Correspondence - #38 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Moreover, we recommend that attorneys working for the Commission not provide legal advice or representation to any department or function of the City of Santa Ana other than the Commission. We also recommend that all financial, personnel and administrative functions of all Commission attorneys be under the jurisdiction of the City Manager or Commission Director, and not under the jurisdiction of the City Attorney, as the City Attorney provides counsel to the Santa Ana Police Department. This structure ensures the City has departmental authority over the Police Oversight Board/Commission and the Board/Commission is fully independent from the Police Department and that the City Attorney's office does not encounter any conflicts of interest. In order to be effective, the Board/Commission must not only be independent, but it must also have the authority to receive, investigate, and make findings of fact regarding all incidents and practices of the Police Department. Because the Board/Commission cannot rely on the Police Department alone to investigate officer-involved deaths, the Board/Commission must have the authority to respond to the scene of critical incidents, including police uses of deadly force. Another core component of efficacy is the authority to make binding findings of fact; mere recommendations or advisory opinions cannot change police behavior. Absent clear error, Board/Commission's findings of fact must be binding and accepted by the Police Department and Police Chief. Clear error only exists when the Board/Commission's findings of fact are based upon obvious and indisputable errors and cannot be supported by any reasonable interpretation of the evidence. We urge the Mayor and City Council to take two actions on Agenda Item 38. First, we urge the Council to direct staff to prepare an ordinance to establish the Police Oversight Board/Commission, with the support of community-based organizations, and consider the ordinance before the end of the 2021-22 Fiscal Year. Several City surveys of Santa Ana residents have shown that police oversight has broad support and the effort to establish a strong oversight model must not be delayed further. If the Council considers and approves an ordinance to establish a Board/Commission model before the end of the Fiscal Year, we can begin an implementation process that can take up to a year or longer. In order for the Board/Commission to have the powers that efficacy requires, the City Charter must be amended. The ordinance that establishes the infrastructure of an effective police oversight body can be written and passed in parallel with the efforts to amend the Charter. To that end, we also recommend that the Council direct staff to prepare a Charter amendment, to be submitted to voters at the November 2022 election, that authorizes the Board to impose discipline upon the Chief of Police and Santa Ana Police Department officers for cause. The Charter amendment should also enshrine a sustainable budget to fully fund the Board/Commission with public safety funds derived from cost-savings measures from the Police Department budget. The consideration of an ordinance and Charter