Richmond residents and police association press council to return three officers and approve a marketable contract

At a special Richmond City Council session, multiple members of the Richmond Police Officers Association and family members pressed the council to restore three officers to duty and to negotiate a more competitive contract to stem mounting staffing losses.

"These officers have not been disciplined. They have not been terminated," said the speaker who identified himself as president of the Richmond Police Officers Association, urging the council to act. "They remain removed from duty indefinitely with no timeline, no resolution, and no justification grounded in any legal requirement." (speaker identified in the record as Ben Gario.)

The appeals were repeated by several officers who spoke at the podium and on the phone, including John McKinney and Colton Stocking, who told the council that prolonged administrative removals were harming morale, accelerating retirements and making recruitment more difficult.

According to speakers, the three officers — named throughout public comment as Remick, Stocking and Hodges — remain off duty despite what some speakers described as clearing reviews and evaluations. "Prolonged administrative removals without resolution increase liability, undermine due process and send a chilling message to the remaining workforce," McKinney said.

Several speakers said the association has sent demand letters and is preparing tort claims against the city. "Bring them back to work and bring them back now," one speaker told the council.

Not all public commenters agreed. Sarah Cantor, calling in to the meeting, thanked the city manager "for her leadership in making sure that officers who have not yet been cleared by the DOJ don't return to the force," and said it is a "strong show of leadership and accountability" to wait for review outcomes.

Council members did not take a formal vote on personnel matters during the meeting. The city attorney reported that, during the closed session that followed the initial public comments, "no final action was taken on either of the two cases listed." The record shows council and staff discussed staffing and contract issues at length during public comment but did not adopt new policy or direct immediate reinstatement at the meeting.

The exchanges underscore competing concerns in Richmond: police leaders and families pressing for rapid reinstatement and higher compensation to retain officers, and other residents and some officials urging a cautious approach while investigations and DOJ review processes continue.

The most recent step cited by speakers is legal outreach: demand letters and prelitigation claims that, according to speakers, have been filed or are being prepared. Council members listened to public testimony during the open-forum portion of the meeting; there was no council vote on the personnel cases reported in open session.

Next steps: council members may consider follow-up oversight questions for the city manager or city attorney or schedule a future hearing; no formal policy change was recorded at this meeting.