agreed city legal counsel should review any language changes and provide guidance.
Members said they want to preserve the merit board's neutral structure and appointment balance (council appointments, police department representatives and the mayoral appointment) and voiced opposition to any change that would weaken the commission's role in hiring and promotions.
As a next step, commissioners said the police chief will outline the specific changes he wants, and that outline will be circulated to city and outside attorneys for review. No timeframe was set for completion; participants said additional meetings will likely be needed.
On routine business the board approved the March 12 meeting minutes with a spelling correction, voted to retain the current officers (with Trisha Thompson confirmed as reporting secretary), and approved claims, including $333 for attorney services for March and $75 for a commissioner for the regular meeting.
The meeting concluded with no scheduled follow-up date; commissioners said they will share any new information when it becomes available.
