Petaluma Policing – Following 21st Century Policing Model

WE ARE GUARDIANS.  HERE IS OUR PHILOSOPHY.

As your Chief of Police, representing all Petaluma Police Officers and professional staff, I have related our outrage and sorrow regarding the criminal actions of police officers at the Minneapolis Police Department that led to the death of George Floyd.  In light of this incident and others, all segments of our society have inquired about policies that reduce the need for police use of force.

Your Police Department adopted and implemented the principles and best practices from Former President Barack Obama‘s Task Force Report on 21st Century Policing when it was released in 2015. The report focused on six themes and six pillars.

THEMES

1. Changing the Culture of Policing
2. Embracing Community Policing
3. Ensuring Fair and Impartial Policing
4. Building Community Capital
5. Paying Attention to Officer Wellness and Safety
6. Utilizing Technology

PILLARS

1. Building Trust and Legitimacy
2. Policy and Oversight
3. Technology and Social Media
4. Community Policing and Crime Reduction
5. Training and Education
6. Officer Safety and Wellness

HOW WE IMPLEMENT THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE REPORT

• We immediately provided the report to our entire staff and we have used it as a guiding document as we consider changes in how we provide our public safety services and function as an organization.
• This report, which includes Procedural Justice and Police Legitimacy, are used for all supervisory and command level promotions.
• This report has widely been viewed as a recipe for police leaders and elected officials everywhere to consider for police reform, and I am proud to say we have adopted the recommendations that would apply to our Department.

WE ARE LEADERS - HOW WE FOLLOW ALL ADOPTED LAWS

Since 2015, California has been leading the way and providing a model for national efforts passing a number of policing transparency measures into law. CLICK HERE to learn more about these laws and how we incorporate them into our work.

OUR PLEDGE TO ADDRESS USE OF FORCE IN PETALUMA

On June 3, 2020, President Obama called on Mayors to “take the pledge to address police use of force policies in their cities. This can be found at https://www.obama.org/mayor-pledge/.  Petaluma Mayor Teresa Barrett signed President Obama’s commitment to action on police use of force.

The Mayor and I have committed:

• REVIEW our police use of force policies
• ENGAGE our community by including a diverse range of input, experiences, and stories in our review
• REPORT the findings of our review to our community and seek feedback
• REFORM our community’s police use of force policies.

HOW WE FOLLOW THE 8 USE OF FORCE POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

President Obama’s website lists eight points surrounding police use of force policies that are drawn from the Police Use of Force Project and The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.

The Petaluma Police Department incorporates all of the listed suggestions and is constantly updating policies to further enhance them.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW WE FOLLOW THE EIGHT (8) USE OF FORCE POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS.

HOW WE HAVE INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY TAKEN STEPS TO ENGAGE IN DIVERSITY, EQUALITY, AND INCLUSIVITY (DEI) EFFORTS

As an organization we are committed to organizational excellence through continued training and community engagement.  Below is a complete summary of internal training officers receive all the way from the police academy to present day related to DEI.  Following the internal summary, we have provided the external summary for your information and reference.

CLICK HERE to read our summary report on our efforts to address DEI.