Beckman heads police citizens review board

Adrienne Packer and Erin Neff

Wednesday, April 19, 2000 | 11:15 a.m.

More than four years after a controversial Metro Police Civilian Review Board was first proposed, the board's executive director has been hired.

The Clark County Commission voted 6-0 Tuesday to hire private attorney Andrea Beckman to head a 25-member citizens panel that will investigate complaints of police misconduct.

The Las Vegas City Council followed suit this morning, approving her 7-0.

Clark County Manager Dale Askew said a five-member screening panel that included Askew and Las Vegas City Manager Virginia Valentine sifted through 13 qualified applications and whittled them down to five last month.

Beckman, an attorney with more than 20 years' experience in criminal law, was chosen after final interviews April 6.

Mayor Oscar Goodman said he felt confident of Beckman's abilities after learning of her diverse background.

"I was a doubter. I felt that it was really incumbent for an elected, public official to serve on the board," Goodman said this morning. "But I am very confident that you will be able to serve in that capacity."

"It's an honor to ever have been selected to this position," said Beckman, who will earn between $68,000 and $96,000 a year. "I will do everything I can to get this going. The first thing in order is getting the Citizens Review Board appointed."

She plans to design the process to screen potential candidates for the board in the next two to three weeks, she said. The board will have 25 members -- 13 appointed by the County Commission, 12 by the Las Vegas City Council.

Beckman said she also intends to ensure that the board is "equitable, without personal bias or personal agenda."

Putting the board in place is expected to be less controversial than choosing the executive director, which was hardly a smooth process.

The search was stalled first when the county failed to allow Valentine any authority in the firing of the executive director.

Then Askew and Valentine left members of the advisory board that created the review board ordinance out of the selection process. Eventually, two committee members were placed on the screening panel.

On Tuesday the American Civil Liberties Union -- perhaps the most vocal organization throughout the entire process -- gave Beckman its endorsement.

"I commend the city manager and county manager for their choice," said Gary Peck, executive director of the ACLU of Nevada. "I am confident she will bring fairness and objectivity to her role and to her job."

Critics of Metro Police have complained that its Internal Affairs Bureau is too secretive, and some question whether officers are punished properly. The review board will investigate complaints if Internal Affairs' findings do not satisfy the complainants.

The review board, which will break up into panels of five for hearings, will have the authority to subpoena witnesses but cannot discipline officers directly. Recommendations for punishments will be passed along to Sheriff Jerry Keller.

Peck emphasized that the panel's openness to the public will be critical to its success. Beckman said she intends to communicate with the community.

"I'll have an open-door policy," she said. "You can call anytime with concerns."

The review board members will be chosen by Metro's Fiscal Affairs Committee, which is made up of Clark County and Las Vegas elected officials. Both governments share the cost of the board, with the city funding $57,000 and the county $77,000.