INDIANAPOLIS — The Concerned Clergy and Baptist Ministers Alliance said they're fed up with IMPD's leadership during a news conference Wednesday morning at the Purpose of Life Church.
"We call for Chief (Randal) Taylor’s resignation in light of his conduct as chief of police here in Indianapolis and call for Mayor (Joe) Hogsett to begin an open search for a new chief of police with meaningful and inclusive community involvement," said Rev. David W. Greene, president of Concerned Clergy of Indianapolis.
These faith leaders say Taylor favors certain communities over others.
"There is clearly an overcommitment to 'nothing better happen downtown,' but we don't treat the north side or the east side the same way," Greene said. "Those types of actions, discussions, appear to show favoritism to certain areas of our community. As long as the violence is in some communities, that’s OK, but it will not be tolerated in other areas, such as a Broad Ripple."
The faith leaders said this call for resignation was sparked by last week's shooting of Gary Harrell by an IMPD officers.
"How can you have an officer of over 20 years on the IMPD workforce, over 20 years, shoot someone while they're running in the back?" said Dr. Wayne L. Moore, president of Baptist Ministers Alliance. "They want the community to trust the process. The process has never worked for IMPD, nor for the community."
In part of a statement, IMPD said, "Chief Taylor has remained committed to maintaining positive police-community relationships, reducing violent crime, responding to 911 calls for service, investigating and solving major crimes, and maintaining high levels of training for our officers."
"We cannot just put the blame on police or the chief of police, as if we get a new chief, it's magically going to fix the problem. It's not," said Rev. Charles Harrison, president of Ten Point Coalition. "I think they’re misinformed about the complexity of the issue today. It’s very complex, it’s multi-layered and it takes more than a police effort to address the violence. It’s more of a community effort."
Harrison said he supports Taylor, who he and his group work with closely.
"Those guys have a right to their opinion, I don’t think their opinion reflects the majority of leaders in the city of Indianapolis nor, I would say, the Black community," Harrison said. "If you're going to point the finger at the chief, you've got to point the finger back at yourself, because as a community, we play an important role in this, too, if we're going to drive down these numbers."
Those homicide and nonfatal shooting numbers are a major issue for faith leaders calling for Taylor's resignation. They said both are up since Taylor became IMPD chief in 2020.
"We must change that mindset, mentality in our city if we’re going to have a safer city. People need to know if you do fire the gun, we understand your right to carry it, but if you fire it, you need to know you’re going to jail," Greene said. "You need to be thinking, 'If I fire this gun, I’m going to go to jail.' Not thinking, 'If I fire this gun, there’s a good chance I’m going to get away with it.' Most likely think, 'I’m going to get away with it."
In a statement, Hogsett offered his support for Taylor:
"Under Chief Taylor’s leadership, IMPD has instituted many of its most important transparency and accountability measures, including body cameras for all patrol officers, the distribution of critical incident review videos, civilian majorities on the use of force and general orders boards, and more. The work of IMPD has been critical in reducing criminal homicides by 16% last year, and an additional 12% this year, alongside declines across other major crime categories. Chief Taylor has my support."
In its statement, IMPD notes that Taylor created the Use of Force Board and General Orders Board, which reviews police policies and use of force with civilian input.
The department also said Taylor has hosted virtual town halls in every police district to update residents over the past two years.