NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Metro Nashville Police is inviting members of the city to help review the actions of the officers who responded to Anthony Warner’s home in 2019.
The After Action Review panel is made up of the following members:
- Deputy Chief Dwayne Greene
- Attorney/Professional Standards Division head Kathy Morante
- Nashville attorney and former United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee Ed Yarbrough
- Community Oversight Board Executive Director Jill Fitcheard
- Metro Council Member and Chair of the Public Safety Committee Jennifer Gamble
Metro Police tell us that at a later date, these five will meet privately and interview the officers involved in the incident report from 2019 that was first uncovered by NewsChannel 5 Investigates.
Fitcheard said she’s honored to take part in the panel, but knows this is what her group was designed for. The Community Oversight Board reviews matters of police policy and makes recommendations to better protect the city and its residents.
“I expect going forward that we will be included in a lot more of these panels,” Fitcheard said.
Fitcheard, like many others on this panel, has yet to receive a specific date for when these interviews will be conducted. Metro Police says they expect Morante to organize the members and find a day that fits everyone’s schedules.
The expectation according to Metro Police is that this interview will last one day, with panelists being given all the information they need to make recommendations as they see fit.
Council member Gamble calls this an important step but says she believes the public should at least be afforded a report of the findings from this meeting.
Some have criticized the officers involved for not searching Warner’s property. Officers only arrived at Warner’s home, after Warner’s girlfriend and Warner’s attorney claimed he was making or capable of making bombs.
“Knowing that was a little unsettling and I’d like to find out during this process if there was something that we could have done to avoid this,” Gamble said.
Chief John Drake issued a statement back in December:
“At no time was there any evidence or reasonable suspicion that a crime was being committed, and our officers had no legal basis to go into Warner’s fenced-in yard or home.”
Metro Police were adamant that the focus of this review will remain on the events of 2019 and not the bombing in 2020.
They say this review is not unusual for large scale events and natural disasters. What is unusual is holding an After Action Review 16 months later, but they say these are unusual circumstances.
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Metro police chief announces review of 2019 response to Anthony Warner’s home
