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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-10-01 CAC Minutes (2)MINUTES A REGULAR MEETING OF THE COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE CHULA VISTA POLICE DEPARTMENT Webex Virtual Meeting 315 FOURTH AVENUE October 1, 2020 CHULA VISTA, CA 91910 9:30 am Roxana Kennedy Chief of Police MEMBERS: Ray Aragon Martin Barros Gustavo Bidart Norma Cazares Patty Chavez Takisha Corbett Jose de la Garza Henrietta Harb Marla Kingkade Peter Mabrey Anthony Millican Gerry Sablan STAFF: Captain Vern Sallee Captain Phil Collum Captain Eric Thunberg ASM Jonathan Alegre DCA Carol Trujillo SAS Cathy Miller Pursuant to the Governor of the State of California's Executive Order N-29-20, and in the interest of public health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the Chief’s Community Advisory Committee and staff participated in this meeting via teleconference. All votes were taken by roll call. CALL TO ORDER: 9:45 AM ROLL CALL: Other City Department’s Present: Cristina Hernandez (City Clerk), Courtney Chase (Human Resources) and Nicole Carnahan (City Deputy Attorney) CAC Members Present: Ray Aragon Martin Barros, Norma Cazares, Patty Chavez, Jose de la Garza, Marla Kingkade, Takisha Corbett, Henrietta Harb, Anthony Millican and Gerry Sablan CAC Members Not Present: Gustavo Bidart and Peter Mabrey Staff Present: Chief Roxana Kennedy, Captain Phil Collum, Captain Eric Thunberg, ASM Jonathan Alegre, Lt. Miriam Foxx, DCA Carol Trujillo and SAS Cathy Miller Captain Collum opened the meeting and Chief Kennedy reviewed the Webex instructions. The meeting was video streamed live on U-Tube. PUBLIC COMMENTS: No comments from “e-comments” after the allotted time. No comments by email to Captain Collum after the allotted time. AGENDA ITEMS: 1. Approval of Minutes (August 6, 2020) No comments received from “e- comments” after the allotted time. No comments by email to Captain Collum after the allotted time. CAC members were asked if they had any changes to make to the August 6, 2020 minutes. Motion made by CAC member Cazares to approve the minutes and seconded by CAC member Sablan. A vote was conducted that 10 showed in favor, 0 opposed and CAC members Bidart and Mabrey were absent. 2 2. Chief’s Comments: Retirement of Captain Sallee and Update on Community Dialogue Chief Kennedy stated Captain Sallee is retiring Friday, October 9, 2020 and moving to the corporate industry working with drones. Captain Sallee was the driving force for the CVPD drone program. Filling Captain Sallee’s position will be Captain Don Redmond, who has worked with the department for over 24 years. Captain Redmond has extensive knowledge and experience in the different departments at the PD, one which includes the Professional Standards Unit. Chief Kennedy informed CAC members since December 2016, she has hired 65 new recruits, 26 lateral officers; 65 professional staff and has made 86 promotions. The leadership team continues to ensure the vision and expectations are promoted through all levels during this increase of new personnel. Chief Kennedy shared the Department’s Values and Mission Statement, which has been posted through the department. The Mission Statement is: “The Chula Vista Police Department, in partnership with the community, provides community policing with the highest level of professionalism and transparency. Chula Vista Police Department Employees will provide fair, courteous, and compassionate service to enhance the quality of life in Chula Vista.” The Department’s values are: “Leadership, Respect, Integrity and Accountability.” To build an inclusive department, Chief Kennedy has been speaking to segments of the community with a special emphasis on those that feel marginalized or might have misgivings about police. She reminded CAC members to be actively engaged in the community not only sharing their role as a member but bring concerns of the community to the department. Chief Kennedy continues to meet with groups to have deeper discussions on reform and racism, including personnel within the department. These discussions may be difficult but invaluable. Chief Kennedy thanked CAC members for their continued service in bringing issues to the table in order to continue to connect with the community. A two minute pause was given to see if anyone from the public had any comments on agenda item #2. No comments received from “e-comments” after the allotted time. No comments by email to Captain Collum after the allotted time. Before moving on to agenda item #3, Chief Kennedy recognized Nicole Carnahan, the City’s Deputy City Attorney for the Neighborhood Protection Unit. DDA Carnahan has worked on projects, including the marijuana dispensaries. She invited CAC members to address her unit with any problems or how the community can be better served. 3. Creation of Temporary Sub-Committee to Provide Input on key Department Policies: Captain Collum discussed CAC’s involvement in past policy reviews (i.e. immigration) and will be offering a new opportunity to review additional policies. Because of the current national dialogue; and although the department is progressive and leading in the region; certain current policies can be reviewed to make sure they are the best for the community. Captain Collum would like the subcommittee to review the policies that include de-escalation; duties to intercede; general standards of conduct and use of force. The subcommittee would review the 3 policies and then bring them forward to the Chief and the rest of the Community Advisory as a whole. CAC member Sablan asked about the formation of the subcommittee. Captain Collum said the subcommittee would review the context of the four policies. CAC members Sablan and Corbett volunteered. DDA Carol Trujillo suggested to have a formal motion made to form the subcommittee and then a vote. CAC member Cazares made the motion to form a temporary subcommittee to review the four policies and is interested in reviewing as well. CAC member de la Garza seconded the motion. CAC member Chavez asked if there was a date to start meeting. Captain Collum would like it to start as soon as possible. CAC member Chavez was also interested. There was a two minute pause to allow the public to comment. No comments received from “e-comments” after the allotted time. No comments by email to Captain Collum after the allotted time. Chief Kennedy asked DDA Trujillo to verify the terminology as ad hoc. DDA Trujillo said it is an ad hoc committee. The motion from CAC member Cazares to form an ad hoc committee to review the four policies and seconded by CAC member de la Garza. Members include CAC members Cazares, Corbett, Chavez, and Sablan. A vote was conducted that approved 9 showed in favor (technical issue w/Kingkade – follow up), 0 opposed and CAC members Bidart and Mabrey were absent. Captain Collum asked for clarification with how many can attend since CAC member Kingkade expressed interest but was having technical issues. CAC member Cazares said if the subcommittee did not form a quorum, the count could be five. DCA Trujillo confirmed and the subcommittee will consist of CAC members Cazares, Corbett, Chavez, Kingkade and Sablan. 