Quad City Times, February 17, 2000
Davenport, IA
( http://www.qctimes.com )

City tightens security

By Tom Saul, QUAD-CITY TIMES

Under a dramatic increase in security at City Hall, a majority of Davenport aldermen moved a law that would give civil rights protections to homosexuals and bisexuals past its second hurdle.

Police ushered everyone out of city hall just after 5 p.m. Wednesday and then began a floor-by-floor search of offices, rest rooms, closets and other areas. They declined to say what they were looking for.

They then posted guards at all side doors and let people back into the building only after they submitted to a search of their pockets, purses and bags and allowed an officer to swipe a hand held metal detector over their bodies.

"If that's what is required to make sure we stay safe, then I support it," said Tim Hart of Davenport, who was one of the first to be frisked in order to get into city hall for the debate.

As the council chambers filled, a total of seven uniformed officers and at least two detectives then watched over the crowd that never was allowed to exceed 120. That was the number set by city Fire Marshal Mike Hayman as the capacity of the room, Fire Chief Tom Ryan said.

Mayor Phil Yerington began the meeting by telling those gathered what they already knew, that the proposed sexual orientation law has become an extremely emotional issue.

"We want to keep this a user-friendly city council, but we also want to keep it safe for the aldermen and the city staff," he said.

The tight security was imposed at the request of aldermen after rumors that a person with a gun was supposed to have attended Monday night's committee of the whole meeting at which the same issue was discussed, Police Chief Steve Lynn said.

"It was one person, telling another person, telling another person, telling an alderman," Lynn said. "There were also some e-mails that were somewhat threatening."

Police had the name of the person that was supposed to have been the target of allegations about possession of the weapon, Lynn said.

"We've been watching that person for about three weeks, but the other night, we didn't have good enough information to do a stop and a frisk," he said.

The person attended Monday night's meeting and was there again Wednesday and spoke in opposition to the proposed sexual orientation protections. The person is not being identified because there was no confrontation with police or an arrest.

No weapons or other contraband were found during searches Wednesday. Lynn said the tight security would continue, and that that he does not know when it would end.

As for the proposed change in the city's civil rights ordinance, it passed on the second of three readings by a vote of 7 to 3. Aldermen George Nickolas, 2nd Ward, Ray Ambrose, 4th Ward, and Bob McGivern, 6th Ward, voted against it.

The third and final vote on the ordinance that prohibits discrimination against homosexuals and bisexuals in the areas of employment, housing, credit and public accommodations, is scheduled for the council's March 1 meeting.

An effort by Nickolas to alter the proposed ordinance to exclude churches, church property and fraternal and other membership organizations from sanctions, was tabled after some aldermen said they wanted to see the changes in writing.

Nickolas' amendment also would have barred use of the ordinance to promote additions to the curricula of city schools that advocate homosexual or bisexual lifestyles.

City Civil Rights Commission Director Judy Morrell said the ordinance, as already proposed, would exempt churches. It also would have no impact on Davenport schools since they are controlled by their own elected school board and not the city council.

Aldermen Bill Sherwood, at-large, who supports the change in the law, said concerns about invasion of schools and churches by homosexuals as a result of the proposed ordinance side-stepped the real issues, protections of the rights of those who are being discriminated against.

"I've heard very little of substance in the arguments against this," he said. "I'd like people to focus on what it does."

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