OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Tuscaloosa Public Safety Committee Meeting - August 25, 2026

City Council Meetings — Tuesday, August 25, 2026
BodyTuscaloosa, Alabama
SessionCity Council Meetings
DateTuesday, August 25, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 14:50

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

All in favor, say aye.

0:02

All right, the minutes from the previous minute uh meeting have been approved into our new business.

0:08

We have uh chief agents an update with Tuscaloosa Police Department.

0:13

Yes.

0:14

Okay.

0:26

Good afternoon.

0:27

Good afternoon.

0:28

Uh this is one of the cars that y'all may have seen on social media or it's been going around, but we there's another slide about it.

0:35

But we we have a new basically a PAL new PAL vehicle.

0:40

These are our big five stats year to date.

0:42

Right now, crimes down by double digits in all the five major categories.

0:50

The cadet program is doing really well.

0:53

I've been very excited about this.

0:55

We had our sixth start.

0:57

Um they're learning various stuff today.

0:59

I actually stopped in on them this morning.

1:01

They were learning about Title 32 uh motor vehicle laws.

1:06

Uh but we're working them out.

1:07

They're doing pretty much everything we do with a recruit officer.

1:11

I'm really excited when they turn 21 and we can slide them into these open vacancies.

1:16

So I like that.

1:16

It seems to be doing well.

1:19

Uh this is what you guys approved a while back.

1:21

It's the shoreline erosion that Mike's group um uh brought brought before you and it it fixed up the erosion down at the Lakes Division.

1:31

This is something I'm really proud of.

1:33

Officer Gant, um he was recognized by the mayor during Tears for Peers for saving the life of an infant child.

1:40

He saw uh a lady had pulled off the road or actually stopped in the roadway and he's he thought something was going on, swung around on his motorcycle, and uh got out, realized that the child was not breathing.

1:53

He did back thrust and then perform CPR on the child, and uh the infant it's an infant.

1:59

Uh basically brought it back to life by um uh started breathing again.

2:03

So we're really proud of that.

2:06

Uh here's the new vehicle.

2:08

We're really excited about it going to the different uh uh community events that we're gonna do.

2:16

Uh we did have a press conference on it.

2:18

It was a what's the pattern?

2:20

Is that spider webs?

2:24

Like lightning and various stuff.

2:26

I'm sure you should definitely do that on your news.

2:36

Uh but it was it was a seized Dodge Charger, it was a stolen vehicle.

2:41

Um like I said it's gonna go to community events.

2:44

Had several promotions.

2:45

Y'all met Captain Burns today if you didn't already know him, but several promotions since July.

2:51

Made some actually last week.

2:53

Um we're really thankful for.

2:57

We have our major crimes response unit.

2:59

This was uh repurposed from the fire department rescue truck uh that we used now for our evidence collection, so we're excited about it.

3:09

Shared responsibility, yeah.

3:11

Yes, sir.

3:12

Uh and then this is the the outdoor concrete pad that you guys approved.

3:17

Uh it was finished this last week, and they started on the motor shed that we've been trying to get worked on this week.

3:24

And I hope to have pictures of it uh next next time I'm before you.

3:28

And then uh Lily talked about the the JAG award award grant that we've we received, so we're uh the SWAT team's gonna be able to have night vision.

3:36

So and that's that's all I have moving forward.

3:41

Do you guys have any questions?

3:43

Yes.

3:43

Yes, ma'am.

3:44

So on our cadet program, this is six paid positions that we have.

3:49

Yes, ma'am.

3:49

Six paid positions, and then they'll um so this is kind of like them going through the normal training that our officers will go through.

3:57

They are so we're honestly we're kind of treating them like recruits.

4:01

Um, you know, I'm really excited about this because like I said, I met with them today.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety█████████████████████████████████████████████69%
Education Funding████████13%
Public Works███████10%
Alcohol Licenses█████8%
Summary of Proceedings

Tuscaloosa Public Safety Committee Meeting - August 25, 2026

The Tuscaloosa Public Safety Committee met on August 25, 2026, to receive updates from the Tuscaloosa Police Department (TPD), discuss several resolutions, and take action on items including a student internship agreement, an FBI memorandum of understanding (MOU), and a temporary expansion of downtown entertainment district hours.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of previous meeting minutes: The committee approved the minutes from the prior meeting unanimously.

