\u201cThis is about strengthening trust and accountability within the Fort Worth Police Department and what we\u2019re currently doing,\u201d Garc\u00eda told City Council\u2019s public safety committee Dec. 2. \u201cWe want to be leaders in law enforcement, not just locally, but nationally. We as a police department want to take a proactive approach into our practices and our policies.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Constitutional Policing Unit will include three staffers, at least at first: a civilian who will serve as director; a police lieutenant to serve as liaison with the department; and a part-time, contracted criminologist in residence. Garc\u00eda said he expects to hire the civilian director in January.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The unit will inspect police policies, training, operations and internal controls through \u201cstructured reviews\u201d; track trends with monthly and quarterly data assessments; and develop and implement corrective action plans.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t just want oversight from the outside,\u201d Alex del Carmen, who will serve as the unit\u2019s criminologist, told the committee. \u201cYou want to make sure that the organization itself is measuring the work that it\u2019s doing and making sure that it is proactive, having the best policies and the research about what they\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The unit will work with the city-staffed Office of the Police Oversight Monitor, or OPOM, created in 2020 to hold the department accountable to residents. While the oversight monitor reports to City Manager Jay Chapa, the new unit will report directly to Garc\u00eda, the police chief said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Fort Worth Police Chief Eddie Garc\u00eda, left, and OPOM director Bonycle Sokunbi listen to a presentation during a City Council work session on Dec. 2, 2025, at City Hall. (Drew Shaw | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
The monitor provides a reactive response to the community\u2019s law enforcement needs and police concerns, but the Constitutional Policing Unit will provide a proactive, internal approach, OPOM director Bonycle Sokunbi said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re now going to have a police department that can look you in the face and say, \u2018We know what we\u2019re doing, and we\u2019re doing it well,\u2019\u201d Sokunbi told reporters at a press conference Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The unit will certify that police are compliant with department policies and address guidelines that need adjustment, she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are doing that versus saying, \u2018It\u2019s going well because we haven\u2019t heard anything bad yet,\u2019\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Garc\u00eda, Sokunbi and Carmen emphasized that the proactive approach is intended to reduce operational, legal and reputational risks. It will help keep Fort Worth up to par with other departments across the country in implementing best practices, policies and technology, they said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the direction that any progressive police department should be headed in,\u201d Sokunbi said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The office\u2019s launch comes about two and a half months into Garc\u00eda\u2019s tenure.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before his hire, as the city searched for a new police chief, police accountability was a priority of many city stakeholders, especially when it came to officers\u2019 interactions with communities of color.<\/p>\n
Top of mind for some were high-profile Fort Worth police encounters throughout the 2010s<\/a>, as well as concern over how law enforcement interacts with Latino communities given President Donald Trump\u2019s stepped up efforts to deport undocumented immigrants.<\/a><\/p>\n Community pushes for citizen-led oversight have continued since 2018, when such a board was recommended by the city\u2019s Race and Culture Task Force. That 25-member task force formed to rebuild trust between communities of color and police after the mistreatment of Jacqueline Craig in 2016<\/a>.<\/p>\n A citizen-led oversight board\u2019s creation was struck down by a City Council vote in 2022<\/a> \u2014 a decision supported by Garc\u00eda\u2019s predecessor, Neil Noakes.<\/p>\n When Garc\u00eda was hired, he said he was open to the creation of such a\u00a0board<\/a> but wanted to first speak with Sokunbi before issuing his own opinion.<\/p>\n Cecilia Lenzen and Drew Shaw are government accountability reporters for the Fort Worth Report. Contact them at cecilia.lenzen@fortworthreport.org<\/a> and drew.shaw@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative<\/a> for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.<\/p>\n Republish This Story<\/p>\n
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