The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About0250.092- May 7, 1 THE HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL Palo Alto, California E\;bl ic Trust in Po 1 ice Serv i ~_~ __ $ Me~ers ~f the Council, This is an informational Leport; no Council actio~ is required. Following last week.'s acquittal of four Los Angeles police officers accused of beating Rodrley Xing, a series of riots and civil disturbances occurred in Los Angeles and, to a lesser degree, throughout t.he nation. Recently I SOUle IT<8J:"jber:s of the: public have expressed an interest in lea~ning abou~ the Police Department's poli;::ies related to the USE: .of force. This report is intended to reacqu,aint Council and ttle c:cmmur:ity abo;Jt these specific policies and activities which are designed to ensure that appropriate arrest procedures are in place and that all members of the public are treai;ed fairly. Public confidence in la~ enforcement has been shaken as a result of the actions of .four Los Angeles police officers and tl":ei r subse quent acquittal of criminal charges related to the a~rest of Rodney Kin9. While the verdict and actions of tile officers have been condemned. by many law er.forcement. and gov€-rnment offic.ials I staff understands th~t conmunity support cannct be taken for grantej. Hiring Practic:es liiring standards for the Police Department are stringent. It is not uncommon for a testing group exceeding 100 applicants to dwindle down to 10 or fewer finalists after ccmpleting a written test, a series of intervie.'oIs, backg~ound cheCKS I and physical and psychological exams. The Folice Cr.ief personall::," interviews all finalists before a job offer is made. All police officer I1're cruits" are required to attend a 22 week academy. 'l'he academy lilOSt. often used is located at the Evergreen CQmm"...l.nity College campus in San Jose. It is a demandin,'3", full-time, academic and phj'sical training atmosphE"re where students are taught the application of statutes-, codes I communications ski lIs and the use of force. Failure to ~uccessful1y graduate fro!!!. the pol ice academy results in termination from the Police Departme~t. CMR:250:92 5-7-92 L ;".i'",.'.~' '.' . " ~, .. '-:' -', '.,<, >;.~ • . >, "," I J L Field TrainingnnPX9.9J'_El!l After graduating frem the poli~e academy, an officer begins an ~S ... eek in-ho'olse training prooram. Du~ing this !'lfield training ll phasC!, new offic:ers are accompanied by spec-i?-lly trainee. officers ""'ho ensure that all departme:-.t philosophies, pOlicies and prcce du::-es ~re under5tcod~ officers in training are evaluated daily. Failure to successf~lly complete this training program also results in ternlil"lstion. When a new officer d€r.'Lonstrates the skills to fur.etion without a training officer (usually sO)j1.e 10 months after hiring), he/she is allowed to handls a solo assignment. Evalua tions are pI-epared monthly during th is first year to ensure adequate supervision and guidance. Training is intended to cover a !n:Jltitude of ir.'1pot"tant subjects including c1..:.1tural a'lwareness, ethics and standards oE conduct t arrest control and officer safety techniques, use of force, '.lse of a firearm, technical updates, and stress l"C'_anagement. 'fraining is scheduled. in a nUlT'.ber of .... ays to accornr..odate legal requirements and department qoals. Ongoing instruction occurs during briefings at the beginning of a shift, annuall:r~ .. "her:. every officer receives three days of update training, and on occasion 'w'hen some offi.cers rece_h~e specialized training (i.e~ t homicide and. rape investiga tions) which generally requires 40 or pore hours of intensive course \a1ork~ Use of Foyce Training fot" the proper use of force requires instruction that speaks to the use of good judgment. It is the Police Department's policy that physical force 511al1 be rest'!'icted to the degree minimally necessary to accomplish a la ...... ful police task~ In the event that physical force m:..!st be '..lsed, po] ice officers are trained to use the. baton as a defens ive tool only to overcome violent b~havior that threatens the safety of an offic€r or others, or to effect the arrest of a corobative persc:l ~'hen less potent force fails to overcome res istance. Baton blows a:re not to be intention ally delivered to a person's head l neck or throat areas, except in those circu:m:::tances ' .... hen an officer'S life is in peril and lesser actions are ineffective or inappropriate. Officers are trained to strike the hand or lower arm area tc cause a person to drop a -weapon or stop some other violent behavior. A ttlo"t"ougr-. administra tive review occurs in all cases when a baton is used. Last year the police made approximately 4,9CO arrests and officers used the baton twice. CMR:250:92 L 5-7-92 -2- L ~en I S Corr~_1~Jnt:: _____ P..roc9.