Socorro city councilwoman Mary Ann Chavez-Lopez announced at the most recent Socorro city council meeting that the city will hold public hearings to address the question of police oversight and discuss a proposed city ordinance to establish a police oversight commission in Socorro.

Two public input meetings will be held, where input from the public is encouraged. The first public input meeting will be held on Monday, August 24th, at 5:30 p.m. at Socorro's city hall, while the second public input meeting will be held on Monday, September 14th, at 5:30 p.m., also at city hall. The council's police oversight committee also plans to meet privately with the Socorro police department to discuss the proposed ordinance with police members, on August 26th at 3 p.m - this latter meeting is not open to the public, but is intended for police personnel.

Depending on the public input received, it is possible that the proposed ordinance may be altered and the timeline changed, but Ms. Chavez-Lopez noted that the expected timeline, pending any unforeseen issues, is for the proposed ordinance to be presented for discussion by the city council on October 5th at 6 p.m., followed by a vote for approval of the ordinance at the city council's November 2nd 6 p.m. meeting.

Copies of the proposed ordinance can be obtained at the city clerk's office at city hall.