In response to the week of protests following the death of a black man in Minneapolis police custody, one of many nationwide, but which was caught entirely on film, Governor Tom Wolf announced Thursday a number of proposals he will investigate for police and justice reform in the commonwealth.

He began after a moment of silence. “As Americans, it is our duty to continuously strive to build a better democracy, and right now our resolve is being tested. Pennsylvanians are joining together to demand long-overdue change. Protesting will always be an essential part of democracy. In fact, the protests that have been occurring throughout the nation over the last couple days have done their intended job: They’ve called our attention once again to the systematic injustice that has blocked our nation from living out our destiny as a land of freedom and equality for all.”

Wolf said he spoke with local officials, clergy, business owners and community leaders around the state while urging de-escalation, but to show that he is listening and why people should de-escalate, he is taking measures to address concerns about oppression and violence against Pennsylvanians of color. In conjunction with these leaders, and with many recommendations from the state’s legislative Black Caucus, highlights of his proposals include:

• Creation of a Deputy Inspector General within the Pennsylvania Office of State Inspector General (OSIG) focused on deterring, detecting, preventing, and eradicating fraud, waste, misconduct, and abuse among law enforcement agencies under the governor’s jurisdiction.

• Creation of a Pennsylvania State Law Enforcement Advisory Commission that reviews allegations of misconduct by law enforcement personnel under the governor’s jurisdiction.

• Providing technical assistance to municipalities from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) to encourage the creation of local citizen advisory boards.

• Creation of a Racial and Ethnic Disparities Subcommittee under the Criminal Justice Advisory Committee (CJAC) at PCCD.

• Reviewing Training and Education of Officers. All training academies for law enforcement must review current use of force training standards for law enforcement and form a workgroup to develop model training standards to ensure that all officers receive the best instruction in their interactions with the public. Departments should be striving to obtain state and or national accreditation. Accreditation is a key component in assisting departments in evaluation and improvement of their standards and practices.

• Enhancing Officer Safety and Wellness. Enhancing current mental health initiatives and offering targeted mental health supports for officers to deal with trauma and reduce stigma for getting help.

• Supporting Legislative Reforms. The governor will work with the legislature on reforms, including legislation proposed that provides for improved access to police videos, an oversight board for officer training and continuing education, a special prosecutor in deadly force cases, interdepartmental law enforcement hiring reform and PTSD evaluation for police officers. Earlier last week, members of the Police Reform Working Group, which includes state and local elected officials, the chief defender of the Defender Association of Philadelphia, as well as several attorneys, put forward proposals to address growing frustration with racism, oppression and rooting out law enforcement misconduct.

“We’ve addressed criminal justice reform on a bipartisan basis, and that’s what we’ll need to fix these longstanding inequities,” Wolf said. “And as we go forward, we need to address the looming, systemic failings that have created this situation.

“If we’re going to transform the justice system to be fairer, we all need to work together. Too many people have lost faith in our institutions. We must redouble our efforts to earn the trust of everyone we serve.”