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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Denver City Council Health and Safety Committee Briefing on Police/Sheriff Training and PACE Operations – Jan 28, 2026

Council Committees — Wednesday, January 28, 2026

BodyDenver, Colorado

SessionCouncil Committees

DateWednesday, January 28, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:31:13

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:00

Welcome back to this weekly meeting of the Health and Safety Committee with Denver City Council.

0:09

Coverage of the Health and Safety Committee starts now.

0:18

Welcome to the January 21st Health and Safety Committee meeting.

0:21

My name is Darrell Watson.

0:22

I'm honored to serve all of the residents of the 5th District 9, and I'm honored to be the chair of this Health and Safety Committee.

0:28

We have two briefings this morning, but before we roll into the briefings, why don't we turn it over to Councilmembers for introductions.

0:34

We'll start to the right.

0:36

Good morning, Amanda Sawyer, District 5.

0:38

Kevin Flynn, Southwest Denver, District 2.

0:41

Laura Alvitres, Lucky District 7.

0:43

Good morning, Paul Cashman, Southwest Denver, District 6.

0:47

Jamie Torres, West Denver, District 3.

0:48

It's a quick check to see if we have anyone virtual.

0:52

Yes.

0:55

District 4.

0:56

Thank you, Council President Pro Tem.

0:58

our two briefings this morning. We'll kick off with the Department of Safety, Continuing

1:02

Education. We have some good folks from the Sheriff's Department

1:06

and Denver Police. We'll turn it over to you to introduce yourselves. You each have

1:10

10 minutes each, and then we'll open it up for questions from City Council. We'll turn

1:14

it over to you to do your introductions and anyone in the audience that's going to be

1:18

providing you support, if you don't mind, introduce them as well. I'm Sergeant Mike Billings

1:22

with the Denver Sheriff's Department of Training. I'm Tim Mills. I'm the curriculum developer

1:26

for the Denver Service Department.

1:28

And then our captain over there, Captain Sims, is our support.

1:32

Hello, Rhonda Piasena,

1:34

Sound Police Department with the Professional Development Unit.

1:37

Lieutenant Jesse Campion, Director of Training and Overseas Police Academy

1:40

and Training Assembly.

1:42

And with us today is Commander Steve Addison.

1:46

And Council Member Parity just got in on time,

1:49

and so thank you so much.

1:50

Council Member Parity serves the entire city and city.

1:53

I turn it over to you all for your presentation.

1:57

Okay.

1:58

Well, thank you, council members for having us here today.

2:04

I'm providing the opportunity to really give you an idea of our training that we're proud

2:08

of that both agencies provide to our staff and really in turn serving the community with

2:17

our officers and with the skills that they deploy every day.

2:21

So today we're going to talk about a few things. We're going to start off with DPD, the Peace Officer Standards and Training for Policy Requirements.

2:29

DSC is going to talk about their CALEA and accreditation.

2:32

Then we're going to go into logistics, some challenges that we have, as well as highlights.

2:37

But again, we're proud of the things that we have put forth and initiatives we're continuing to work on.

2:42

So our post-train requirements, these are mandated by post through the state and are the minimum that we have to meet to stay in compliance with state law as well as our accreditation.

3:00

So they provide these trainings, these standards statewide, and they are for police officers or recruits that have to be trained and meet those certifications.

3:11

Right now, we have 24 hours that are required by post, 12 of which are in what we call perishable skills.

3:20

So that's going to be arrest control, defensive emergency driving, and firearms training.

3:25

So when you look at that, 12 hours really doesn't seem that much.

3:29

But when you look at trying to train 1,462 officers, that becomes a significant lift.

3:35

Because we have to do this while, you know, keep in mind our service to the community, making sure our officers are there and available to answer calls for service.

3:42

The staffing, trying to make sure that we equate this throughout the year and aren't really working blind, right?

3:50

Denver is a very busy city.

