INDIANAPOLIS — Several people have been shot and killed by law enforcement officers in Indianapolis this summer. An event this weekend hoped to start a conversation so that no more lives are lost.
The Indianapolis Community Resource Team held a four-hour seminar at the Fay Biccard Glick Neighborhood Center in Pike Township Saturday afternoon. The goal was to demonstrate the challenges police officers experience while also hearing the concerns of the public.
"When the community says, 'Here's how you best trust us, here's how you best serve us, here's how you best respect us,'" that goes both ways," said Toby Miller, who leads the Community Resource Team. "It's not about having a whole bunch of meetings. It's about making sure whatever we do is impactful and meaningful in the context of the community."
The seminar centered on a re-enactment of tense police situations which participants had to solve, such as officer involved shootings and crowd control.
Participant Robert Jackson, who serves as a pastor on Indianapolis' east side, said he's more motivated than ever to build connections in his community.
"I'm 67-years-old," Jackson said. "Whatever time I have left is going to be invested in our young people."
Miller and the Community Resource Team will take the feedback from Saturday's meeting to IMPD to try and improve police-public relations. He said he hopes to keep his mission going for as long as he can.
"This work is meaningful because it is making a difference," Miller said. "It's changing the landscape and has changed the landscape of police-community relations for years, and yet we still have a lot of work to do."