4. MOUS With Employee Bargaining Groups – HR Manager Courtney Chase gave a brief presentation. In the state of California there is the Meyers, Milias Brown Act provides a reasonable method of resolving disputes regarding wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment between public employers and public employee organizations. Chula Vista has 5 labor groups (Fire Association; Police Officers Association, Engineers Association; Chula Vista Employees; and the Mid Managers Association). When contracts expire the HR department negotiates new contracts but will also meet with the labor groups to discuss current issues regarding policy changes (i.e. COVID issues). CAC Cazares asked HR Manager Chase if each labor group meets all at once or separately, and how often they meet. The meetings are on a “as needed” basis, for example, because of COVID, they are meeting bi-weekly. HR Chase said there will be four of the five contracts on the same cycle, but it just depends on calendar year versus the fiscal year. In closing HR Manager Chase mentioned being the liaison to the Human Relations Commission. The City received for the third year in the row the national score of “100” in Human Rights. Chula Vista was the first city to be designated as a “Welcoming City” and moved from #3 to #1 in the New American Economies to immigrant immigration. 4 Chief Kennedy took a two minute pause to see if anyone from the public had any comments on agenda item #4. No comments received from “e-comments” after the allotted time. No comments by email to Captain Collum after the allotted time. 5. Overview of Background Investigation and Hiring Process . Prior to introducing Lieutenant Miriam Foxx of the Professional Standards Unit (oversees training, hiring, recruit and internal affairs), Chief Kennedy reminded CAC members they are one of the best opportunities to find the right people for the department while also building a partnership with the community. The department’s diversity is good, but she has recently noticed there have been less African American applicants recently. For additional information, the City’s web site has information for those interested in the officer or dispatch positions. The department different media outlets include Chula Vista.org; Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In and Instagram. Because of COVID, recruiting has gone to a virtual platform. The hope is to continue with several social media platforms to increase interest. Officers are also continuing to reach out to the public in their daily contacts for those in the community who might be interested in applying. The cadet program is another tool that can interest the youth in the community. Once COVID restrictions are over; job fairs at different universities will encourage a diverse group of applicants. The CVPD standards of the hiring process are through Peace Officers Standardized Training (POST) which is used by 600 additional agencies. POST standards are from the California State Minimum Standards for Peace Officers, California Government Codes 1029 and 1031. It takes approximately four months in the background process which includes an application; a written exam and a physical agility test. This is followed by an interview with a panel that is comprised of officers and a HR representative. If approved they continue with a background pack et regarding personal history statement, a polygraph, a DMV check; live scan; a DOJ and FBI history; employment check; personal reference checks and neighborhood checks. Once completed they will meet with the chief, who decides if they will go through the academy. They will be given a conditional offer letter and if they pass the medical and psychological tests, they are given a final offer. If they are a recruit they go through the academy and if they are a lateral from another agency, they start immediately. With Captain Sallee’s retirement there will be 28 vacant sworn positions. However, CAC was reminded that 10 of these positions were created from Measure A. When Chief Kennedy started as Chief in December 2016, the department was allowed 229 sworn positions. It has increased to 270. Again, CAC members was encouraged to reach out to their circle of influence to encourage applications. HR Manager Chase mentioned this position gives the rare opportunity to not only have benefits and a retirement plan, but continued training. 5 There is current discussion on if law enforcement personnel should have either a bachelors or master’s degree to be an officer. This restriction might marginalize a certain segment of society. The Chula Vista Police Department create programs to allow employees to get education on the job. The department also provides four times the requirements POST requires. It is also a reminder that one might learn a skill set, but if the heart for service to the community is not there, no amount of education can make one successful. Captain Collum thanked CAC for their prior communication and feedback to the department and wanted to have it clear with recent discussions in national news on unions, the Chula Vista Police Association does not dictate who is hired, held accountable or fired, it is strictly the Chief’s decision. CAC member Cazares thanked Lieutenant Foxx for providing the information. She asked if there is a database that includes how many were lateral hires; how many were recruits; how many have military experience and how many have been recruited through colleges. CAC member Cazares also asked about youth recruitment and the seeds of interest need to be planted as earlier as junior high and to reach out to those assigned to juvenile diversion. The department has seen candidates that have gone through the Otay Ranch High School criminal justice program; the teen academy and the cadet program. Recently the department has been working with the YMCA, but juveniles also need the support and encouragement through their families. There was a two minute pause to allow the public to comment. No comments received from “e-comments” after the allotted time. No comments by email to Captain Collum after the allotted time. Chief Kennedy asked if there were any comments or questions to share. CAC member Sablan asked if there is an established goal of the ethnic composition for hiring police officers. Taken from how the community self identifies, Chief Kennedy gave a few examples: Chula Vista is comprised of 4% African Americans and 61% Hispanics. The department is comprised of 8% African Americans; 32% Hispanics and 53% Caucasians. The goal is our officers should represent our community. The national average for females is 13%, however, Chula Vista has 19%. The meeting concluded 11:09. The next virtual CAC meeting will be 01/07/2021 at 09:30. __________________________________ Cathy Miller Sr. Admin Secretary Office of the Chief of Police