At the October 12th Tallahassee City Commission meeting, elected officials received a briefing on the Citizens Police Review Board annual report by CPRB Chairman Edward Gaines.
After the briefing, City Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox addressed the issue of bias against law enforcement by CPRB members. Williams-Cox indicated that “we should consider removing board members that consistently show a bias against the police.”
Williams-Cox stated that she had heard that a CPRB member attended a CPRB meeting with a cup imprinted with the phrase “F**k the police”
Williams-Cox was referring to an incident – confirmed by TR via several sources- that took place at a meeting convened at the Tallahassee Police Department.
“That to me says there is a bias” said Williams-Cox. “There is no place for that in what we are trying to do here in the city of Tallahassee.”
Chairman Gaines said that the issue should be addressed by the city commission and the CPRB member.
The CPRB member involved with the incident was Taylor Biro. Biro was nominated for the CPRB by City Commissioner Jack Porter and approved unanimously by the city commission.
In response to the comments by Williams-Cox, Commissioner Porter said she is uncomfortable discussing at this point in the process, removing a member.
Commissioner Jeremy Matlow, following Porter’s comments, addressed the comments by City Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox relating to the cup incident.
Matlow said, “The CPRB should represent all aspects of our community. There are people in our community that believe the police can do no wrong and fly blue lives matter flags. There are people in our community that don’t trust the police at all…All of these perspectives matter…I am not interested in trying to get to a sanitized board….we have to hear the good the bad and the ugly.”
In November of last year, Tallahassee Inspector General Dennis Sutton questioned CPRB member Biro‘s objectivity during a board subcommittee meeting based on an opinion column written by Biro and published in the Tallahassee Democrat.
In the column, Biro wrote, “Don’t ask us to recommend a policy or training to fix this, because policing isn’t broken, it’s performing exactly as it was designed. We cannot remove the eggs from a cake after it comes out of the oven. Sometimes you just need a new recipe.”
Sutton said actions like Biro’s could give a negative impression of the board to Tallahassee Police Department members, decreasing their willingness to work with them. He also said board members were required to say that they would remain unbiased on their application to join the board.
“There is a concern by the rank and file that this board is completely biased against the police department,” Sutton said.
In response, Biro said she isn’t biased, she just doesn’t support how police currently operate in the city.
Tallahassee City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow Defends “F**K the Police” Sentiment added by Steve Stewart on
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I would be glad to be on the board too!
Ah, yes. Nothing screams integrity like blatant bias. What a joke. I’m glad if I need police services a Sheriff’s deputy shows up.
Steve has become so offendable lately that he’s beginning to make Matlow and Porter look reasonable. He was giddy with joy the other day with John Dailey on the radio, it was like he worked for him. Until we make the Democraps in city hall stop wasting our property taxes on paying people like Steve, nothing will change.
@ Weed… thanks for the gender clarification. In my haste – and in my defense – I lost track of which gender is which. I think it happened after the creation of the 157th gender classification the wokesters created.
For the record… my pronouns are he, him, sir, Mr., and the Honorable… oh, and on certain occasions, Your Highness. And I’m wearing blue jeans.
The entire sham of a Board needs to be disbanded.
“Nicholas Weed says:
November 16, 2022 at 6:18 pm
Mr Ed
Biro is a she…”
Debatable. See The Mayor’s LGBTQ+ Advisory Council and TCAC.
Mr Ed
Biro is a she…
The presence of bias is unquestionable. Moreover, that Biro was certainly aware that he was attending this particular meeting and knowingly did so with this specific cup… shows not only the existence of bias, but a heavy dose of foolish hubris with a touch of an intended attempt at intimidation. And what does it say about the one who appointed him?… was she aware of his blatant bias and hatred for law enforcement?… and was that a determining factor in her decision to appoint him?
Biro should be removed of course, but don’t forget the one(s) who are behind the message.
Snowflakes offended by writing on a cup.
If you didn’t vote in the last election, don’t complain but vote next time.
If you voted for Matlow, don’t complain; this is what you voted for, Matlow was very upfront about his law enforcement views.
If you vote for Porter when she is up for re-election, expect more of the same; she too has been very transparent about her views.
Diane Cox and Dailey painted Black Lives Matter on the street.
They all hate the police.
I back Trystyn Leigh for CPRB. Common sense real people
Unacceptable, Biro has to be kicked off the board. The “f” word should not enter the equation in a public situation by a board member and if it does bye-bye to you. In fact, the board member took it one step further to publicly denounce the very entity that she is supposed to be unbiased about. The vulgarity is unacceptable.
Biro exhibited behavior showing she can’t follow proper decorum and unable to offer professional insight. Porter should be the first one to see that she is asked to leave.
The board leader should be a leader and remove Biro immediately. Otherwise this board has zero credibility.
Well if you look at the headlines, I don’t think they are doing enough to keep people safe. They don’t need less funding, they need more. We are well on the way to becoming a mini-Chicago, and the people that live in the most impacted neighborhoods, should be screaming the loudest. Haven’t the left said for years, it’ll take more than thoughts and prayers? And the idea the military will take a troublesome teen, is extremely outdated. That doesn’t happen anymore.
FIRST, Biro wrote, “Don’t ask us to recommend a policy or training to fix this, and THEN, Biro said she isn’t biased, she just doesn’t support how police currently operate in the city.
Well, THAT is why you recommend a policy or training to fix any problems, BEFORE it gets worse.
If you want someone on the PRB to balance Boro’s negative view of TPD I am available to serve.