Speaker 4: I'm honored to. Madam President, this is proclamation number 21, dash 0050 honoring Nick Mitchell for his services, Denver's Independent Monitor. Whereas Nicholas E Nick Mitchell was born in New Jersey in 1975, moving with his mother and brother to Brooklyn, New York, in 1986 and following his primary and secondary schooling in Brooklyn, Nick studied political science at Evergreen State College in Washington State, after which he returned home to take a job at the New York Civilian Complaint Review Board in 1999. And. Whereas, in his job at the review board, Nick investigated complaints against NYPD officers and presented his officers findings in court. But his desire to be on the other side of the witness stand led him to enroll at the Fordham University School of Law in 2004. And. Whereas, during the summer of his first year of law school, Nick got a grant to work in the domestic court system in Sierra Leone and on a genocide case at the U.N. Special Court for Sierra Leone Finishing Law School, he took a job at a large international law firm, Allen and Overy in New York City, but never felt at ease defending CEOs from Department of Justice investigations. And. Whereas, in 2008, Nick joined attorneys around the U.S. who successfully sued then-President George W Bush to ensure that habeas corpus extended to defendants at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba, visiting Gitmo to interview detainees about whether they had legally moved through the judicial system. And. Whereas, Nick's love of the great outdoors led him on a weekend trip to Colorado in 2011, following which he decided to make the move from Brooklyn to Denver and shortly thereafter took a job litigating at a local law firm. And. Whereas, not long thereafter, Nick applied for and was ultimately appointed by Mayor Michael B Hancock as Denver's second independent monitor in August 2012. And. WHEREAS, during his time as Monitor, Nick's office oversaw thousands of investigations into complaints of misconduct misconduct clearing many Denver Police Department officers and Denver Sheriff Department deputies while ensuring accountability for those who abused their authority in the public trust. And. WHEREAS, Nick issued multiple reports about problematic practices in the Denver Sheriff Department, including the mishandling of inmate grievances and the tragic death of Michael Marshall at the hands of deputy sheriff personnel, triggering major reforms in Denver's jails. And. WHEREAS, at the unanimous request of Denver City Council, Nick conducted a sweeping investigation into the Denver Police Department response to protests in downtown Denver following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, making 16 recommendations for reform, all of which were adopted by Denver Police Department. And. Whereas, as Monitor, Nick served as co-chair of the Denver Sheriff Department Use of Force Policy Committee, which transformed use of force standards for Denver deputies. Nick also issued public guidance about deficiencies in the DPP use of force policy leading to the complete rewrite of the policy, and released an analysis of body worn camera use by DPD officers resulting in significant enhancements on their use. And. WHEREAS, he co-founded the Bridging the Gap Kids and Cops program, which is one national recognition for helping to transform relationships between police officers and youth in Denver. And. Whereas, Nick led three successful efforts to change the law that empowers the oh. I am including a city charter amendment passed in 2016 with the support of 72% of Denver voters. And. WHEREAS, Mitchell received awards from the Denver Bar Association and the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement has been recognized as an expert on civilian oversight and law enforcement reform by CNN. The new. Yorker and other national publications and consulted with numerous cities seeking to enhance oversight of law enforcement, including Phenix, Tulsa, Madison, Baltimore, Colorado Springs, Aurora and others. And. Whereas, Nick was selected to be a Gates fellow in the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, senior executives in state and local government program in 2013, elected as a director of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement in 2014 and appointed to the Board of Governors of the Colorado Bar Association in 2018. And. WHEREAS, on January four, 2021, Nick Mitchell left his role as Denver's Independent Monitor to oversee a Department of Justice consent decree with the County of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. The consent decree is a court ordered agreement designed to correct systemic, unconstitutional conditions in the Los Angeles County jails, the largest municipal jail system in the world. Now, therefore, let it be proclaimed by the Council of the City and County of Denver. Section one, the City Council of the City and County of Denver. Thanks, Mitchell, for his dedicated service as independent monitor, exemplified by his efforts to increase safety for all the residents of Denver, while increasing the transparency of oversight of Denver's safety agencies and transforming, transforming Denver's Office of the Independent Monitor into a model emulated across the country Section two that the clerk of the city and county of Denver shall fix the seal of the city and county of Denver to this proclamation and that a copy be transmitted to Nick Mitchell.
Speaker 0: Thank you, Councilman Cashman. Your motion to adopt.
Speaker 4: Yes, Madam President. I move the proclamation 20 1-0050 be adopted.
Speaker 3: Okay.
Speaker 0: Thank you. It has been moved and we've got the movement. And then second by Councilwoman Ortega comments by members of council. Councilman Cashman.
Speaker 4: Have we checked to see if Councilman Herndon wanted to cut in on that?
Speaker 0: Okay. I think we're good.
Speaker 4: All right. Thank you, Madam President. You know, the office of the Independent Monitor, the VOA I am, may actually be the best friend our safety agencies have in this time when the people and policies of policing are called into question on a regular basis. VOA I am serious to not only ensure accountability and transparency where missteps occur, but to show just as clearly when the facts reveal that those policies and those people have performed as needed. And as expected, Nick Mitchell has not just done his job during his time as Denver's independent monitor, but through his unquestionable integrity, has dogged commitment to searching out the truth wherever it may lie in his clear presentation of the truth he has uncovered. He has strengthened the position for those who will follow. His predecessor will step into a far different context than did monitor Mitchell when he was appointed. While the Monitor and his talented staff and his dedicated cohort received much attention and deserve kudos for high profile reports such as the Marshall Report and the recent report issued after George Floyd's murder led to protests across the country many hundreds, perhaps thousands of less publicized but equally as important investigations received the same detailed attention that monitor Mitchell and his team devoted to the tragic events I mentioned earlier. I enjoyed working with Nick Mitchell. He worked hard. He maintained good humor most of the way. And his personal agenda, whatever it might have been, was set aside so as to not sully the search for the truth. I mean, I'm guessing there are other folks out there who can serve Denver with the same skills and the same backbone that Nick Mitchell brought to the job. But I'm also sure they are few and far between and the search committee has a rough job ahead to fill some big shoes in a big city in today's America . I can think of no job more important than an independent monitor. And in closing, Madam President, I just want to thank Nick Mitchell for all he has done for for Denver. Happy trails, Mr. Monitor.
A resolution approving a proposed Fourth Amendment between the City and County of Denver and Prospect International Airport Services, Inc. concerning a space lease for wheelchair support to airline partners at Denver International Airport.
Amends an agreement with Prospect International Airport Services, Inc. by updating the space exhibits as three apron level spaces were returned, leaving one space on Concourse A and two spaces on Concourse C for wheelchair support to airline partners at Denver International Airport (202055498). The last regularly scheduled Council meeting within the 30-day review period is on 2-8-21. The Committee approved filing this item at its meeting on 1-6-21.