Sebelius: Fairness, Cooperation Goal in Law Enforcement
Governor appoints Task Force on Racial Profiling
Governor Kathleen Sebelius today appointed fifteen community and law enforcement members to the Task Force on Racial Profiling.
"Every Kansan has the right to be free from discrimination. Nowhere is this more important than in the application of our laws. Racial profiling, actual or perceived, hurts the relationship between members of law enforcement and the people they serve," Governor Sebelius said.
The Task Force on Racial Profiling will work together to ensure uniform collection of data by Kansas law enforcement officers after a traffic or pedestrian stop. This will help law enforcement and community members determine if profiling is occurring and take steps to correct it. Rev. Allen Smith and former U.S. Attorney Jackie Williams will serve as co-chairs of the task force.
Smith, Salina, is the pastor at St. John's Missionary Baptist Church, since 1999. He was a senior sales representative at FMC Corporation for two years, and he served in several capacities for ten years at Chevron/Valent USA Corporation. He has been a Salina Human Relations Commissioner since 2000, chaplain for the Salina Police Department since 2002, and board president for the Martin Luther King Jr. CACFP program since 2003. Working with the Kansas Highway Patrol, Saline County Sheriff's Office, and Salina Police Department, Smith coordinated "racial profiling" town meetings in Salina during 2003-2004.
Williams, Wichita, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow teaching criminal justice at the School of Community Affairs at Wichita State University. Currently, he is a member of the Wichita Crime Commission and the Kansas Peace Officers Association. He began practicing law in 1971 in the Kansas Attorney General's Office. Between 1978 and 1996, he was an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Kansas. In 1996, he was named United States Attorney for the District of Kansas. During his five-year tenure, he formed or partnered with various coalitions and task forces of federal, state and local agencies and community groups including Violent Crime Task Force.
Dr. Penny Armstrong, Pittsburg, is founding president of Pittsburg Area Community Outreach, a civic alliance organized to anticipate and respond to the needs of the community. She has been an interpreter and advocate for Hispanic immigrants in the judicial system with the City of Pittsburg Police Department. She has also worked in various capacities with the U.S. Department of Justice's Community Relations Service.
Rev. E. Alan Benson, Wichita, is the pastor of mission ministries at Saint Mark United Methodist Church. He is a United States Air Force veteran, who served with the USAF Air Police while stationed as Keesler Air Force Base. Following his military service, Benson founded National Execusource, a national human resources consulting firm.
Janith Davis, Topeka, has served as a deputy disciplinary administrator with the Office of the Supreme Court Disciplinary Administrator, since 2003. Prior to 2003, she was an attorney with the Third Judicial District Public Defender's Office in Topeka for four years.
Darla Farnsworth, Leavenworth, is currently a clerk of the District Court in Leavenworth. She began working for the 30th Judicial District in 1983 before her promotion to chief clerk in 1996. Farnsworth became clerk of the District Court in Leavenworth in 1999.
Sheriff Leroy Green, Jr., Kansas City, was elected sheriff of Wyandotte County in 2001. He began working in the Wyandotte County Sheriff's Department in 1978 as a detention deputy in the jail. In 1982, he was given command of the Wyandotte County Tag Enforcement Unit. He served as a sergeant and undersheriff before being appointed sheriff in 1999. Sheriff Green was the first African-American sheriff in the State of Kansas.
Angelica Hahn, Garden City, is the marketing and public relations director for the Garden City Area Chamber of Commerce, a position she has held since 2003. She is an active member of the Chamber's Multicultural Task Force. Hahn, who became a nationalized citizen of the United States in 2004, has used her language skills to help others in the community, including translating Chamber documents and creating a Spanish link on the Chamber's Web site.
Clyde Howard, Manhattan, has thirty years of experience in equal opportunity compliance and affirmative action. Since 1994, he has been the director of the Office of Affirmative Action at Kansas State University. Between 1988 and 1994, he was director of the State Equal Employment Opportunity Office. He serves on the Student Discrimination Review Committee and the President's Commission on Multicultural Affairs at KSU.
Herman Jones, Topeka, has over 25 years working in law enforcement. Currently, he is the director of administration at the Kansas Highway Patrol. For ten years, he was a trooper with the patrol in Wichita before leaving in 1992. Between 1992 and 2000, Jones was an instructor of police at the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center.
Kevin Myles, Wichita, has spent much of the last twenty years working and volunteering in organizations that serve the African-American community including the Indigo Cultural Awareness Association, the City of Wichita's "Building Bridges" Initiative, and the City of Wichita's Diversity/Supplier Task Force. He is president of the Wichita Branch of the NAACP and the vice-president of the Kansas State Conference of the NAACP Branches.
Michael A. Padilla, Topeka, has over 32 years of practical police experience, serving in every division of the Topeka Police Department. Currently, he holds the rank of major and is the assistant division commander of the Administration Division. He is a board member and co-founder of the Mayor's Council on Diversity, president of Safe Streets Advisory Council, and member of the Latino Peace Office Association.
Sheriff Gary Steed, Wichita, is the Sedgwick County Sheriff, after successfully being elected in 2000. He has spent over thirty years in the Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office in various capacities. He was appointed the first commander of the Wichita-Sedgwick County Law Enforcement Training Center. In addition, Sheriff Steed was commander of the Sheriff's Transition and Expansion Team which involved the design and planning of the addition to the Sedgwick County Detention Facility.
James Terrones, Olathe, is the deputy director of the Johnson County Department of Corrections Juvenile Detention Center for Programs. He has spent 26 years in the field of Correction including as a correctional officer, parole coordinator, and director of parole policy. Terrones serves as president of the Kansas Correctional Association.
Mike Watson, Manhattan, became the director of the Riley County Police Department in 2000. Prior to this position, he served for 25 years on the Wichita Police Department, including as chief of police. He is a member of the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police, Kansas Sheriff's Association, and Kansas Peace Officers Association. He is the chairman of the Legislative Committee for the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police.
This task force was created by SB 77, which was signed into law by Governor Sebelius in the spring of 2005.
http://www.ksgovernor.org/news/docs/news_rel100505a.html