Cleveland has had a Civilian Police Review Board since the 1980s. The original idea was to have residents play a role in making sure officers were held accountable for how they treated the people they policed. 

The city’s 2015 police reform consent decree required more transparency for the review board, including making it clear how board members are selected. In 2021, Clevelanders voted to create more independence for police oversight, including this review board.  

The Civilian Police Review Board makes decisions about police discipline. The board also oversees the Office of Professional Standards (OPS), which takes complaints from people about officers. People bring their complaints to OPS to investigate, and the review board decides whether complaints require some sort of discipline. The board doesn’t handle complaints that could involve crimes. 

Cleveland’s consent decree
The consent decree is an agreement between Cleveland and the U.S. Department of Justice that requires police reforms. It came after a federal investigation that found a “pattern and practice” of police officers violating the rights of residents and using excessive force. The city and the federal government signed the agreement in 2015. 

Forty years in the making

In the 1980s, Cleveland residents fought to give power to civilians to investigate police misconduct. At the time, Clevelanders were outraged at how the department handled multiple investigations into police shootings of residents. 

City Council passed legislation in 1982 to create the first Civilian Police Review Board. Then-Mayor George V. Voinovich vetoed it, arguing that “council had overstepped its authority.” 

Two years later, City Council drafted a ballot issue proposing the creation of the police review board and the Office of Professional Standards to investigate police misconduct. Voters approved it but the two police unions sued, sparking a three-year legal battle that ended in front of the Ohio Supreme Court. The Ohio Supreme Court ruled against the police unions, and the police review board held its first meeting on Aug. 8, 1988. 

How are Civilian Police Review Board members picked?

The review board has nine members. The mayor selects five review board members and City Council picks the other four.

All five police districts are represented and one person must be between 18 and 30 years old. Changes to the city charter under Issue 24 also required that at least two of the people be lawyers with experience working with victims and police misconduct.

Cleveland’s Issue 24
Voters approved the Issue 24 ballot initiative in 2021. The changes to the city’s charter created a new Community Police Commission, which has the final say on police discipline cases and officer policies. It also gave independence to an office and board that investigates and makes decisions about resident complaints. It marked a significant change in how police officers in Cleveland are disciplined, shifting more power to appointed boards and commissions.

Board members also can’t be past or current employees of Cleveland’s police department.  

The board members are part-time city employees who serve for four-year terms. Board members can serve a second term. Their pay is set by City Council. The review board and OPS together must receive at least 1% of the police force’s budget. 

Board members are also required to attend training on topics such as bias-free policing, constitutional law and policing people in crisis.

If one of the board members leaves, the mayor and City Council have to fill the role in 60 days. The city has to post the role publicly and review applications. This is the only way to join the board.

The mayor can also kick any person off the board. For example, if someone ignores their responsibilities or doesn’t show up for meetings.

Deciding outcomes for police misconduct

The Civilian Police Review Board holds meetings that are open to the public where it reviews investigations into the complaints against police officers and other department employees, such as dispatchers. 

Anyone can file a complaint against an officer with the Office of Professional Standards. The office is independent and investigates resident complaints of police misconduct. The board then decides whether there’s evidence any misconduct happened, and if an officer or police employee should be disciplined. 

Board members can ask questions about the investigations or request more information and hear from witnesses.

After the investigator presents the case, the investigator can one of make four recommendations to the board on each charge:

  • Sustained: The evidence proves that the officer violated a policy.
  • Exonerated: The evidence proves the officer’s behavior happened but it did not violate a policy.
  • Unfounded: The evidence proves the officer did not violate a policy.
  • Insufficient evidence: There is not enough evidence to prove the behavior did or did not happen.

The board needs a simple majority vote to move forward with a decision on a case, according to its manual. All votes are supposed to be cast during a public meeting. 

The review board submits its findings and recommendation to the police chief and city’s safety director as a part of the discipline process. 

Want to attend a Civilian Police Review Board meeting?
The Civilian Police Review Board generally hosts public meetings on the second Tuesday of the month. The public can join the meetings in-person at Cleveland City Hall or watch live on on YouTube. People can also speak directly with the board during public comment.

The meetings often take place online in the winter. For online meetings, people can call 216-664-2944 to sign up to make a comment.

How does the board hand out discipline?

The police department reviews the review board’s report and “must defer to the Board’s fact findings and recommendations.” 

If the police chief or safety director agrees with the review board’s findings, they can schedule a disciplinary hearing. The disciplinary hearing provides the officer with a chance to testify, according to the consent decree. 

But if the chief or safety director can also disagree with the review board finding and can overrule the board. They have to notify the board within 10 days. And they have to provide “clear and convincing” evidence that the board has made an error in its decision.

Even if the police department overrules the board, the review board can still order them to comply with its recommendation. The board has the authority to discipline or terminate an officer, as does the Community Police Commission.

Is the Civilian Police Review Board’s decision final?

Mostly. If the person who filed the complaint disagrees with the review board, they can ask the Community Police Commission to take another look. The Community Police Commission can overrule the review board.

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Cleveland Police Oversight

Service Journalism Reporter (she/her)
I am dedicated to untangling bureaucracy so Clevelanders can have the information (and the power) they want. I spent 10 years on the frontlines of direct service working with youth and system-impacted communities before receiving my degree in media advocacy at Northeastern University.