§..§. In an effort to er'\5'.ure tha.t all allegations of mi5conduct are properly inves'tigatedl the Pol ice Depart.ne:1t 1'"12.5 developed an aggressive citizen's complaint p·:)licy. Criticisr:l. of an officer or 'the department is treated as a '!ccmplai nt. n 'ihis inclu;;3,es anor.Y'l1.ous phone calls, le:tters to the editor, or-information from third parties 'who may not be directly i:woh'cd in the incid.er.t~ In an effort to reduce the bureauc!'acy oftp!1 associat.;,d ·,.ith a citizen complaint process, a me.:t!JEr of t:he ccJ.t' .... TtJunity may make a citizen's complaint at an:f time; there. is no "cot'~plaint cfficer'h or any ferm::; to complete or s19n~ After a thorough investigdtion, 'Which includes speakir.g 'With all ,,,,'itl"lesses, corr:plaining parties always have the option to meet · .... ith the. involved officers. to discuss the issues. The PolicE' Department has found t:hat one-an-one conversa tions have gone a long way to resolve mi5understandings and improve commun.ity relations. Corrective action occurs ..... henever 3. CO!:lplaint. is deemed founded or susta.ined. A '",ritten SUr:::':"e;ry of co~plaints is sent to the City council eve-r-y qu,;orter 35 part of the publ ic packet. Communi ty Invol ve_ment About two years ago a brochure describi:1g the citizen"s complaint process \rJas developed ...... ith the assistance cf the N.A.A.C.P. for the purpose of reaching out to the various communj ty grcups and seeking assistance in the reporting of police sen'ice problems. In addition to these efforts, Several years ago the. Police Departmp.nt established a ~communlty aware~ess grvup" ccnslsting of minority members of the community. This group meets directly vith the Chief of Police and has ~een helpful in these insta~ces ~here discrimina tion may :be alleged by one or more parties. Over the years this group has been helpful in creating gr€atcr understanding of racial issues and has assisted in a'.1r efforts to improve police service. The Police Depart~ent"s philosophy has always centered on working 'With the community. We recognize. that or.ly through the active assistance of citizens residing in the co~.muni ty can ';ole hope to accomplish the tasks ass igned to us. 'fa this er.d, the Department has always encouraged citizens to call for service if they feel concerned about an incident or untlsual circumst.ances in their neighborhood. ~'ithout this kind of cllgoing assistance from tt-,e ci tiz;enry, it would be impossible to be aware of potential p:=-oblems on the street. 'Ihis policy carries · .... ith it a need to exercise good judgment on the part: of citizens dnd police officers. Our experiEnce over time has been that ~ost people recognize that there is a difference between calling the police indi~criminately and calling the police when truly dangerous or suspicious circumstances arise. We try to urge people to do the latter, and emphasize to CMR:25,J:92 L 5-7-92 -3- , \ :--i .-.... : L -'-.- officers t11at they need to be mindful of the :Qalanc:e betw.·een these two positions. At times the line betw"een these t .... ·o extremes is difficult to discern. However, that difficult:t does not negate the need to be on guard lest 'o.'e lose sight of the difference. ConclusIon The Palo Alto Police Departn.ent has long E'rljoyea a well-deserved respect from t~e community and media. Staff believes that the Police Department's relationsh.ip w'ith the CQE1IT:ul1ity is enhanced due to a "problem solving" philosop:Dy which is designed to reduce barriers. and impro'/e mutual respect and uncerstanc.ing. Respectf~iUbmittedl JrJ'~ CityfManager I CHR: 250: 92 L Foli ce Chief 5-7-92 -4-