On Thursday, October 17th, 2024, the Albany Policing Commission held a general meeting. Roll call confirmed the presence of Chair Greg Downs, Members Rebecca Dupuis, Justin Lock, and Peggy McQuaid, with Member Brian Johns absent.

The meeting began with a land acknowledgment of the Lisjan people, followed by the approval of minutes from the July 18th meeting, which was unanimously accepted with no objections.

During public comment, a member of the public, identified as Jeremiah, expressed his concerns about the commission’s agenda, stating it was “sad” because “the only real thing on there” was the election for a vice chair. He criticized the commission for not appearing to engage in meaningful activities. Jeremiah said he submitted five public records requests related to Albany case #22-538, for which he identified himself as a witness. He recounted a recent contact from someone at Golden Gate Fields regarding the case and shared distressing details about a kidnapping incident involving a woman, referred to as Jane Doe, who he said was abducted in April 2022 while at the Albany Target store and sexually assaulted. He criticized the Albany police, who he claimed were involved with deporting the kidnappers, which disallowed Jane Doe to see her day in court, expressing anger at the lack of accountability for the crimes committed against the victim in the criminal justice system

There were no staff announcements. Chair Downs reported reaching out to community members about vacancies on the police commission, noting 1-2 applications had been submitted, with hopes for more.

During the police department’s monthly dashboard report, Dupuis raised concerns about the department not notifying the commission about an assault case.

For the vice chair election, City Clerk Anne Hsu reminded the commission that nominations could be made by any member. Dupuis nominated herself, and no other nominations were made. The commission voted, and Dupuis was elected as vice chair.

Future agenda items included a request from Dupuis for a representative from the police department to explain their response policies. She cited an incident involving her son and his girlfriend, who were mistakenly reported as being in distress while lying on the grass on the Ohlone Greenway. Dupuis called the police response “excessive…embarrassing and humiliating” and expressed a desire to understand the triggers for such a response. Member McQuaid disagreed, asserting that the police had a duty to ensure safety given the report. Downs suggested the commission could request a discussion on police dispatch policy.

Downs also requested a presentation on the adoption and implementation of FLOCK cameras. With no further comments, he announced that the next meeting would be held on November 21st, 2024, at 7 PM, and the meeting was adjourned.

–Si-Jae Teh

Public Records Request

The Criminal Justice Team was concerned about a public comment made at the Albany Policing Commission meeting of October 17.  It was reported that his request for public records had been ignored. To clarify as to how this could happen, a phone call was made to the Albany Police Department.

There is Government Code that determines who can and cannot receive a police report.  Anyone can request a public record which in this case was a police report.  However, if the request is rejected, a reply in the form of a letter is sent to the individual, with the applicable number of the Code stamped on it.  If the inquirer still believes it is in the public’s interest to have access to the records, a “Court Order” from a Superior Court Judge must be obtained.

So, that is how to go forward when a request for public records has been denied.