After reading about the efforts to create a new Antioch police oversight board, I believe it’s unnecessary.
With all due respect to my friend Angel Luevano, he’s jumping to conclusions, assuming the lawsuit against the APD and city by the Section 8 African-American women is valid, which is his basis for creating a new police oversight board. We all should wait pending the outcome of that case.
Councilmembers Moore and Rocha, who are supposed to represent all the residents of Antioch, need to be neutral and not take sides prior to the ruling by a judge and/or jury. In this country, you’re assumed innocent until proven guilty. They should do the same. But this is a civil case, not criminal, anyway.
Another board is unnecessary. We already have a Police-Crime Prevention Commission that, if the council wanted, could be given additional oversight responsibilities in reviewing complaints against the police. However, for now, the council fills that role, as complaints against police employees are either legal and/or personnel matters and are handled in closed session. Any resident has the right to file a complaint against any city employee, any time.
Moore’s request is an over-reach of his authority. Only the mayor, in an elected-mayor city, has the power to nominate people to committees and commissions, with approval of the council.
As for wanting this proposed board to have input on hiring a police chief, in a general-law, council-manager city such as Antioch, it’s the city manager’s job to hire all the department heads. The council only hires the city manager and the city attorney. As for rehiring Chief Hyde, it’s only fair he be given a full performance evaluation before doing so.
They’re attempting to make us more like the big cities in the Bay Area, such as Richmond, SF, Berkeley, Oakland and San Jose – all of which are charter cities, which have different powers.
Allen Payton, Antioch
His remarks on that subject are on the edge of Raceist. His soloution is to have them moved to "lower class" nieghborhoods.He and most critics of considering a police commission is off-the-wall. Almost all of opponets are useing "oversite" to describe thier function.If you want to make a commission "scary" make it look like it would "control" police operations. It is the job of ALL council members to LISTEN to all constiuates.If ONE council member has as much power as Payton describes the mayor as having,we are in deep trouble ! ALL council members must work together to etablish the direction we take to improve our city. I applaud the members that LISTEN if they express what they are thinking and why that is a good thing . It is called transparency. Bless you Reggie and Mary.
Mr. Payton only paints a picture of interfearance, but how about coorperation, and civic involvement to make improvement. Investagating citizens issues and working to resolve them without litigation. I guess that opponets can shout "oversiteite" "oversite" "oversite". How about caring and compassion about citizens includingPLV our police force. A commision is not nor will it be a "one-way" group.
Fred Hoskins