Prominent community leaders and authorities gathered in Cedar Rapids Tuesday to talk about ways to improve policing in the city.

The meeting has been months in the making following a police shooting that paralyzed a man.

On November 1st, Officer Lucas Jones pulled over Jerime Mitchell near Coe College for a broken license plate light. Mitchell says he was heading to his mother's house, but authorities say Mitchell was heading to sell drugs. A fight broke out, and Jones shot Mitchell as Mitchell drove off.

In February, the Mitchell family and the NAACP started an initiative to help improve policing with a twelve step plan. Those twelve steps involve taking a deeper look at the way police officers and the prosecuting attorney do their jobs.

On Tuesday leaders had an open dialogue about those steps, but members of the media were not allowed to film the actual discussion.

Those who attended the meeting between members of the NAACP, Iowa Justice Alliance and city officials say it was an open and honest dialogue with some heated moments.

"We had some pretty healthy discussions, so we wanted to establish a communication line," NAACP chapter president Dedric Doolin said.

"I don't think we're gonna come to an agreement or consensus that we can implement all 12 changes. I've got reservations about many of them," Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden said.

Tuesdays meeting only made it through the first two steps. The first - mandating outside independent investigators for officer-involved shootings. The second - mandating special prosecutors for officer-involved shooting cases referred to a grand jury.

Vander Sanden says he's not sure that's possible.

"When people talk about independence and special prosecutors, my first question is, 'Okay who do you have in mind?' I mean the justice system is undergoing a number of budgetary cuts," Vander Sanden said.

Cedar Rapids Police Chief Wayne Jerman says he's open to discussion and has been working on some policies since he became chief.

"We're in the process of rolling out our body camera program right now. We've signed contracts, and we are looking at different storage issues. Our policy is pretty sound," Jerman said.

Dedric Doolin says he is hopeful today's dialogue will move the community forward.

"This problem didn't just start on the Jerime Mitchell case. It didn't just start with recent events. This is something that's got some historical perspectives, and it's gonna take some time to work through these problems," Doolin said.

The twelve steps are:

1. Mandate outside independent investigators for officer-involved shootings.

2. Mandate special prosecutors for officer-involved shootings referred to a grand jury.

3. Mandate that prosecutors present sworn testimony from all available victims, witnesses and person involved in officer-involved shooting cases, allowing recovery time for injured parties before concluding the presentation of evidence to a grand jury.

4. Institute a racial profiling policy that mirrors the Iowa NAACP proposed legislation and that bans discriminatory pretextural stops.

5. Implement a citizen-review board (modeled after Iowa City).

6. Require mandatory checks to confirm officers' audio and video recording equipment is operable before a shift and discipline any officer who fails to turn on his or her equipment during traffic stops and other police detainment.

7.Publish the department's Use of Force Policy and Racial Profiling Policy.

8. Require yearly police officer training in diversity, implicit bias and the use of de-escalation tactics.

9. The county attorney and the chief of police should personally meet with the Mitchell family to answer their questions about the November 1 shooting and the ensuing grand jury process.

10. Law enforcement professionals and city officials should work with members of the community and representatives from the United States Department of Justice to develop and implement a memorandum of understanding around community policing strategies.

11. Mandate the hiring of more diverse law enforcement officers making assertive efforts to promote open police department positions in diverse communities including churches and social organizations, and include guidance and supports for getting through the hiring process.

12. Require law enforcement officers to live in the communities in which they police.