The Berkeley Police Accountability Board (PAB) met on Wednesday, September 25, 2024. This article focuses on the agenda topics that included an Active Bystandership in Law Enforcement (ABLE) briefing presented by the Berkeley Police Department (BPD), an update given by BPD Deputy Chief Jen Tate, and the status of police misconduct complaints.

In the beginning of the meeting PAB Commissioner Kitty Calavita explained that the PAB’s Downtown Task Force Texting Scandal report had been delayed from the Council Agenda until January even though it was released to the public on July 8th. This is because the City Council Agenda and Rules Committee wanted the Public Safety Committee to review the report before adding it to the Council Agenda. Then the Council Agenda Committee has to add it to the Council agenda and the earliest it could be presented to Council would be November 11th, which would be after the election. The PAB agreed it would be best, given this scenario, to wait until a new Council and Mayor are seated in January to present the report and recommendations to Council.

Next, Tate shared details of a recent case of interest: Just after midnight on the 24th, officers responded to a report of a man with a firearm threatening his ex-girlfriend on the 1300 block of Delaware. When officers arrived, the suspect attempted to drive towards them but stopped after being ordered to do so. During a search of the area, a loaded firearm was recovered, and after being read his Miranda rights, the suspect confessed ownership of the weapon and was arrested. Reflecting on the situation, Tate emphasized the importance of such cases, noting how they provide “real-time what-ifs” that help the department assess how to approach the department’s evolving police pursuit policy, which is currently under review by the PAB.

In another incident, BPD responded to a vehicle collision involving a pedestrian and an AC Transit bus near Zachary’s corner. Upon arrival, officers found a man with a head injury, who was quickly transported to Highland Hospital. Initial findings suggested that the bus was turning when the man was crossing the street, and the BPD Traffic Bureau has launched an ongoing investigation into the matter. Tate noted that cases like this raise community concerns around traffic safety and roadway design, and that part of the department’s role is to promptly report such incidents to both the public and the city’s Vision Zero partners, with the goal of reducing injury and fatal collisions.

In terms of community engagement, the BPD’s Community Engagement Bureau recently visited a local elementary school, where they discussed essential bicycle and pedestrian safety tips and highlighted the roles police officers play within the community. Officers explained the difference between emergency and non-emergency situations to help students better understand when and how to contact the department. Tate also mentioned that the bureau is planning a field trip for the students to visit to allow them a closer look at the different divisions within the public safety building and to further enhance their understanding of the police department.

Additionally, Tate shared that September was Pedestrian Safety Month. The department has already conducted four pedestrian safety operations focused on dangerous driving behaviors, such as speeding, illegal turns, failing to yield, and running stop signs, with one more operation planned in the upcoming week.

Moreover, Detective Daniel Morales of the BPD Special Victims Unit and Officer Greg Michalczyk also presented on ABLE training, which prepares officers to intervene to prevent harm and foster a culture of peer intervention among officers. According to Michalczyk, ABLE’s three pillars are to reduce mistakes, prevent misconduct, and promote health and wellness within the community. Officers were shown social experiments illustrating common barriers to intervention, and Morales noted that all BPD officers are required to complete eight hours of in-person training, with two hours of annual training every year after that. He also highlighted the department’s anti-retaliation policy, which aims to ensure that officers who intervene are protected from punishment or retaliation, making it so that they feel more comfortable intervening without fear of potential retribution and therefore fostering a safer environment for officer intervention.

The second agenda item was the discussion and action regarding the presentation of Office of the Director of Police Accountability (ODPA) Police Reviews. The PAB is concerned that there have been several police misconduct complaints that expired before BPD and PAB could review them. The Berkeley Police Manual outlines these policies related to complaints in Policy 1034:Complaint Review Board and Policy 1010: Personnel Complaints. The Police Department is struggling with workload challenges, resource limitations, and officers not being available to attend the hearing meetings. Additionally, BPD officers aren’t required to prioritize PAB related complaint proceedings which leads to a disconnect between the PAB and BPD when working to resolve these complaints. The PAB recommends that Policy 1010 and 1034 be amended to prioritize PAB proceedings. This would also work to build public trust and integrate internal and external review processes.

Next, the PAB talked about their concern with a report from 2023 that showed that only 2,000 of 10,000 emails received by BPD were opened. They did however point out that BPD receives a large amount of marketing emails. On a daily basis BPD on average receives 30 emails with 6 that they can act on. The board discussed solutions and recommended staff check the email inbox at the beginning and end of their shift so that it would be checked 4-6 times a day.

Other agenda items discussed in the meeting included the proposed metrics by Budget & Metrics Subcommittee’s, the proposal to relocate the PAB’s regular meetings back to the North Berkeley Senior Center, and assigning a delegate for the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE) 2024 Conference Elections.

–Si-Jae Teh and Rhetta Lavinder-Hill