Oakland, CA Police Reform Efforts

Posted on July 10, 2020 by mekorganic

Victims of Oakland Police Brutality

Alan Blueford

Raheim Malik Brown

Oscar Juliuss Grant III

Derrick Jones

Posted in police brutality, police brutality victims, police reform | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Pittsburg, CA Police Reform Efforts

Posted on July 10, 2020 by mekorganic

Victims of Pittsburg Police Brutality

Terry Amons Jr.

Posted in police brutality, police brutality victims, police reform | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Antioch, CA Police Reform Efforts

Posted on July 10, 2020 by mekorganic

Events

Make A Stand in your Community Events Calendar

Peaceful protest for Vanessa Guillen Wed July 15 5pm Poster Poster

Antioch Rally and March to APD July 12 11am

Candlelight Vigil in Antioch July 10 7-8pm Photos Photos Video1 Video2 Video3 Video4 Press Release

.

Community Groups

Make a Stand in Your Community

Bridge Builders to the New Generation

Facing Homelessness in Antioch – Nichole Gardner  Go Fund Me

.

Reform Candidates

For Mayor – Ellie Householder

For City Council

.

Antioch Police

Michael Mellone Petition: Remove Michael Mellone from Antioch PD Mellone situation

Chief Brooks stands by his decision to hire Officer Michael Mellone (no shocker there), and the communication between APD & City Officials proves that they do not plan to take any action. The City of Antioch has every intention of intentionally delaying and postponing until next month – According to CA state Human Resources, the probationary period for a police officer is one year. Michael Mellone was hired to APD in August of 2019 so we have very limited time (less than one month!!!!) to demand action and see it through. I repeat, they are rallying together to intentionally delay this conversation until they can throw their hands up and shrug, claiming their hands are tied. We will not allow Chief Brooks, Mayor Wright, and the rest of our City Officials to let the clock run out. We will not sit down & be quiet like they want us to be. We will show up, hold them accountable, and ask them why they’re willing to put the residents of Antioch in harm’s way to protect their pride and egos. Lacey Brown More Info

Antioch Police SWAT Team Photo

.

Media News

2020-07-07 Deputy arrested on suspicion of smuggling meth into South Bay jail – Mayra Rios, 35, of Antioch, is being held on $1 million bail

2020-07-02 Steve Aiello 100% justifed in slapping protesters Antioch City park march to City Hall

2020-06-22 Inflammatory Facebook comments by Antioch police leaders have residents seeing red about the blue

.

General Information

Community of Antioch Wants Police Reform Discussion

.

.

Victims of Antioch Police Brutality

Malad Baldwin

Posted in police brutality, police brutality victims, police reform | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

End Profiling and “Stop-and-Frisk”

Posted on June 21, 2020 by mekorganic

Establish enforceable protections against profiling to prevent police from intervening in civilian lives for no reason other than the “suspicion” of their blackness or other aspects of their identity. This should include:

  • immigration status, age, housing status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, disability, HIV status, race, religion and national origin as protected groups
  • the right for people to seek court orders to stop police departments from profiling bans on both intentional profiling and practices that have a disparate impact on protected groups
  • ban stops for “furtive” movements such as a reaching for waistband or acting nervous
  • ban stops for being in a high-crime area
  • ban stops for matching a generalized description of a suspect (i.e. black male ages 15-25)
  • require officers to establish objective justification for making a stop and to report every stop including location, race, gender, whether force was used and whether a firearm was found.
  • end the use of predictive policing technology, which uses systematically biased data to enhance police profiling of black people and communities
  • prohibit police departments from using resources to investigate, interrogate, detain, detect, report, or arrest persons for immigration enforcement purposes.
  • prohibit police departments from transferring an individual to federal immigration authorities for purposes of immigration enforcement.
  • prohibit officers from being placed under the supervision of federal agencies or deputized as special federal officers or special federal deputies.

 

End Profiling and “Stop-and-Frisk”

Posted in police reform, profiling, stop and frisk, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

End Policing of Minor “Broken Windows” Offenses

Posted on June 21, 2020 by mekorganic

The following activities do not threaten public safety and are often used to police black bodies. Decriminalize these activities or de-prioritize their enforcement:
Consumption of Alcohol on Streets
Marijuana Possession
Disorderly Conduct
Trespassing
Loitering
Disturbing the Peace (including Loud Music)
Spitting
Jaywalking
Bicycling on the Sidewalk

End Policing of Minor “Broken Windows” Offenses

Posted in community, crime, domestic security, health care, housing, mental health, police reform, political reform, poverty, racism, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Use of Force Policy

