It’s been more than three years since Springfield’s Police Community Review Commission reviewed a complaint, and it won’t review any this year after the PCRC met for the second, and final, time this year on Oct. 14.
The Massey Community Action Network, a group of former Massey Commission members and staff, organized a group of more than two dozen interested citizens to attend the PCRC meeting on Wednesday evening. MCAN is also in the process of launching a fundraising campaign as the group takes steps toward achieving nonprofit status.
“We usually don’t have a crowd like this, so, welcome,” said Marc Bell, chair of the PCRC. Bell is a retired Illinois State Police trooper who is challenging Sangamon County Sheriff Paula Crouch in the upcoming election.
Only two people spoke during the commission’s public comment section: community activist Ken Pacha and Eric Hadley-Ives, president of the Greater Springfield Interfaith Association.
Hadley-Ives mentioned the Massey Commission’s calls to action, specifically the ones that would “require the police department and sheriff’s department to change the way they do things.
“Rather than creating other commissions, it seems to me that this commission could appeal to have its charge changed to expand it(self),” he said. “That’s more work then you have signed up for on this commission – I’m interested in the commission considering how it might expand its call and whether you would want to do that, and whether you would join with the Massey Commission’s recommendations and try to implement them – and maybe this is the body to do it.”
Pacha, who frequently comments at city and county meetings, said the PCRC should have more authority and possibly find more ways to increase awareness of the commission.
“I’ll echo the last gentleman in terms of giving this commission more power,” Pacha said. “I would strongly encourage you, if we’re only having quarterly meetings, to see what can be done in between – and in the meantime, to try and increase the outreach of this commission and change the viewpoint of it as essentially a dead commission.”
The original 2005 ordinance founding the PCRC states that “any person who feels aggrieved by action or inaction of a sworn officer of the Springfield Police Department shall be entitled to file a complaint.” However, all complaints to the PCRC are recorded by the city’s Community Relations office and then forwarded to the SPD deputy chief of professional standards, also known as internal affairs.
Internal affairs will then investigate the complaint and render a final report of findings. Those filing complaints can appeal SPD’s findings, which allows the PCRC to ultimately vote on one of four recommendations:
1. The PCRC concurs with the finding of the chief of police
2. The PCRC does not concur with the finding of the chief of police
3. The case should be referred back to SPD internal affairs for further investigation
4. The case should be continued in another PCRC hearing, due to a lack of four votes for any of the above options
In April, the Springfield City Council amended the length of time someone has to file an appeal with the PCRC – formalizing the commission’s November 2025 decision to extend that timeframe from 15 days to 30 days.
Sunshine Clemons, co-founder of the Springfield chapter of Black Lives Matter, stepped down from the commission last November after five years of service, citing concerns around the PCRC’s ability to conduct reviews of complaints independent of police department influence.
The PCRC failed to meet this year until July, due to a lack of quorum that was addressed in April by the City Council, which approved newest commissioners Kamau Kemayo and William Matson.
Next year’s PCRC meeting dates were approved as:
- Jan. 21, 2027
- April 15, 2027
- July 15, 2027
- Oct. 21, 2027
