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Tulsa Police Chief, We the People organizer discuss potential policy changes after Crutcher death

TPD chief, We the People talk policy changes
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TULSA - Representatives with the local civil rights group We the People-Oklahoma met with Tulsa Police Chief Chuck Jordan Wednesday afternoon.

They met behind closed doors at police headquarters downtown for about an hour.

Afterward both sides said they were happy with the meeting and that it was productive. They spoke about polices, potential policy changes and how the Terence Crutcher shooting investigation was going so far. 

"It's good when you get to talk to somebody one-on-one and you're not judging them by what they say on television only," Jordan said.

Jordan says his meeting with Marq Lewis and two other We the People members was a chance to clear the air-- during what has been a difficult week for Jordan and other police officers.

Lewis says his private chat with the chief was productive.

"He heard our voices, our concerns there's some things that we discussed that we definitely he doesn't want to get out but I would definitely say he is trying," Lewis said.

Trying to be transparent, Lewis says, about the investigation and what the department plans to do to improve community relations, especially among Tulsa's minorities.

"This is just too important for our community we've got to build trust with got to build relationships and we intend to do that," Jordan said.

Jordan says plans are already in motion to improve relations, including the creation of a citizen advisory board.

Lewis and his group want Tulsa to return to community policing, where officers assigned to an area have time to build relationships.

Jordan says they're working toward that goal.

"Community policing is when we're out here helping the community resolve problems with crime and they're telling us they're helping us hand-in-hand what we can do to resolve their crime," Jordan said.

Jordan also thanking Tulsa for keeping protests peaceful, a trend he hopes will continue.

"I think it's a very valid form of expressing your first amendment rights and our job is to protect them and allow them to express their rights I'm just gonna give the credit to our community," Jordan said.

They also talked about policy changes. Including requiring any officer involved in a shooting to submit to a blood test to check if they were under the influence of drugs.

Marq Lewis with We the People said he plans to meet with the Tulsa County District Attorney next. But a time has not been set for that meeting.

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