JimmyCsays: At the juncture of journalism and daily life in KC

It was a tumultuous day at City Hall Thursday, with Mayor Quinton Lucas declaring war on the Police Department (finally) and pulling off one of the most brazen sneak attacks to ever occur at 12th and Oak.

It was a big victory for City Council members — and residents, by extension — who have chafed under state rule of the Police Department. But the victory could be short lived because the Missouri General Assembly relishes rubbing the city’s nose in the dirt and can dictate what percentage of the city’s operating budget must go toward police operations.

More about that in a minute, but there was another significant facet of yesterday’s upheaval:

The developments signaled the most significant breach ever between the Northland, which has long tilted Republican and conservative, and the southern part of the city, which is decidedly Democratic and liberal.

The backdrop for yesterday’s events was that for months civil rights groups and others had persistently criticized Lucas for failing to challenge Police Chief Rick Smith and the state-dominated Board of Police Commissioners.

Gradually, though, Lucas grew frustrated with the police board’s stonewalling and refusal to consider even relatively minor changes he requested.

By Thursday he’d had enough, and he had organized a raiding party.

First, Lucas held a press conference announcing the introduction of two ordinances that would give City Manager Brial Platt the authority to negotiate with the police board how the department would spend about $42.3 million — more than 15 percent — of the police department’s $239 million budget.

The city, presumably, would push for much of that $42 million to go toward social services and other alternative approaches to conventional law enforcement. At the press conference, Lucas said the ordinances would go to a council committee for consideration.

Instead, in a breathtaking, rope-a-dope move, Lucas went to that afternoon’s council legislative meeting and asked for immediate approval. Being a good politician, he had the votes lined up, and both measures sailed through on 9-4 votes.

The four dissenting votes is where the north-south breach enters the picture.

Lucas’ press conference was met with wails of protest from the four Northland council members: Teresa Loar and Dan Fowler, who live in the 2nd District, and Heather Hall and Kevin O’Neill, who live in the 1st District.

At a press conference of their own, they asserted the measures were not well thought out and would harm the Police Department. Making an argument that will echo with their constituents, they said the ordinances masqueraded as a police-funding cut that would result in fewer police officers patrolling the streets.

“This is absolutely the worst piece of legislation I’ve seen ever since I’ve been here at City Hall,” Loar said.

All the screeching and hair pulling in the world wasn’t going to derail the freight train that Lucas was engineering, however. It was in-your-face all the way, with the nine council members from south of the river lining up behind the ordinances. For the record, those joining Lucas in the pile-on were were Brandon Ellington and Melissa Robinson from the 3rd District; Katheryn Shields and Eric Bunch from the 4th District; Lee Barnes Jr. and Ryana Parks-Shaw from the 5th District; and Andrea Bough and Kevin McManus from the 6th District.

In the end, it was a very satisfying day for residents who favor police reform, but, as I said above, the City Council might hold the hill only temporarily.

Kansas City is one of just a few big cities where state government, not city government, controls the police department. It’s been that way for a long time and isn’t likely to change anytime soon.

The governor appoints four of five members of the police board, with the mayor being the fifth member. The appointed members serving now were all appointed by Republican governors — Eric Greitens or Mike Parson — and they are a veritable rubber stamp for Police Chief Rick Smith, who, if he was subject to City Council approval, would have been fired months ago.

In addition, a state law says the city must spend at least 20 percent of its general fund on police operations. The city has been exceeding that, but the significance of the $42.3 million figure is that it represents the most the city can reduce the police budget and still comply with the 20 percent requirement.

…What might happen, and relatively soon, is the General Assembly could raise that percentage to whatever it wanted, say 25 percent or even 30 percent. The legislature adjourned last Friday but will be coming back into special session later this year, and I fully expect the Republican majorities in the House and Senate to take the whip to what they view as their rebellious subjects in Kansas City.

There are other ways the General Assembly could counterattack, and don’t be surprised if the guy leading the spanking mission turns out to be Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, a Parkville Republican.

In the just-expired session, Luetkemeyer sponsored the bill that lifted the longstanding city residency requirement for Kansas City officers. And like the Northland council members, he wasn’t at all happy yesterday about the prospect of fewer officers on Kansas City streets.

He told The Star, “I think it’s the worst thing the city could do at a time when we have record high crime.”

Yes, the nine council members won yesterday, and Lucas had one of his best days so far in office. But they’d better be ready, in the months ahead, for a barrage of legislative rockets that, for noise and upheaval, could rival the Israelis’ shelling of Gaza.