seventeenth-quarterly-report.pdf

Seventeenth Quarterly Report of the Independent Monitor for the Oakland Police Department April 28, 2014 Page 37 During our November 2013 site visit, we again met with OPD command personnel and OIG to discuss ongoing issues in the Department’s use of force reports and their supervisory reviews, and the Force Review Boards (FRB)/Executive Force Review Boards. We also reminded the Department of our continued concern with the lack of adequate justification in citizen encounters that lead to an investigated use of force. We continue to encourage OPD command personnel to pay close attention to these issues. During this reporting period, the sample we requested for review (90 total) included: seven Level 2; 10 Level 3; and 73 Level 4 reports completed between October 1, and December 31, 2013. Task 24.1 requires that members/employees notify their supervisor as soon as practicable following any reportable use of force or allegation of excessive use of force (compliance standard: 95%). To assess this subtask, we reviewed the UOF reports, crime reports (when applicable), and Computer Assisted Dispatch (CAD) purges for all of the force incidents in our dataset. The documentation for all of the incidents we reviewed was in compliance with this requirement. Level 4 uses of force are self-reporting, and consequently, less documentation is required than for Level 1, 2, and 3 incidents. DGO K-4, Section VI A.1., states that involved personnel shall notify and brief their supervisors immediately or as soon as practicable. In 89 of the 90 incidents we reviewed, a supervisor was promptly notified regarding the force incident. In the one incident in which the supervisor notification was not prompt, the notification took one hour and 48 minutes; however, the supervisor reviewing the case identified the supervisor notification issue in the report reviews and took the corrective action to address the deficiency. The supervisor counseled the officer and placed documentation in the officer’s Supervisory Notes Files. Based on the corrective action taken for the aforementioned case, OPD has a 100% compliance rate with this subtask. OPD is in compliance with Task 24.1. Task 24.2 requires that in every reportable use of force incident, every member/employee on the scene of the incident at the time the force was used, reports all uses of force on the appropriate form, unless otherwise directed by the investigating supervisor (compliance standard: 95%); and Task 24.3 requires that OPD personnel document, on the appropriate form, every use of force and/or the drawing and intentional pointing of a firearm at another person (compliance standard: 95%). All of the use of force reports, crime reports, and supplemental reports for the incidents in our sample met these requirements. We found that for Level 1 deadly force incidents, this information was contained in the crime and Internal Affairs Division reports; for Level 2 and Level 3 incidents, this information was contained in the use of force reports; and for Level 4 incidents, the information frequently appeared in the actual use of force, crime, or offense reports. Accordingly, we find OPD in compliance with Tasks 24.2 and 24.3. Case3:00-cv-04599-TEH Document979 Filed04/28/14 Page38 of 88