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The Declaration of Independence enshrined the idea that everyone is born free. The Bill of Rights checks government's ability to injure that freedom. It’s been a battle to achieve that ideal of freedom ever since.

That’s why Fifty years ago, the people of Berkeley fought to create civilian oversight of our police force. Two years ago, we reaffirmed that choice in overwhelming numbers. For good reason.

We have recently heard allegations of hateful, anti-human, racist, genocidal expressions by police officers, and the willful denial of Miranda Rights to minors.

These violations of people’s right to counsel were not just reported by suspects, but by officers of the Court. The County Public Defender tells of police officers stonewalling children’s access to justice.

What's going on here? 

We also have allegations of arrest quotas. Arrest quotas distort incentives for law enforcement, causing aggressive policing, poor closure rates, and the manufacturing of crimes where there are none. 

When I was on the Police Review Commission, we pushed for new public safety metrics that focus on positive outcomes and results for our communities for a simple reason: what you focus on is what you get. Instead of counting arrests, let's count the number of service calls and reward officers for decreases in calls. 

The people of Berkeley have committed and recommitted to defend the constitution, and our freedom by ending racist policing. So, no matter what the ensuing investigation determines, I'm confident we will continue to innovate public safety as we roll out reforms like the Specialized Care Unit and the Fair and Impartial Policing reccomendations. I look forward to working with all parties to ensure that when we say public safety, we mean safety for all. 

Public safety and the integrity of our law enforcement go hand in hand. Upholding that integrity requires us to fully investigate these troubling allegations.