Posted on June 20, 2020 by mekorganic

The Research Basis for More Restrictive Use of Force Standards

Police Use Of Force Policies currently lack basic protections against police violence
These policies often fail to include common-sense limits on police use of force, including:

  • Failing to require officers to de-escalate situations, where possible, by communicating with subjects, maintaining distance, and otherwise eliminating the need to use force [ Require officers to de-escalate situations] 
  • Allowing officers to choke or strangle civilians, in many cases where less lethal force could be used instead, resulting in the unnecessary death or serious injury of civilians  [ Ban Chokeholds & Strangleholds –  Both chokeholds and all other neck restraints must be banned in all cases.]
  • Failing to require officers to intervene and stop excessive force used by other officers and report these incidents immediately to a supervisor [ Require officers to intervene and stop excessive force used by other officers and report these incidents ]
  • Failing to restrict officers from shooting at moving vehicles, which is regarded as a particularly dangerous and ineffective tactic [ Ban officers from shooting at moving vehicles in all cases ]
  • Failing to develop a Force Continuum that limits the types of force and/or weapons that can be used to respond to specific types of resistance [ Establish a Force Continuum that restricts the most severe types of force to the most extreme situations and creates clear policy restrictions ]
  • Failing to require officers to exhaust all other reasonable means before resorting to deadly force [ Require officers to exhaust all other alternatives, including non-force and less lethal force options ]
  • Failing to require officers to give a verbal warning, when possible, before shooting at a civilian [Require Warning Before Shooting ] 
  • Failing to require officers to report each time they use force or threaten to use force against civilians [ Require officers to report each time they use force or threaten to use force against civilians ]

 

Over 40 years of research supports the conclusion that more restrictive use of force standards reduce police violence. In 1979, criminologist James Fyfe published a study examining the effect of the NYPD’s adoption of a more restrictive use of force policy, which included a ban on shooting at people in moving vehicles and a requirement that officers use lesser alternatives when possible (the minimum level of force possible) rather than deadly force. His groundbreaking research found that civilian killings and injuries by police dropped significantly following the adoption of this policy – and that officers were less likely to be killed or injured under this more restrictive policy as well. Since then, researchers have found significant reductions in police shootings after more restrictive use of force policies were adopted in Omaha, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Dallas, and Memphis. Additionally, when Philadelphia repealed its restrictive deadly force policy in 1974, researchers found that police shootings rose substantially and then dropped again when the city adopted a new deadly force policy in 1980 that limited deadly force to only be used, “in defense of life when no alternatives exist.” These researchers found that police shootings dropped 67% within one year of the adoption of this more restrictive use of force standard in Philadelphia and remained at historically low rates for 10 years thereafter.

On a national level, researchers have found that when the US Supreme Court decided in 1985 (the Tennessee v. Garner decision) to adopt a more restrictive deadly force standard than had previously been in place, police killings dropped across the country by 16%. Recent research has identified additional policies that lead to reductions in police violence – including the requirement that an officer report whenever they point a firearm at a civilian. Legal scholars and public health experts have expanded this discourse as well – articulating the legal and public health rationales for more restrictive use of force policies including the requirement to use de-escalation, issue a verbal warning before shooting, establish a use of force continuum, and require alternatives be used before deadly force, as critical steps to restraining police power and reducing the harm they can cause.

Finally, in 2016, we conducted an analysis of the 100 largest US cities found that there were eight types of restrictions in police use of force policies that were associated with reductions in killings by police. This is the largest study on this topic to date and its findings echo the findings from past research, confirming the efficacy of policies like banning shooting at people in vehicles, the requirement officers exhaust alternatives prior to using deadly force and the requirement that officers report whenever they point a firearm at people. Moreover, our research found that having more of these use of force restrictions in place was associated with significantly fewer police-involved killings compared to departments with fewer of these policies in place. In that study, we also found that police departments with more restrictive use of force policies have better outcomes in terms of officer safety and have no impact on crime rates. The research is clear: more restrictive use of force policies like the kind we are advocating for through the 8Can’tWait campaign can save lives right now.

