Boulder selects independent police monitor finalists

According to a city news release, there are four candidates in the running: Sherry Daun, Chris Duerr, Tonya McClary and Dwight White.

Daun is currently the director of investigations for Chicago’s Civilian Office of Police Accountability. Before this role, she had been a supervising investigator for that office as well as its predecessor, the Independent Police Review Authority. She holds a law degree from the University of Chicago Law School.

Duerr is a freelance film, TV and podcast producer, researcher and writer who previously spent 16 years with New York City’s Civilian Complaint Review Board. For the last three years of his time there, he served as deputy executive director and chief of investigations. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan.

McClary serves as the police monitor and director of the Office of Community Police Oversight in Dallas. Previously, she was the chief monitor for the Office of the Independent Police Monitor in New Orleans and an assistant public defender in Texas. She holds a law degree from the University of Baltimore School of Law.

White is the inspector general in Sacramento, having previously been an investigator for Chicago Mercantile Exchange and an investigator with Chicago’s Civilian Office of Police Accountability. He has a law degree from the University of Chicago School of Law.

Boulder’s independent police monitor works with the Police Oversight Panel, the Boulder Police Department and city leaders and is responsible for receiving and reviewing complaints against police. A full job description can be found at bldr.fyi/police-monitor-job-desc.

Former Independent Police Monitor Joey Lipari resigned in September 2022. Boulder announced in early January it had identified three finalists for the position, but in mid-February, the city sent out a news release stating that “none of the candidates had the mix of skills required for where Boulder is in its oversight journey.”

The city will hold a candidate reception for the community from 5-5:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Penfield Tate II Municipal Building, 1777 Broadway. The candidate forum following that from 5:30-7:30 p.m. will be in-person, but there will be an option to participate virtually. A moderator will ask candidates questions from community members. Questions can be submitted during the forum or in advance at bldr.fyi/police-monitor.

There will be Spanish interpretation in-person. American Sign Language interpretation will also be available if requested by 10 a.m. Monday. Please contact Manuela Sifuentes at [email protected] to ask for this service.

The forum will be livestreamed at tinyurl.com/39ex83j4, and a virtual participation link will be shared online 24 hours before the forum.