FEATURED COLUMNIST
Criminal Justice Council: Police Use of Force By Zach Friend, Supervisor, Second District
Editor’s note: Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart says, “Good policy drives good law enforcement.” In Santa Cruz County, the four cities and the county all have policies that shooting from a moving vehicle and chokeholds and require officers to use de-escalation and intervene if they see the use of excessive force. ••• he Criminal Justice Council of Santa Cruz County recently released its first report — an analysis of local police agency policies and procedures — in particular around use of force. This regional transparent analysis is believed to be the first such comparative regional look into these policies in the nation. Here is an overview: What is the Criminal Justice Council? he CJC was created over 30 years ago in an effort to provide increased coordination and cooperation between criminal justice partners — government, non-profit, educational and others — to reduce youth involvement in gangs. The CJC focuses discussions on prevention and intervention as well as reentry programs — rather than simply a suppression model. For example, the CJC has held a conference on the role of women and girls in gangs, which afforded criminal justice and community service providers an opportunity to hear from experts on the role of women and girls in gangs as well as a panel of young women with lived experience in gangs. The CJC also has worked with school districts, nonprofits and others on intervention and prevention programs to reduce youth involvement in gangs. From supporting educational efforts, nonprofit sporting leagues, conferences that provide viewpoints from those with lived experience and more. The CJC does these events with volunteers and small contributions from the member agencies. Who is on the CJC? ocal police chiefs, the County Sheriff, the Chief Probation Officer, District Attorney, leadership of two local nonprofits, two local judges, the public defender, the County Superintendent
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of Schools, the president of Cabrillo College, two County supervisors, elected representatives from the local cities and more participate. It’s a diverse group that, having participation from local education and nonprofit social program providers, helps create discussions beyond back-end suppression activity toward front-end prevention opportunities. I serve as Chair of the CJC and other members of the executive board include the County Superintendent of Schools, the District Attorney, leadership from the courts, a member of the Scotts Valley City Council and the Watsonville Police Chief. What did the CJC focus on this year? his year, the CJC decided to focus our efforts on law enforcement policies and procedures -- in particular around use-of-force, privacy (technology), information release, independent oversight and a small look on behavioral health response (next year the focus will be exclusively on behavioral health and the criminal justice system). The purpose is to see where there is alignment, where there are gaps and where there are opportunities to improve. While it was not a comprehensive look at local agency policies it was an in-depth look at specific elements -- and provides a transparent overview of the policies that work to ensure officers respond safely and responsibly in key situations. As we noted in the report, while the purpose was to evaluate alignment of policies, the goal is not to necessarily have a standardized set of policies across jurisdictions. Local agencies and the communities they serve may have reasons why they have specific policies, don’t have specific policies or have policies that differ from other agencies within the county. This analysis is to provide a transparent look at those policies and provide a starting point for evaluation by local law enforcement, elected leaders and the communities they serve. The CJC created an ad hoc committee to work on the analysis and partnered with Applied Survey Research to produce
the report. All local law enforcement agencies — Capitola, Scotts Valley, Santa Cruz, Watsonville and the Sheriff’s Office — participated voluntarily, openly, and transparently to provide the policies and answer any questions. What Were the Key Findings? ne is that there is widespread policy alignment between law
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enforcement jurisdictions in Santa Cruz County. For example, on nearly every policy issue regarding use of force, technological deployment and release of information to the public, local law enforcement agencies had updated and modern policies. “Friend” page 26
Reality TV
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1. “Oh, my!” 5. Say untruth 8. Left or right 12. Spiritual leader 13. *”____ing Up with Marie Kondo” 14. Great reviews 15. Related 16. Double reed woodwind 17. Fourth deck 18. *”The ____ ____,” MTV’s trailblazing reality show 20. Affirm with confidence 21. I to Greeks, pl. 22. ____ Baba 23. Powerball and such 26. Swaggering show of courage
30. Spermatozoa counterparts 31. Based on two 34. Has a mortgage 35. ____ dog, gin and grapefruit juice cocktail 37. DNA transmitter 38. *”The Real Housewives” is full of this type of conflict 39. Write on a tombstone 40. Unwholesome atmosphere 42. Hairpiece, slangily 43. Stitched again 45. Unit of electric current flow 47. Solemn pledge 48. Like nose during hayfever 50. Uncouth one 52. *”Who ____ ____ ____ a Millionaire?”
56. Front of cuirass 57. Sixth month of civil year 58. “Jack and the Beanstalk” instrument 59. Travesty 60. Italian money 61. *”Vanilla Ice Goes Amish” and “Cleveland Hustles” state 62. *”____house Masters” on Animal Planet 63. *Not Khloé or Kourtney 64. Common allergens 1. 2. 3. 4.
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Gelatin substitute Gospel writer “Tosca” song, e.g. Like sunroom, hopefully 5. Balance in the sky
6. *”Pop ____” and “American ____,” pl. 7. Gave the once-over 8. *”Outwit, Outplay, Outlast” show 9. Not active 10. Point of entry 11. Sixth sense 13. Foot, to a child 14. Aussie bear 19. Buzz Lightyear’s buddy 22. Brow shape 23. *”The Biggest ____” 24. Egg-shaped 25. Same as talcums 26. Civil rights concern 27. In the know 28. Raise objections 29. Missouri River tributary 32. Like a desert 33. Crime scene evidence 36. *Singing competition (2 words)
38. Curses 40. Feline sound 41. “I think I can, I think I can...”, e.g. 44. “For better or for ____” 46. “Monty ____’s Flying Circus” 48. r in a circle, pl. 49. Deprive of weapons 50. *Star of wilderness reality shows, ____ Grylls 51. Fairytale beast 52. Street-crossing word 53. Hawaiian island 54. Londoner, e.g. 55. Narrative poem 56. Back of a boat © Statepoint Media
Answers on 31 »
www.tpgonlinedaily.com Capitola Soquel Times / December 2021 / 25