3:52

We have different demands, different things that come into the city that we also have to account for and plan for.

3:58

So 1,462 is what we certified last year.

4:01

And again, that is a pretty significant lift and coordination effort.

4:04

I think they do a great job. The academy does a great job. The CP team does a great job.

4:09

And the officers are eager for that training. That is a minimum, but they are looking to better themselves, to be better officers for the community.

4:19

In addition to that, POST requires that every five years we have training and proper holds and restraint, de-escalation, community policing, anti-bias, persons with disabilities, and missing indigenous relatives.

4:32

So that's a rotating training that we do and it keeps things fresh.

4:37

They introduce new information for officers.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Public Safety█████████████████████████████████████████████57%

Mental Health Awareness█████████11%

Community Engagement██████7%

Workforce Development████5%

Homelessness████5%

Personnel Matters███4%

Youth Programs███4%

Transportation Safety███4%

Procedural██2%

Summary of Proceedings

Denver City Council Health and Safety Committee Briefing on Police/Sheriff Training and PACE Operations – Jan 28, 2026

The Health and Safety Committee, chaired by Councilmember Darrell Watson, met on January 28, 2026, to receive two briefings: one from the Denver Police Department (DPD) and Denver Sheriff's Department (DSD) on continuing education and training, and another from the Prosecution and Code Enforcement (PACE) section of the City Attorney's Office on its operations, caseload, and victim services. Councilmembers asked questions and requested follow-up information.

Briefing 1: Department of Safety Continuing Education

DPD and DSD presented on training requirements. DPD adheres to POST mandates (24 hours minimum annually, 12 in perishable skills like arrest control, driving, firearms) and exceeds them with programs like ABLE (active bystandership), crisis intervention, and annual supervisor training. DSD follows Triple Crown Accreditation (ACA, NCCHC, CALEA) requiring 40 hours per year. In 2025, DPD trained 1,462 officers. DSD runs 18–25 training sessions per quarter.
Challenges include limited facilities: DSD has two padded cells, aging mats, and three classrooms; DPD and DSD share a 15-stall range, creating scheduling bottlenecks. Both agencies schedule training a year ahead to minimize operational impact, but overtime and staff exhaustion are concerns.
Councilmember Torres asked how policy changes (e.g., from settlements or state law) are incorporated into training. DPD uses quarterly trends meetings with the independent monitor and can issue training bulletins within weeks. Councilmember Flynn raised concerns about staffing levels in the jail and whether training addresses low-staff situations. DSD noted it does not currently have specific training for that but will follow up. Councilmember Hinds requested sample training transcripts for officers at different experience levels. Councilmember Alvitres asked about mental health support (wellness team, peer support, Nicoletti partnership), online vs. in-person training, firearm training and ammunition costs (ammunition is budget-provided, not paid by officers), and autism training (to be provided offline).

Briefing 2: PACE Presentation

Director Marlee Bordowski and team presented on PACE's charter functions: prosecuting municipal violations, licensing support, public nuisance abatement (PNAU), mental health commitments, ERPO (red flag) cases, and community partnerships. Key 2025 statistics: over 14,300 municipal case filings (up 2% from 2024), domestic violence cases at 2,529 (19% increase, a 10-year high), juvenile cases down 6% (attributed to alternative citation programs), 48 ERPO filings (statewide high), 1,300 mental health intervention cases, and 33 residences testing positive for meth contamination via DMAP partnership.
Linda Laughlin-Pettit discussed victim advocacy, including safety planning, protection orders, and collaboration with the DA's office for up-filing serious cases. She shared examples of severe DV cases (strangulation, threats). Reggie Newbine highlighted the juvenile docket, where most cases are assault or theft, and diversion is offered in about 90% of cases, with a high acceptance rate.
Councilmember Sawyer praised PACE's work on vacant building enforcement and nuisance abatement for street racing (e.g., crushing motorcycles involved in 'Kill the Streets'). Councilmember Parady expressed discomfort with the use of victim photos and quotes in slides, asking to remove case numbers (legal counsel to advise) and requested data on the percentage of PACE defendants experiencing homelessness (previously estimated at 54% in 2023, but PACE does not currently track that). Councilmember Alvitres asked about victim access to services (e.g., online protection orders) and reasons for the domestic violence increase (PACE noted ongoing collaborative efforts). Councilmember Flynn asked about meth contamination follow-up for displaced residents (DDPHE working on landlord requirements) and interagency collaboration challenges.

