County Councilmember Dawn Luedtke issued a statement following last week’s heated community meeting she hosted about public safety in Gaithersburg and Montgomery Village.
During the meeting at South Lake Elementary School, tensions began to rise about 45 minutes into presentations on social services, recent crime and current law enforcement efforts. Some in the audience said that started speaking up during the planned programming because they wanted to move past the presentations and begin the audience engagement. Two topics led the meeting going forward: the fatal police shooting of Elliott Powers and increasing ICE arrests.
Watch the full meeting here or the recap here.
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In her statement Tuesday, Luedtke said the meeting “failed to meet the standards of decency and civility all such community events should. We will work to do better. Community members, including those with differing opinions or solutions to the challenges we face, should be heard, appreciated and respected by all.”
Residents were outspoken as they pressed leaders on what they would do to protect people as U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement arrests continue in the county. Residents also wanted leaders to speak on the fatal shooting of Elliott Powers, a man alleged to have a handgun that posed a threat to the public who was fatally shot by Montgomery County and Gaithersburg police officers during a recent incident.
“You didn’t even say Elliott Powers’ name. That’s why we’re here!” said Zakiya Sankara-Jabar, co-founder and co-director of Racial Justice NOW!. She was seated in the audience during the meeting.
Luedtke acknowledged in her statement Tuesday that that fatal police shooting of Elliott Powers “is a tragedy” and there must be more commitment to crisis intervention services. She also said that federal immigration enforcement “has torn families apart” and the local government continues trying to find ways to push back. Montgomery County has multiple bills in effect with the intention of reigning in ICE activity.
Meeting participants who were members of the public said they were also frustrated that questions were only accepted in written format — submitted via QR code or index card — and they could not orally submit their questions.
“Will there be a microphone where citizens can step up to the microphone and citizens can speak?,” ask one unidentified man, who stood up to speak while a county official was answering a question about ICE that was written on an index card by an audience member. “Are we just going to hear from officials?,” he said.
Luedtke said in her statement, “I understand the frustration from attendees who felt community members should have been given more opportunity to speak and to share their ideas, concerns, and questions. It was not our intention to prevent or deter as open and true a dialogue as possible in such a setting, and we will better structure future meetings to allow for this.”
Read Luedtke’s full statement below:
“Our community meeting on August 27 at South Lake Elementary School was meant to share resources, answer questions, and hear concerns from community members about the serious and tragic violence that has occurred this year in the Lost Knife Road corridor. I understand the frustration from attendees who felt community members should have been given more opportunity to speak and to share their ideas, concerns, and questions. It was not our intention to prevent or deter as open and true a dialogue as possible in such a setting, and we will better structure future meetings to allow for this.
Gaithersburg and Montgomery Village residents deserve safety and to be served with dignity. The police-involved shooting death of Elliott Powers is a tragedy. We must urgently increase our commitment to crisis intervention services and personnel, a stronger social safety net, and a community that provides all with the resources and opportunities they deserve to thrive.
Federal immigration enforcement in the area has torn families apart. We continue to search for and implement ways at the local government level to inform and push back against these actions that are reckless, unnecessary, and inhumane, and to serve those impacted. We have worked with residents community leaders to improve security and to deter harmful criminal activity at the Lakeforest Transit Center and in the Cider Mill community, where community members have rightfully demanded that they be able to live without fear.
Over the next week, we will be gathering and providing responses to the questions and concerns we heard at the August 27 meeting before following up with attendees who felt comfortable leaving their contact information. This meeting failed to meet the standards of decency and civility all such community events should. We will work to do better. Community members, including those with differing opinions or solutions to the challenges we face, should be heard, appreciated, and respected by all.”
Watch full recording of the meeting below:
