On Tuesday night McKinney Police held a "Tacos with Cops" event aimed at growing their relationship with the community.
Hours before the event, the city settled a lawsuit with the family of a local teen who was caught on camera being thrown to the grown and later arrested by a McKinney police officer in 2015. The event created a controversy that the McKinney police chief said only reinforced their continued push to open dialogue with the community.
"We are looking at ways to connect with the community, to find ways they can connect to us differently other than just our interactions as police officers," Chief Greg Conley said.
Conley said the department has grown because of the incident and it has built new relationships with community members.
"I've always known how important it is for a connection with the community, that they don't feel alienated, that they feel like they have a voice in what we are doing," Conley said.
Some families in attendance said they were surprised by the video the first time they saw it three years ago.
"I've always seen positive with our police as far as helping our neighborhood so I was surprised to hear that was going on," Amy Roacha said.
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Roacha and her husband both said they have had nothing but great interactions with their police officers and, like fellow McKinney resident Manon Bradshaw, are ready to turn the page.
"Once it's over and it's settled, let's move on," Bradshaw said.