Key Outcomes

No formal votes were taken. The committee received the briefings for informational purposes.
Follow-up items requested: Councilmember Parady requested data on homelessness among defendants and removal of case numbers from slides (pending legal review). Councilmember Flynn asked for details on meth abatement follow-up and interagency coordination. Councilmember Torres asked for information on training protocols for low-staffed jail situations. Councilmember Hinds requested sample training transcripts. DPD, DSD, and PACE committed to providing answers.

Meeting Transcript

Welcome back to this weekly meeting of the Health and Safety Committee with Denver City Council. Coverage of the Health and Safety Committee starts now. Welcome to the January 21st Health and Safety Committee meeting. My name is Darrell Watson. I'm honored to serve all of the residents of the 5th District 9, and I'm honored to be the chair of this Health and Safety Committee. We have two briefings this morning, but before we roll into the briefings, why don't we turn it over to Councilmembers for introductions. We'll start to the right. Good morning, Amanda Sawyer, District 5. Kevin Flynn, Southwest Denver, District 2. Laura Alvitres, Lucky District 7. Good morning, Paul Cashman, Southwest Denver, District 6. Jamie Torres, West Denver, District 3. It's a quick check to see if we have anyone virtual. Yes. District 4. Thank you, Council President Pro Tem. our two briefings this morning. We'll kick off with the Department of Safety, Continuing Education. We have some good folks from the Sheriff's Department and Denver Police. We'll turn it over to you to introduce yourselves. You each have 10 minutes each, and then we'll open it up for questions from City Council. We'll turn it over to you to do your introductions and anyone in the audience that's going to be providing you support, if you don't mind, introduce them as well. I'm Sergeant Mike Billings with the Denver Sheriff's Department of Training. I'm Tim Mills. I'm the curriculum developer for the Denver Service Department. And then our captain over there, Captain Sims, is our support. Hello, Rhonda Piasena, Sound Police Department with the Professional Development Unit. Lieutenant Jesse Campion, Director of Training and Overseas Police Academy and Training Assembly. And with us today is Commander Steve Addison. And Council Member Parity just got in on time, and so thank you so much. Council Member Parity serves the entire city and city. I turn it over to you all for your presentation. Okay. Well, thank you, council members for having us here today. I'm providing the opportunity to really give you an idea of our training that we're proud of that both agencies provide to our staff and really in turn serving the community with our officers and with the skills that they deploy every day. So today we're going to talk about a few things. We're going to start off with DPD, the Peace Officer Standards and Training for Policy Requirements. DSC is going to talk about their CALEA and accreditation. Then we're going to go into logistics, some challenges that we have, as well as highlights. But again, we're proud of the things that we have put forth and initiatives we're continuing to work on. So our post-train requirements, these are mandated by post through the state and are the minimum that we have to meet to stay in compliance with state law as well as our accreditation. So they provide these trainings, these standards statewide, and they are for police officers or recruits that have to be trained and meet those certifications. Right now, we have 24 hours that are required by post, 12 of which are in what we call perishable skills. So that's going to be arrest control, defensive emergency driving, and firearms training. So when you look at that, 12 hours really doesn't seem that much. But when you look at trying to train 1,462 officers, that becomes a significant lift. Because we have to do this while, you know, keep in mind our service to the community, making sure our officers are there and available to answer calls for service.

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