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l � <br /> April 17, 2023 <br /> Mayor Amezcua and City Councilmembers <br /> 20 Civic Center Plaza <br /> Santa Ana, CA 92701 <br /> ecomment(a,Santa-ana.ors <br /> Via Email <br /> RE: Resolution to Declare Opposition for Assembly Bill 742, Agenda Item 24 <br /> Dear Mayor Amezcua and City Councilmembers, <br /> Chispa urges you to vote NO on Item 24, A Resolution to Declare Opposition for Assembly Bill <br /> (AB) 742, and instead adopt a resolution to support the bill. The City of Santa Ana (City) should <br /> not backtrack on its efforts towards police reform, but must instead take proactive steps to <br /> address the recent instances of misconduct and the alarming policing culture of the Santa Ana <br /> Police Department (SAPD). The City must continue to work towards fostering accountability <br /> and improving public safety for all its residents. <br /> AB 742 will prohibit police from using canines in making arrests or for any form of crowd <br /> control, putting an end to a vicious practice. Importantly, this bill will not prevent the use of <br /> police canines for search and rescue, explosives detection, and narcotics detection that do not <br /> involve biting.' The use of canines has severe and deadly consequences for the public, <br /> particularly for communities of color. Per the California Department of JusticeUse of Force Data <br /> from 2021, police canines accounted for nearly 12% of incidents that resulted in severe injury or <br /> death. Of these cases, nearly two-thirds of the people that police canines seriously injured or <br /> killed were Black or Latino. Additionally, Black people were 2.6 times more likely to be <br /> seriously injured by police canines than white people. The bill aims to put an end to police using <br /> canines to intentionally maul people, a cruel practice that disproportionately affects people of <br /> color. <br /> The Resolution to Declare Opposition to AB 742 comes in the wake of several egregious <br /> incidents and lawsuits involving the SAPD. Recently, an article published by Knock LA brought <br /> 'https:Haclucalaction.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/AB-742_Police-Canine-Use_Fact-Sheet.pdf <br /> 2 https:Hdata-openjustice.doj.ca.gov/sites/default/files/2022-08/USE%200F%20FORCE%202021.pdf <br /> 1 <br />