MOSES Acts to Support Police Oversight
By Rachel Kincade
Police oversight in Madison is concentrated in two bodies. One is the Office of the Independent Police Monitor (OIPM), which investigates cases of potential police misconduct, reviews the Madison Police Standard Operating Procedures, looks at statistical data on police practices, and issues reports. The other is the Police Community Oversight Board (PCOB), which hires and supervises the Independent Police Monitor (IPM). MOSES has officially supported police oversight, including by the OIPM and the PCOB, since a Sept. 28, 2025, Leadership Board decision. Since then, we have testified in favor of full funding of these entities and against any attempts to weaken police oversight.
An alder who is no longer with the Madison Common Council presented amendments that would take away the independence of the OIPM and make it a city entity. The Council reduced the OIPM’s already scant budget, shortening the hours of its data analyst (while at the same time the police department hired two more data analysts) and not providing for a case manager. MOSES organized. Members of the Justice System Reform Initiative (JSRI) and the Justice and Policing Task Force (JPTF) came together to work on this issue.
We all met and under William Parke-Sutherland’s leadership created a full history of the PCOB and the OIPM, all the way to what is happening now. We provided members with calls to action. It was very informative, and the presentation of our efforts at the MOSES General Meeting on June 14 went smoothly, with Mary Anglim and Eric Howland giving the background – how and why this ordinance was formed. They showed the many years it took to get police oversight in place in Madison.
Eric also covered the OIPM’s budget and how it has steadily been cut. Jeanie Vershay and I talked about where things are at now, starting with December 2025, when the PCOB hired a new interim Independent Police Monitor (IPM), Aeiramique (Meeka) Glass, an experienced police monitor who has brought new life to Madison police oversight. Recent publications from the OIPM, starting with two statistical studies in the annual report and now two high-profile investigative reports on police cases, have challenged Madison’s views of its police department and have also brought criticism of police oversight. (I was on the PCOB for its first four years, and in my opinion, Aeiramique Glass is doing her job in a powerful way, doing exactly what the original ordinance called for in an extremely effective fashion.)
William concluded our presentation at the June General Meeting by talking about the ordinance changes and the need to support the PCOB and the OIPM. He acknowledged that Madison has the best ordinance in the nation, because it holds the superpower of subpoena. Kathy Luker was scheduled to share how to get congregations involved, but her presentation had to be postponed due to time constraints.
A call to action came out on short notice recently, asking MOSES members to attend and speak at a full board meeting of the PCOB. Our President made a statement of MOSES’s support; Eric spoke passionately about the power the police have and the need for a fully funded OIPM. I asked them to just hire Aeiramique Glass as the permanent IPM. Barbie supported the ordinance. Jeanie summed it all up by talking about the death of Richard Lee Johnson in police custody and stated that this was a call to action.
Other possible calls to action include calling your alder and expressing the need for the original ordinance, and calling the mayor to ask for full funding – at least 1% of the police department’s budget – to bring the OIPM data analyst to full time, hire a case manager, and make more money available for independent counsel.
I’ll leave you with another MOSES Call to Action: MOSES is preparing to testify at the Madison Common Council meeting on Aug. 4. At that meeting, several amendments to the statutes that govern police oversight will be considered. Amendments to weaken police oversight have already been proposed. Where we stand: Make the interim IMP (Glass) permanent, fully fund the OIPM, and keep the original ordinance. Watch for additional details about upcoming MOSES calls to action as we approach Aug. 4.
This is how MOSES takes action!