GLOV elects new co-chairs

Members of Gays & Lesbians Opposing Violence, also known GLOV, voted at their monthly meeting Jan. 29 to elect D.C. residents Kelly Pickard and Joe Montoni as the group’s new co-chairs.

The two succeed outgoing co-chairs Chris Farris and Tod Metrokin, who are credited with reactivating GLOV a little more than a year ago after it had been dormant for nearly 10 years. The group serves as the local LGBT community’s advocate on crime and law enforcement issues. It also monitors and tracks anti-LGBT hate crimes.

“Tod Metrokin and I couldn’t be happier with the group’s choice,” Farris said of the election. “We’ve accomplished a lot in the past year and I look forward to continuing our work under the new leadership.”

In the time since Farris and Metrokin took on leadership of GLOV, the group has operated as a project of the D.C. Center, which recently moved to 1810 14th St., N.W.

Pickard and Montoni take the helm of GLOV at a time when the group has had strained relations with D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier. The group has criticized Lanier’s efforts to restructure and decentralize the department’s Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit, saying she had nearly dismantled the unit before putting in place GLLU affiliate officers in each of the seven police districts.

Capt. Edward Delgado, who oversees the GLLU and three other special liaison units, announced two weeks ago that an expanded GLLU now includes 24 affiliate officers and at least six officers and supervisors associated with the unit’s headquarters in Dupont Circle.

“We know there remains a tremendous amount of work ahead of us, and we’ll continue to work to build confidence within the LGBT community that the issue of hate crimes is being handled with the seriousness it deserves,” Pickard said in a statement.