SALT LAKE CITY — For the first time under new leadership, Salt Lake City Police is opening its doors to the community for conversation.
The first installation of what they plan to be quarterly meetings with the community happened at the Sorenson Unity Center in the Glendale neighborhood.
For more than an hour on Wednesday evening, Chief Brian Redd gave the floor to his community.
He let each attendee introduce and then many voiced their concerns.
“So back in December I had a home invasion,” said one attendee named Heidi. “Salt Lake City [Police] never showed up. 90 minutes. Two phone calls to dispatch - Salt Lake never showed up.”
“We should respond to a home invasion - no question about it,” Chief Redd responded, adding that he’s looking into how to improve response times for the department.
Topics spanned the range from bad personal experiences like the above to city-wide issues.
“As the Jordan River Trail has been clearing up, how can we make it so that you have ample amounts of presence?” said Ricardo Mejias, who lives in Poplar Grove and says calls to report issues on the trail tend to be dismissed.
These talks can be tense at times, but officers say what’s important is making these connections.
“All the different communities that we’re serving - we want representation from everybody,” said Sgt. Miles Southworth. “So, we want this to be a place for people feel safe talking about these conversations - having difficult conversations.”
It may even give some insight into the stances Chief Redd takes as a leader.
One attendee asked how they will handle undocumented immigrants within the community.
“I just want to make sure they feel safe in Salt Lake City,” said Brandy Farmer, who serves as president and CEO of Centro Civico Mexicano. “Because our community has gone invisible.”
“We do not ask about immigration status when we’re handling our business,” Chief Redd answered. “We want to have trust in all of our communities in Salt Lake. If one of you are being victimized or harassed and feel hesitant to call, please call us.”
Chief Redd made clear he intends to find common ground with his residents and to hold his department accountable.
“We’re going to make missteps, we’re going to make mistakes,” said Chief Redd. “When we do, we need to own up to those mistakes and improve and move forward.”
