Brian Butcher, 7th Ward
[email protected]
Q1. There have been proposals put forward to create a Civilian Review Board for the Morgantown City Police. Please share your thoughts on this ordinance, or a civilian police review board in Morgantown.
I believe that current and future city council should do everything they can to support the implementation of this board. I believe that it is politically advantageous for opponents of this board to bring forth a lawsuit against it so, no matter what we do with regards to this board the city will likely face a lawsuit. For that reason we must make sure that board is effective and accomplishes the stated goal of increasing transparency and accountability between the police and citizens, we should not remove all investigative powers that board should have to remain effective because we are fearful of a lawsuit as that will probably be the inevitable result of this board passing no matter what. Citizens review boards allow a space for those most disenfranchised to voice their concerns and help build trust between our public employees and the tax payers that fund them.
Q2. In the past year, the city has been engaged in conversations about housing insecurity and houselessness, especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. How would you like to see the city address houselessness in Morgantown?
The city must invest in actual housing first methods of addressing houslesness. Programs that receive funding from the city should take housing first seriously as their means of addressing houselessness and as a city we need to provide organizations with the resources to do so. We need to be clear with these organizations about what we mean when we say housing first. Housing first means we give someone experiencing houselessness a house first, not contingent upon a person becoming sober or going through a therapy course first. Data has consistently proven out (https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/full/10.2105/AJPH.2013.301628) that housing first is the single most effective way affording people with housing stability, retaining people with substance use disorders in recovery (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10488-011-0333-4), and increased housing stability amongst those who are homeless and have mental illness (https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/full/10.2105/AJPH.94.4.651).
Q3. People experiencing houselessness sometimes set up encampments on personal or public property. These can provide a community and stability but have also created concerns about safety and sanitation. How do you think Morgantown should approach encampments like these?
Encampments can be a source of autonomy for the dispossessed, however they are also symptoms of bad policy decisions with regards to houselessness. We have more than enough empty housing in this country to put a roof over the head of every single person living in this country without a home. If encampments are created in response to the inability for government to provide its citizens with housing, then we must do everything in our power to treat those who have found themselves in these situations with respect and dignity. To help them find alternatives if they so choose and to support them where they are with measures to help clean their living quarters and afford them safety measures that protect their health both mental and physical.
Q4. The Center for Disease Control advocates for needs-based syringe programs (providing access to the number of syringes needed “to ensure that a new, sterile syringe is available for each injection” with no restrictions including returning used syringes) as the best practice to reduce new HIV and viral hepatitis infections. These evidence-based programs that follow suggested best practices have been controversial in West Virginia and under attack at both the state and local level. If elected to city council how would you view syringe distribution programs?
Safe needle exchanges have proven to be effective means not only for providing positive public health outcomes, but also for getting people with substance use disorder into recovery programs. I would be a strong advocate for needle exchanges if elected to city council and ensure that health right receives the funding they need to perform this important service.
Q5. In 2017, Morgantown passed a Non-Discrimination Ordinance to include protections “against discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on account of actual or perceived race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, familial status, or veteran status.” Do you support that NDO? Why or why not?
I do support the non-discrimination ordinance because no persons should be denied their human rights based on their identity. Not only does title VII of the Civil Rights act afford this protection but also as a matter of moral fortitude, and creating a safe and inclusive environment for the disenfranchised populations of our city, this policy must be upheld and strengthened through any means necessary such as the CROWN ordinance.
Q6. In 2020, the Morgantown City Council passed a cannabis decriminalization ordinance, lowering the misdemeanor crime of possession of less than 15 grams in city limits to a $15 fine and no jail time. What are your views on cannabis and decriminalization of drugs for personal use?
Cannabis is a largely harmless drug especially in comparison to alcohol. I am in favor of cannabis decriminalization as well as cannabis legalization for recreational use. Drug decriminalization has shown to have generally positive effects and in the 21 European countries in which it has been implemented they have not seen a significant increase in drug use. The war on drugs has proven to be completely ineffective. Our approach to drug addiction as a society must shift from that of punitive measures to that of a treatment approach.
Q7. This year, a resolution was passed in support of the Crown Act and council members have spoken about their commitment to put this into law in the form of a municipal ordinance. Will you support this effort to prevent discrimination on the basis of traits commonly associated with race like hair texture and protective hair styles? Why or why not?
I will continue to support the CROWN ordinance and make sure that it is protected should I be elected to city council. Any discrimination levied against human beings is an injustice that must be fought against. Discrimination on the basis of traits commonly associated with race has been a grave injustice that people of color have dealt with for hundreds of years, we must end this systemic discrimination and recognize it's effects on our minority populations.
Q8. Many WV municipalities have passed ordinances allowing cities to force abatement measures on ‘nuisance properties’ where there are multiple instances of suspected crimes. Proponents say this can help crack down on drug activity and predatory landlords. Opponents say this can create due process concerns and discourage calls to the police when help is needed. What is your opinion of these ‘drug house’ ordinances?
Nuisance property ordinances do not create the stated intended effect sought by their implementation. If you are trying to stop the activity of a predatory landlord then you should be educating tenants about their rights, helping them form rent unions, and harshly punishing tenant abuse from landlords in the courts and through your fines levied in code enforcement and court fees. If you are trying to stop drug activity, well I have already outlined how treatment is the only proven effective method to stop drug activity as you can never tamp down supply. Victims of domestic violence, people of color and those who are economically disenfranchised are already fearful of calling the police, with these ordinances we then place an additional barrier between them and seeking help for dangerous situations that they might find themselves in. This leads to MORE unsafe neighborhoods, as well as systemic discrimination through an externality, and a skirt around the due process of the law.