 

Use of Force Policy Database We are assembling the first open-source database of police use of force policies for the 100 largest U.S. city police departments. These documents, obtained through FOIA requests via MuckRock, will be used for future analyses identifying the ways in which they impact police accountability.
Anaheim Police Department ✔️, Bakersfield Police Department ✔️, Chula Vista Police Department ✔️, Fremont Police Department ✔️, Fresno Police Department ✔️, Irvine Police Department ✔️, Long Beach Police Department ✔️, Los Angeles Police Department ✔️, Oakland Police Department ✔️, Riverside Police Department ✔️, Sacramento Police Department ✔️, San Bernardino Police Department ✔️, San Diego Police Department ✔️, San Francisco Police Department ✔️, San Jose Police Department ✔️, Santa Ana Police Department ✔️, Stockton Police Department ✔️
Requires De-Escalation 49 cities, 8 CA
Has Use of Force Continuum 84 Cities 9 CA
Bans Chokeholds and Strangleholds 30 Cities 3 CA
Requires Warning Before Shooting 73 Cities 13CA
Restricts Shooting at Moving Vehicles 18 cities 2 CA
Requires Exhaust All Other Means Before Shooting 43 Cities 3 CA
Duty to Intervene 52 Cities 14 CA
Requires Comprehensive Reporting 31 Cities 5 CA

Source: Use of Force Project

#8CantWait

Model Use of Force Policy

The Counted – People killed by police in the US

2020-06-17 Why 8 Won’t Work: The Failings of the 8 Can’t Wait Campaign and the Obstacle Police Reform Efforts Pose to Police Abolition

Posted in 1994 Crime Bill, justice, police brutality, police brutality victims, police reform, Uncategorized, use of force | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

2020-01-00 Response to DA Diana Becton Opinion Piece! by Michael E. Kerr

Posted on June 9, 2020 by mekorganic

2019-12-10 Opinion: Right decision not to prosecute cop in Pittsburg death – Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton explains the legal standard she applied to make the call

If any average person had admittedly shot and killed someone, there would be an uproar by the public and media, if the “killer” was not prosecuted in court for at least the minimum of involuntary manslaughter if not more depending on the circumstances. And they would be behind bars with a significantly large bail out of reach of most people until trial.

The police, however, can willfully kill people; never spend a moment in jail; never be, themselves or witnesses, interrogated by independent investigators at the time of the crime; be fully supported by the “Mafia like” code of silence of the police union and fellow officers, and then fully expect the DA to accept the conclusions of the police in house investigation “cover-up”. Usually, some public embarrassment and a paid leave of absence (vacation) will be the officer’s only punishment. It is rare for a police officer to be fired and ever rarer for any level of trial let alone conviction.

After often years of civil court struggles by the family; the government, insurance company and tax payers pay the settlement (hush) money to make things all okay! But money is never enough to erase the pain of loosing a family member.

It is not the prosecutorial standard “proof beyond a reasonable doubt”, but the public’s blind sacred faith and hero worship of the police that keeps police from really being prosecuted! No jury will convict no matter what the evidence is! President Trump said he could kill someone in broad daylight and his supporters would still support him. It is like that everyday for the police!

Woe is the DA who would actually charge a police officer and take him to court. The Police “Mafia” will certainly publicly attack with vengeance the DA at the next election if not sooner. Now, that is how our criminal justice system actually works! It is a system the public needs to understand and reject. The sooner the better!

Posted in District Attorney, justice, legal system, police brutality, police reform, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Diana Showman

Posted on June 9, 2020 by mekorganic

The parents of a San Jose woman killed by police after she allegedly threatened to kill her family are demanding answers and a full investigation by the district attorney’s office.

Diana Showman, 19, was fatally shot by an officer outsider her home after coming out holding a black power drill. Police were responding to reports of a woman holding an “uzi-type weapon” in the Blossom Hill Road neighborhood.

Family said Diana struggled with mental health issues. Her parents said trained officers should take that into consideration and not resort to lethal force. “She was a good girl — she had challenges, we loved her,” said Vickie Showman, Diana’s mother. I want the police to be more careful. I want them to be more compassionate.”

Police in response said officers are sympathetic and point out many cops, including the one who shot Diana have training in dealing with the mentally ill. But police said officers in this case had seconds to respond to Diana’s actions.

On the morning of Aug. 12, 2014, 19-year-old Diana Showman called 911 and told the operator she had an “uzi” and was going to shoot her mother and brother if police did not respond to her home, according to the DA’s report. In a phone call that lasted more than 20 minutes, Showman reportedly told the dispatch operator that her family members were locked in one of the home’s rooms. In fact, Showman was alone in the house and had no gun.

Police officers arrived at the Blossom Hill Road home and ordered Showman to come out and surrender. She was seen on witness video of the incident holding a large black object that police believed was a gun, but actually was a spray-painted power drill. While officers, guns drawn, ordered her to drop the object, Showman walked back and forth in a “catatonic” state while at times raising the drill and pointing it at officers. She also held a cell phone in her other hand but dropped it at some point.

