Iowa City Community Police Review Board requested a change to how police misconduct is reported in Iowa City to include stipulations around police misconduct witnessed on social media, television, or other media outlets.

In a memo sent to the Iowa City City Council, the board requested a revision to Ordinance 8-8, which relates to filing complaints of alleged police misconduct to the board. The law details the definition of a police misconduct complaint and how a citizen can file such a complaint.

The board is charged to review complaints about police officers’ conduct and determine to what extent the complaint should be sustained or not sustained, according to its website. It also reviews existing police policies, procedures, and practices to suggest changes.

The law states that a citizen filing a police misconduct complaint must have personal knowledge of the misconduct to file the complaint. Personal knowledge is defined as the complainant being “directly involved in the misconduct or witnessing the incident.”

The proposed revision is stated as such: “A person who observes an incident solely on social media, television, or other media outlets does not have the requisite ‘personal knowledge’ needed to authorize such person to file a complaint.” 

This memo was sent to the city council on Nov. 16 and was included in the city council’s Nov. 23 information packet.