Having served in law enforcement for
decades, I know that the most critical component in solving crime is the
public’s trust. When the community doesn’t trust the police, they don’t come
forward to tell us what they saw or report crimes as a victim. Contrary to what
you see on TV, it’s almost impossible to figure out the “whodunit” part when no
one will talk to the police. To restore trust in high-crime communities, a new
California law allows the public to view certain police personnel records
related to serious officer misconduct. But, regrettably, many police
departments are dragging their feet on complying with the law, seriously
damaging this opportunity to forge stronger relationships with the communities
they serve.
In California and across the country,
trust in the legitimacy of our laws and law enforcement has been undermined
time and time again by police misconduct and a concurrent lack of transparency
that drives people to imagine the worst. Many high-crime communities are fed up
with police treating family members as criminals and have all but given up on
cooperating. Without assistance from witnesses and crime survivors, those of us
who serve our communities faithfully and abide by high ethical standards
struggle to live up to our sworn responsibilities. When we don’t hold our own
accountable for their wrongdoing, it gets harder and harder for the rest of us
to do our jobs.
SB 1421 promised to restore community
trust in police by being more transparent about officer misconduct. Initial
disclosures under SB 1421 show the importance of sharing some personnel records
for officers involved in shootings and serious misconduct. In Los Angeles,
recently unsealed records revealed that a sheriff’s deputy with a history of
dishonesty dating back to 2003 had testified in dozens of cases since then. The
deputy had been disciplined for punching a suspect several times and then lying
about it. But prosecutors, defense attorneys, and jurors never received this
information, which misled them about the deputy’s credibility as a witness.