HomeMy WebLinkAbout6/16/2020 Item Amendment A, Green
From:Kelly Green <
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Police Policy
Hello all:
Following Carlyn’s complaint last meeting, I won’t be forwarding a full form letter.
However, the use of Lexipol policies without explanation is clearly an issue. Use of any police policy without explanation
is unacceptable when it so often results in trauma on our residents. I’m speaking not of the brutality shown in other
cities, nor even of the unnecessary use of force just two weeks ago. I speak of the fear instilled in folks during routine
traffic stops here, in our town.
Heavily armed people are visually violent, especially when trained to view all others as potential criminals and ‘bad
guys’. At the absolute least, citizens should get to know how their law enforcement officers are being trained. What are
our tax dollars doing to make this force helpful, not terrorizing. Because they are OUR officers.
Regardless of where those policies come from, they should be open and up for debate among local political participants.
Additionally,
Chief Cantrell’s memo does not answer some fundamentally critical questions:
Who issued the order to unleash chemical weapons on unarmed civilians who were peacefully
exercising their First Amendment rights?
Why weren’t the de-escalation tactics touted in the Chief’s memo employed on June 4.
SLOPD has not agreed to ban the use of chemical weapons in the future. Why won’t the City be
explicit about forbidding us of such weaponry?
It’s outrageous that officers should be permitted to shoot at moving vehicles under any
circumstances. Why won’t the City ban this practice?
The memo repeatedly cites the training requirements of SB 230 but does not state whether those
requirements have been met. SLOPD should provide the data documenting who received training and
when, rather than just citing unverifiable statistics.
Heidi, I appreciate your willingness to so quickly declare systemic racism a health emergency, as the nation catches on.
Council, that’s not enough without enacting the rest of Wednesday’s demands. There should not be violent chemical
weapons available to the police force to use — not a matter of when is it appropriate, it shouldn’t be an option. It
shouldn’t be reachable as an option. Anything deemed too violent to use in war is never acceptable to use against your
own people. Police officers must be reminded in their trainings that we are their own people. Those they supposedly
serve and protect are not other, we are one community.
Law enforcement, in this city, needs to be proving to the community that they can do their job without harming us.
We’re done being scared.
Thank you for your time.
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