Petaluma City Council signals support for police oversight

Calls for police oversight remained at the center of an expansive list of recommendations issued this week by a group of Petaluma residents tasked with helping the city address long-simmering tension tied to race, diversity and equity.

City Council members expressed support Monday as the city’s 27-member ad-hoc committee on race relations and policing presented more than 30 recommendations developed over the course of seven months.

But the committee’s work on police oversight, the first measure finalized by the group, dominated the discussion Monday, as city leaders pledged to explore independent, civilian oversight of the police department.

The push for citywide improvements in race relations was spurred by racial justice protests that swept the nation in the wake of police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

After the Petaluma City Council established the ad-hoc Community Advisory Committee in March, the group spent months crafting a list of 31 recommendations that the committee finalized in October.

Along with creating a civilian police oversight committee, final recommendations include building a multicultural center and adopting hiring practices that would make the city’s workforce more racially and culturally diverse.

“It’s bumpy, it’s messy and it’s uncomfortable,” said Tracey Webb, a consultant who was hired to assist the city’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. “The goal is to make all of us feel safe and included in our communities and our organizations.”

The City Council and staff are set to reconvene in January to further discuss how to implement the recommendations.

But it seemed clear during Monday’s meeting that council members are interested in local police oversight efforts.

Council member D’Lynda Fischer said a proposal for a civilian police oversight committee, which would appoint community members to build dialogue surrounding restorative justice and increase ani-bias and de-escalation training , should remain a top priority.

“We know we come from a society where police have a history, and it’s not necessarily to protect the public,” Fischer said. “We want to make sure that our police department is operating in a fashion that is appropriate for our community.”

Council members Dennis Pocekay and Dave King expressed support for civilian oversight for the Petaluma Police Department, but King also suggested a city staff member should also take part in the oversight process so that person can submit reports to the city manager.

Meanwhile, council member Mike Healy suggested, before Petaluma incorporates civilian oversight, a diversity commission should be formed to craft an appropriate model of oversight. Council member Kevin McDonnell agreed with that idea.

“There are numerous different models out there for civilian oversight,” said Healy, the council’s senior incumbent. “So I think starting with a commission and working in that direction might make sense for us.”

Vice Mayor Brian Barnacle added, while oversight is needed, the city should provide the police department with services to address mental and emotional health needs among officers.

“If we’re going to track things like anti-bias, de-escalation training, use of weapons, things like that, I’d also add in the prevalence of accessing mental health resources,” Barnacle said. “And just making sure that we’re doing whatever we can to make sure we’re doing right by the officers, to make sure we’re helping them to process the trauma they endure on a daily basis.”

Mayor Teresa Barrett, who signaled her agreement with police oversight efforts, said local oversight would not necessarily reflect negatively on police officers, but would serve as a way to better shape the relationship between police and the community.

Petaluma Police Chief Ken Savano signaled his support for the idea of creating more ways to strengthen the confidence that the community has toward its police. While he did not outright express support for civilian oversight, Savano said that staff should “choose an oversight model that is right for Petaluma.”

“We look forward to researching and exploring all of these options to build an even higher level of trust and competence in the community we serve,” Savano said.

Also in question is the creation of a multicultural center, which the ad-hoc committee envisions as a partnership with schools to host events and diversity education opportunities. The committee was open to the idea of working out of existing facilities, including the Lucchesi Community Center or the Phoenix Theater.

“This is not just a casual drop-in place,” Webb said during her presentation. “This is a place that has meaning, and can become the symbol of this work. So it is not just a place where you go to try food from different cultures, but you have real conversation, and multicultural and multi-dimensional connection.”

Council members sought more details and further discussion on the topic in the coming year.

To date, the city’s efforts to bolster diversity and inclusion have cost $67,000.

The committee also recommended that city officials examine its hiring process so that more people are included in its application, interview and recruitment process.

To recruit more people from a wide range of backgrounds, the committee asked city officials post job openings in at least 50 LGBTQ++ groups, groups that serve people of color, as well as at colleges.

The recommendations came just as the city welcomes its newest employees - Human Resources Director Charla Freckmann and Climate Action Manager Rihanna Frank - who are both white.

But City Manager Peggy Flynn said the city is working toward greater equity in hiring practices.

“With all the recruitments we are starting to do, we are starting to look at where we are, promoting those positions, looking at different ways of interviewing and fortifying who we have on our panels,” said city manager Peggy Flynn, as she discussed other internal training that is currently underway. “We’re also talking in active conversation with our HR team about retention - how do we create a culture in the organization that retains those diverse candidates once we’re successful in attracting them.”

Amelia Parreira is a staff writer for the Argus-Courier. She can be reached at amelia.parreira@arguscourier.com or 707-521-5208.