Packed Fort Worth Meeting Addresses Police, Community Concerns
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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - A packed room greeted police at a community meeting in east Fort Worth Tuesday night.
The gathering was planned months in advance, but drew a crowd wanting to express appreciation and criticism in the wake of the attack on Dallas officers.
"With Fort Worth, I think it's time to get uncomfortable and have these conversations," said Durmerrick Ross.
The 18-year-old African-American remembers speaking to an officer at a recent protest.
"He said, 'I'm sure you've been in a fight before'."
Ross says it's those assumptions that he's somehow more prone to violence that can put him in danger.
"Where me reaching for my wallet would be a life or death situation," said Ross.
Paula Taylor says she complained after a Fort Worth officer pulled over her daughter and ripped the cell phone out of her hands.
"It was frightening," she said.
The encounter that left her with a negative impression of police was never addressed by the department.
"I was told he was having a bad day," she said.
Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald listened as residents vented.
"Many times we hear things we don't want to hear and that's part of being a public servant," he said.
The department revealed some of the changes it made internally, including recruiting a more diverse group of volunteers to participate in role playing exercises during training.
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