The mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts has vetoed a city council-approved ordinance to put a civilian commission in charge of the police department.
In his veto message, Mayor Domenic Sarno, said the police department should be run by professionals and “not politicized.” He accused the council, which approved the ordinance by a 10-2 vote of illegally circumventing the authority of the mayor.
City Council President Mike Fenton plans an override vote on Dec. 19.
"We are always open to compromise," Fenton said after the council voted Monday to send the proposed ordinance to the mayor's desk. " We are hoping we can reach some kind of agreement with the mayor, but short of that this is likely to go to litigation."
Fenton said the police department needs to be more accountable to the public following recent reports about the handling of police misconduct cases.
Language in the ordinance would delay its implementation until Police Commissioner John Barbieri's current five-year employment contract with the city expires in 2019.
