From the outset of Wednesday night's city council hearing on police internal discipline and the policy of requiring officers to carry their weapons while off duty, Councilman James Kraft made it clear that no one would be allowed to discuss specifics.

That meant no discussion of why Officer Gahiji Tshamba, charged with murder in an off-duty shooting outside a club, was lightly disciplined by a previous administration and remained on the job after he shot and struck a man while driving drunk in 2005.

What followed was an overly broad discussion of police policies and the department's efforts to curb bad behavior. Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III said he is not against making amends to the policy requiring officers to carry their weapons, but said no change would be made without careful deliberation.

"It's not that I'm intractable or I don't listen, but I want to be cautious and deliberative that we get it right and don't mess something up with unintended consequences," he told the councilmembers, noting that he ultimately reversed a decision to withhold the names of officers who shoot or kill citizens.

Robert F. Cherry of the city police union told councilmembers not to be swayed by furor over the Tshamba incident and that officers are expected to put themselves in danger and should be armed. He said a change in policy would "put officers in grave danger and by extension the citizens we are sworn to protect." 

Tyrone Powers, a former FBI agent and professor at Anne Arundel Community College, told the council that there should be a clear ban on officers carrying weapons while consuming alcohol. "There's no training that teaches you how to deal with alcohol and weapons. They never, ever mix," he said. He said officers who know they are going to be drinking or find themselves around alcohol must leave the gun at home or extract themselves from the situation. "That's the burden of policing."