Community reacts to police scandal

By Mat Bejarano STAFF WRITER

Community organizers gathered outside San Jose City Hall on Wednesday to demand accountability for the alleged drug trafficking of a San Jose Police Executive.

Joanne Segovia, who served as the executive director of the San Jose Police Officers Association, turned herself in last Friday after being charged with attempting to import fentanyl from overseas, according to a March 31, 2023 ABC 7 article.

Segovia has since been placed on paid leave and faces a maximum of 20 years in prison if convicted according to a March 31, 2023 KTVU article.

Gilroy city councilmember Rebeca Armendariz said Segovia needs to be held accountable as Gilroy is one of the hardest hit communities regarding fentanyl poisoning.

“This is a slap in the face to all of the families working hard to find accountability to keep their families and their children safe,” Armendariz said. “They need to be transparent and they need their feet to be held to the fire. They cannot do this, they cannot poison our families and get away with it.”

Segovia had worked as the executive director of the San Jose Police Officer’s Association for 20 years and had been shipping pills internationally as recently as March 15, 2023 according to the same KTVU article.

Sociology senior Kat Adamson, who serves as a member of Students Against Mass Incarceration said it was important to attend the gathering in order to hold the police department accountable.

“Fentanyl is just devastating our communities,” Adamson said. “Having this large trafficking organization really makes things a lot easier for people to get injured or even die from fentanyl deaths.”

Fentanyl-related deaths in Santa Clara County

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