A new community policing effort called ‘ReWaukee’ was introduced by acting Milwaukee Police Chief Michael Brunson on Wednesday.
Brunson says it’ll allow the public to give feedback to the department, which in turn it’ll use to change internal police policies.
“What the project does is fosters community engagement, community collaboration,” said Brunson. “The first phase will be ‘speak-outs’ that the community is going to be involved in.”
Citizens can sign up for these speak-out sessions by e-mailing [email protected].
During the announcement, Brunson declined to endorse, or renounce the idea of cutting the police budget.
“I have to focus on the things I can control directly. That is to engage in the community, engage in our department, and encourage them to do what our goal is, which is public safety,” said Acting Chief Brunson.
“The budget (is) beyond our control. We will do what we can to work within the budget.”
In the wake of the death of George Floyd, MPD is facing the possibility of having its budget slashed by 10 percent next year.
Mayor Tom Barrett says any further cuts to the budget would result in the loss of more officers.
