There’s a long way to go for trust building of the Minneapolis Police Department.

That was the tone of a recent community meeting held by the organization hired as an independent monitor to oversee sweeping court-mandated police reform.

A 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS camera was in the room as residents got heated with skepticism over whether the organization Effective Law Enforcement for All (ELEFA) would be the accountability mechanism to force lasting change the community has been requesting at least since the murder of George Floyd at the hands of MPD nearly five years ago.

ELEFA is made up of policing experts, including former chiefs who worked in other agencies, like New Orleans and Los Angeles, once under similar court orders to reform.

They’re considered independent monitors, in large part, because they’re not from here, and this past week, they talked to neighbors about their first year as watchdogs of MPD.

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“For the first year, things are proceeding well,” said ELEFA president and founder David Douglass.

“And I think importantly, I think we all agree Minneapolis is actually further ahead in its first year than any other city we’re aware of in consent decrees.”

“I think it’ll be a model for the nation,” said retired LAPD Deputy Chief Bill Murphy who now oversees training with ELEFA.

MPD is currently in the so-called foundation phase, which includes a wholesale re-writing of department policies, including new layers of review required when officers use force, explained police lead for ELEFA Lisa Fink.

Once policies are written, reviewed and approved, then officers go through the training process. Once everyone is trained, that’s when you actually see implementation on the street, Fink continued. From there, ELEFA is expected to continue to assess the effectiveness of those reforms.

“And this is the task at hand with pretty much every requirement of the agreement,” Fink said.

ELEFA speakers said their independence from the city and work in other cities are strengths for seeing it through.

“We have lessons learned and we can actually help them avoid pitfalls,” said independent evaluator Michael Harrison with ELEFA.

Harrison was a police chief in New Orleans and Baltimore, both cities that underwent reform initiatives “just like Minneapolis,” he said.

Several residents in attendance were skeptical of counting on outsiders and former police to hold hometown officers accountable.

“You have no one, no one from Minneapolis on your team. And, you keep bringing people from the outside,” one citizen said during the comment period.

Another citizen said they personally experienced “police brutality at the hands of Minneapolis Police… on a playground when I was 14.”

“We’re expected to believe that you all are going to hold Minneapolis police accountable and oversee this consent decree?” they continued. “I just don’t trust that.”

“I understand,” Douglass repeatedly replied to that and several other comments.

“I’m not asking you to trust, just asking you to watch what we do.”

Ultimately, ELEFA’s role is to watch and report back to the public. They can also report any possible non-compliance to the court, but they don’t have direct authority over MPD.

“So we do have to rely on their good faith willingness to commit, unless we have to go to court,” Douglass said.

“Right now, they have committed to it… They’ve embraced it, and we believe they will do it, and if they change, we’ll tell you.”

“We get the mistrust,” Harrison echoed. “A lot has happened. All we’re asking to do is to allow us to come report to you what it is we find. And we’re not afraid of anyone, we don’t report to anyone. We will give you the God’s honest truth of whether they are doing it or whether they are not.”

It was one of many meetings expected for years to come. The next one has not officially been scheduled as of this report. When it is, ELEFA representatives said it will be posted on their website.

MPD provided a link where residents can provide feedback on ongoing reform efforts.

Comments can also be emailed to policepolicyfeedback@minneapolismn.gov.