Discussion Items

  • TPD Chief's Update: Chief provided an overview of recent departmental activities:
    • Crime statistics: Year-to-date, crimes are down by double digits in all five major categories.
    • New PAL vehicle: A seized Dodge Charger, repurposed for community events.
    • Shoreline erosion repair at the Lakes Division, previously approved by the committee, has been completed.
    • Officer Gant recognized for performing CPR and saving an infant's life.
    • Promotions: Several since July, including Captain Burns.
    • Major Crimes Response Unit: Repurposed from a fire department rescue truck for evidence collection.
    • Outdoor concrete pad completed; motor shed construction has started.
    • SWAT team received JAG award grant for night vision equipment.
  • Cadet Program Discussion:
    • The cadet program has six paid positions for individuals aged 18 to 21; upon turning 21, cadets can transition to recruit officer positions.
    • Chief reported that the current six cadets are performing very well, and he plans to request additional slots next year.
    • TPD currently has 22 sworn officer vacancies.
    • Despite 90 applicants for officer positions, only 12-15 showed up for testing. The department conducts monthly testing to streamline hiring.
    • Councilmembers expressed interest in meeting the cadets and requested a future presentation.
  • Resolution: Agreement with University of Alabama for Student Internship Program with BIT:
    • Lieutenant Parker explained that the Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT) encompasses crisis intervention, mental health officers, school resource officers, social workers, and the Central Alabama Threat Team.
    • The internship would allow a student to gain college credit while learning under BIT staff.
    • Motion passed unanimously.
  • Resolution: MOU with FBI for Central Alabama Threat Team:
    • The MOU formalizes the partnership for the threat team, which is already hosted at the TPD facility.
    • A councilmember praised the collaboration as impressive for community safety.
    • Motion passed unanimously.
  • Item Tabling: Mr. Holmes requested to table an item due to internal matters needing attention. The committee approved the motion to table.
  • Resolution: Temporary Expansion of Downtown Entertainment District Hours:
    • Dr. Day requested expanded hours from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, October 3, 2026, for Octoberfest sponsored by Visit Tuscaloosa at Government Plaza.
    • The standard hours are Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
    • Similar approvals were granted in previous years.
    • Motion passed unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved previous meeting minutes.
  • Approved resolution for student internship agreement with University of Alabama (unanimous).
  • Approved resolution for FBI MOU regarding Central Alabama Threat Team (unanimous).
  • Tabled an unspecified item pending further internal work (unanimous).
  • Approved temporary expansion of downtown entertainment district hours for October 3, 2026 (unanimous).

Meeting Transcript

All in favor, say aye. All right, the minutes from the previous minute uh meeting have been approved into our new business. We have uh chief agents an update with Tuscaloosa Police Department. Yes. Okay. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. Uh this is one of the cars that y'all may have seen on social media or it's been going around, but we there's another slide about it. But we we have a new basically a PAL new PAL vehicle. These are our big five stats year to date. Right now, crimes down by double digits in all the five major categories. The cadet program is doing really well. I've been very excited about this. We had our sixth start. Um they're learning various stuff today. I actually stopped in on them this morning. They were learning about Title 32 uh motor vehicle laws. Uh but we're working them out. They're doing pretty much everything we do with a recruit officer. I'm really excited when they turn 21 and we can slide them into these open vacancies. So I like that. It seems to be doing well. Uh this is what you guys approved a while back. It's the shoreline erosion that Mike's group um uh brought brought before you and it it fixed up the erosion down at the Lakes Division. This is something I'm really proud of. Officer Gant, um he was recognized by the mayor during Tears for Peers for saving the life of an infant child. He saw uh a lady had pulled off the road or actually stopped in the roadway and he's he thought something was going on, swung around on his motorcycle, and uh got out, realized that the child was not breathing. He did back thrust and then perform CPR on the child, and uh the infant it's an infant. Uh basically brought it back to life by um uh started breathing again. So we're really proud of that. Uh here's the new vehicle. We're really excited about it going to the different uh uh community events that we're gonna do. Uh we did have a press conference on it. It was a what's the pattern? Is that spider webs? Like lightning and various stuff. I'm sure you should definitely do that on your news. Uh but it was it was a seized Dodge Charger, it was a stolen vehicle. Um like I said it's gonna go to community events. Had several promotions. Y'all met Captain Burns today if you didn't already know him, but several promotions since July. Made some actually last week. Um we're really thankful for. We have our major crimes response unit. This was uh repurposed from the fire department rescue truck uh that we used now for our evidence collection, so we're excited about it. Shared responsibility, yeah. Yes, sir. Uh and then this is the the outdoor concrete pad that you guys approved. Uh it was finished this last week, and they started on the motor shed that we've been trying to get worked on this week. And I hope to have pictures of it uh next next time I'm before you.

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