San Jose police Officer Wakana Okuma, who had training to deal with people suffering from mental health issues, took the lead in instructing Showman to drop the weapon. After walking back and forth several times, Showman reportedly approached Okuma and raised the drill to point it at the officer. Okuma yelled, “Stop it. Stop it right there,” before firing one fatal round from her AR-15 rifle into Showman’s chest. Showman was pronounced dead at a hospital less than two hours after making the 911 call.

The Showmans told San Jose Inside that police repeatedly kept them in the dark the day of the shooting. Neither were at the scene of the incident, but both were taken in for questioning and had their cell phones confiscated during this time. Jim Showman called the police treatment “cruel,” saying officers failed to inform him his daughter had been pronounced dead for an extended period of time.
“It was horrible and insensitive,” said Clark, the family’s attorney. “There has to be better ways to interact with parents who are going through a crisis like this.”

Showman Family Files Wrongful Death Civil Rights Lawsuit against San Jose Police Department

Vickie Showman speaks about her daughter Diana’s disabilities, after Diana’s death from an officer 

Parents of Mentally Unstable Woman Killed by San Jose Police Criticize Report Clearing Officer

Diana Marie Showman Obituary

Parents of Woman Fatally Shot by San Jose Police Demand Full Investigation 

Park Bench dedicated for SJPD Shooting Victim

San Jose Parents Speak Out about Life death of WomanShot and Killed by Police While Holding a Drill

.

Police Brutality Martyrs

.

Specific Issues Index

from Creating Better World

Posted in corruption, mental disorders, mental health, police brutality, police brutality victims | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Mario Romero

Posted on June 9, 2020 by mekorganic

In the early morning hours of September 2, 2012 Mario Romero was brutally killed by the Vallejo Police Department as he and his brother-in-law sat in front of their home on their way to return to their wives and children. However, before they were able to leave their car, they were sprayed with bullets by bloodthirsty police officers on a mission to seek and destroy.

The Vallejo police officers admit they never identified themselves, never asked for a driver’s license, insurance or registration. Instead. they told the men to raise their hands at the same time they fired upon them with brutality that mirrored the actions of Nazis.

The officers reloaded round after round into their clips as witnesses screamed for them to spare the lives of these two innocent men. They continued to spray the car with bullets, living out a scene from a video game, jumping up on the car’s hood.

Vallejo Police Officer who murdered Mario Romero has been identified

Vallejo Police Defend Shooting Man With Pellet Gun 31 Times

Justice 4 Mario Romero, 23, killed by Vallejo PD on 9-2-12 

Justice for Mario Romero, killed by cops 

Vallejo Cops Not Drug Tested After They Kill Someone – Mario Romero 

.

Police Brutality Martyrs

.

Specific Issues Index

from Creating Better World

Posted in corruption, police brutality, police brutality victims | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

James Rivera

Posted on June 9, 2020 by mekorganic

On the morning of July 22, 2010 at around 11:30, 16 year old James Rivera was assassinated in premeditated murder, according to his family and witnesses.

According to James Rivera’s mother police came to her house late at night/early morning before the murder and terrorized the family. Police held guns at 2 even younger children and told them they were going to kill him.

Later, according to friends, he was pulled over then released and then chased. As he crashed into a fence and made a u turn , police rammed the back of the blue van which caused the van to go out of control. The van went onto a lawn of a corner house on Salters Dr. and Bancroft Way, finally crashed straight into the garage wall where the van seemed to be lodged into.

Officers exited their vehicles and asked James to exit the van twice but 2 seconds later they began to shoot. Over 30 rounds have been estimated to be found. They executed those rounds with 9mm handguns and fully automatic M-16 assault riffles.

Witnesses say that the ambulance arrived with out their sirens and left without them, as if there was no urgency. The people believe that he was dead at the scene. They saw officers pull him out and slap his face and then do nothing.

Reporters are saying that police stated the pursuit began at 10:30 after finding the van that had been part of a carjacking with a shotgun. It has not been said if this was the van, and the police do not mention any previous encounters with James Rivera. The media has yet to report the truth, i know we heard the people speak the truth and that’s not what they are printing.

Oscar Grant Committee

Justice for James Rivera; Police Murder in Stockton, Ca.

City of Stockton Settles Cop Killing Case with Family for $395,000

Family could receive $300K from SJ in officer-involved shooting death

16 year old James Rivera murdered by Stockton Police – YouTube

After 22 years, Bay Area man sentenced to life for murder may walk free

.

Police Brutality Martyrs

.

Specific Issues Index

from Creating Better World

Posted in corruption, police brutality, police brutality victims | Tagged , , | Leave a comment