Sacramento Community Police Review Commission Meeting – November 14, 2022

On Monday, November 14, 2022, the Sacramento Community Police Review Commission held a virtual meeting from 6:01 p.m. to 7:24 p.m. via Zoom. Chair Graciella Castillo-Krings presided, with Vice Chair Keyan Bliss (who left at 6:53 p.m.), Commissioners Renee Carter, Basim Elkarra, Mario Guerrero, Gregory Jefferson, Michael Marion (joined at 6:04 p.m.), Robynne Rose-Haymer, Xochimilco Espinoza Salazar, and Stephen Williamson present. Commissioner Richard Falcon was absent. The meeting focused on establishing a 2023 work plan, subcommittees, community engagement, and continuing the backlog of 115 recommendations from prior years. No public comments were made.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the minutes of the October 10, 2022, meeting (File ID: 2022-01929).
• Received and filed the Sacramento Community Police Review Commission Follow-Up Log (File ID: 2022-01938).
• Received and filed the 2022 Quarter 2 Police Complaint Activity Report (File ID: 2022-01953).
• All consent items were passed by a single motion with a unanimous vote (9-0, with Commissioner Falcon absent).

Public Comments & Testimony

• No members of the public spoke during any agenda item or during the public comment period for matters not on the agenda.

Discussion Items

• Chair’s Update on Meeting with Mayor: Chair Castillo-Krings reported that she, Vice Chair Bliss, Assistant City Manager Mario Lara, and others met with Mayor Steinberg the previous week. The mayor expressed a desire to collaborate, avoid conflict, and create a work plan for 2023. The plan will include clear priorities for the commission, a standardized communication process with the city and police department, and an appeals process for unresolved disagreements. The backlog of 115 recommendations from 2018-2021 will be addressed separately, with the goal of completing that work by the end of 2022. The police department will review each recommendation and provide a status (fully/partially/not adopted) with reasons.
• Subcommittees for Consideration to P&PE Commission (Item 4): The vice chair and chair proposed three subcommittees for 2023: (1) Military Equipment Use – to facilitate community participation per AB 481 and AB 48, review SPD reports, and recommend policy changes; (2) Accountability and Cultural Standards – focusing on discourtesy, conduct unbecoming, search and seizure, and police chase policies, based on OPSA complaint data; (3) Budget Transparency and Strategic Planning – to review SPD spending and fiscal priorities. Commissioners discussed the need to prioritize based on evidence and past recommendations. Commissioner Stephen Williamson urged a more deliberate, evidence-based approach to selecting the top three priorities, suggesting a larger list of 5-10 topics be considered first. The chair agreed to gather input from all commissioners by the end of the week (Friday, November 18) via email to OPSA Specialist Michele Valeros for inclusion on the December agenda.
• Commission’s Community Engagement in 2023 (Item 5): Chair Castillo-Krings emphasized the need to re-engage the community after pandemic disruptions. Commissioner Guerrero suggested reaching out to organizations like the League of Women Voters and Latino Roundtable, with commissioners presenting at meetings and inviting public input. Commissioner Jefferson noted his role as president of the Del Paso Heights Community Association and asked about the commission’s role at public events. Commissioner Elkarra proposed inviting the ACLU to present an updated report card on the police department. The chair noted that a formal outreach process would be part of the 2023 work plan.
• Commission Work for 2023 (Item 6): This item was discussed in conjunction with the subcommittee proposals. The chair reiterated that the commission will vote on final 2023 priorities at the December meeting. Commissioners were asked to submit any additional ideas for the work plan by Friday.
• Proposed Amendments to Rules of Procedure (Item 7): Chair Castillo-Krings stated that she still needed to meet with the commission’s attorney to finalize amendments. She hopes to have a final document for a vote in December. No discussion or action was taken.
• Discussion on SPD’s Military Equipment Policy (Item 8): The agenda included a recommendation to request a presentation from SPD at the December meeting. However, Assistant City Manager Mario Lara noted that a similar presentation was given to the City Council in September, and the council had directed the commission to work with SPD on an outreach strategy. After discussion, the commission voted to table (continue) the item to a future meeting. Commissioner Guerrero moved, Commissioner Carter seconded, and the motion passed 9-0 (Vice Chair Bliss was absent for this vote).

Key Outcomes

• Consent Calendar: Approved unanimously.
• Item 8 (Military Equipment Policy Presentation): Tabled to a future meeting by a 9-0 vote.
• 2023 Work Plan: The commission will continue discussions in December. Commissioners are to submit priority ideas and feedback on subcommittees by Friday, November 18, to Michele Valeros (mvaleros@cityofsacramento.org).
• Backlog of 115 Recommendations: The ad hoc committee will meet with SPD to review each recommendation line by line, with the goal of completing the review by the end of 2022. The full commission will then vote on forwarding the recommendations to the City Council.
• Ad Hoc Recommendations: The implementation ad hoc and the military equipment use ad hoc will submit formal recommendations in the standardized format for the December meeting. The LGBT ad hoc reported no new recommendations this year. Other ad hocs did not produce work.
• Commissioner Last Meeting: Commissioner Basim Elkarra’s final meeting will be in December 2022; the commission plans to recognize his service.