BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Buffalo Common Council is forming a new Community Police Advisory Committee after dissolving the Police Advisory Board earlier this month.
Some members of the old committee, who did not want it to be dissolved, held a press conference Tuesday afternoon to criticize some of the Buffalo Police Department's policies.
Robert Thomas' brother, Dominique Thomas, is the man police say is shown on police body camera footage going after officers with a knife last week on Hertel Avenue before officers shot him. Robert Thomas spoke at the press conference.
"It's a tough situation because I never, ever thought that myself, my brother, or anybody in my family would be going through something like this. You know? It hurt. I couldn't watch the video. I couldn't watch the video twice," said Robert Thomas.
Thomas joined two members of the now-dissolved Buffalo Police Advisory Board as they criticized how Buffalo Police respond to calls involving people with mental health issues.
"Do we have a Behavioral Health Team in place to save lives or just for an appearance? The hours have been in discussions for over two years, and in the meantime, people like Mr. Thomas are getting shot in the streets," said Dominique Calhoun, who was on the Buffalo Police Advisory Board.
Tuesday, the Erie County District Attorney said the call involving Thomas was not a mental health call.
And, a Buffalo Police spokesperson told 2 On Your Side the Behavioral Health Team works from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. when demand is the highest and can be called into work outside of those hours. He also said the department is applying for grants to expand the team and its hours.
Meanwhile, Tuesday, the Buffalo Common Council voted to form a new group, the Community Police Advisory Committee, to work with police as they come up with new policies.
"I want to thank all of the previous board members for their hard work that they've done in providing ideas that have been part of the dialogue that we've had here on the Common Council and many of the changes and reforms that have been implemented by the Common Council and by the Buffalo Police Department," said Buffalo Common Councilmember David Rivera.
Qualifications to apply for a spot on the new committee include living in Buffalo and being at least 18. The deadline to apply is April 13, 2022.