Kelly Thomas: Councilwoman calls for police oversight panel

Fullerton Councilwoman Sharon Quirk-Silva said Wednesday she will seek to create a police oversight board after prosecutors charged two city police officers in the fatal beating of a mentally ill homeless man.

In the wake of the beating death in July of Kelly Thomas, Quirk-Silva said, city leaders need to examine and reform Fullerton Police Department policies and procedures “that are lacking.”

The oversight board Quirk-Silver is proposing could be either a citizens advisory group or a panel of people with law enforcement and legal expertise, similar to  the Los Angeles Police Commission, the councilwoman said.

Photos: Kelly Thomas death

“I’m open to researching how things operate in other cities and how it would best work here,” Quirk-Silva said. “I don’t want add another level of government and hinder the police department. But I want it [the panel] to be productive, a board that goes both ways, working for the public and for the police.”

The proposal will be introduced at the next council meeting, she said.