The Monticello City Council has named a committee to examine a proposed ordinance dealing with large public gatherings.
According to the Advance Monticellonian newspaper, two members of the council will join Mayor Paige Chase, Police Chief Jason Akers, City Attorney Whit Barton, and five members of the community to go over the proposed ordinance, which has also been presented to the Drew County Quorum Court.
In explaining the ordinance, Akers said that during the Black Lives Matter protests last year, several people communicated with the department but there was no one person to reach out and talk to.
The ordinance came about after family members of a man who was killed more than a year ago and whose case remains unsolved called for answers in a public protest at the Drew County Courthouse.
A first reading of the ordinance, which would require a permit before any march or protest, was postponed while the committee seeks information.
