fourteenth-report.pdf

Independent Monitoring Team Fourteenth Status Report of the Independent Monitor Delphine Allen, et al., v. City of Oakland, et al. July 31, 2009 to January 13, 2010 Page 54 relevant personnel on Training Bulletin III-S, In-Custody Ingestion of Narcotics. The IMT has confirmed that the Department has trained over 95% of relevant personnel on General Order B- 12. In addition, during the tenth reporting period, one of the compliance standards for this task was lowered from 95% to 90%. The new use of force reporting policies represent a significant improvement over prior policy which did not require officers to report most uses of force. Consistent with contemporary law enforcement practices, the new policies require OPD officers to report all significant levels of force, including, for example, hand strikes, use of Tasers or OC spray, and pointing firearms at an individual. The new policies also require officers to summon their supervisors to the scene when certain levels of force are used or there is an allegation that such force was used. Until the eleventh reporting period, the IMT refrained from conducting a formal audit of OPD’s compliance with the new use of force reporting and investigation provisions in order to provide the Department an opportunity to adjust to the new policies and procedures. During this learning period, OPD identified a number of ways to improve the policies and procedures. As a result, as discussed above, it negotiated several changes to the NSA’s use of force provisions and further revised its use of force reporting and investigation policies. During the eleventh reporting period, we continued to work with OPD to fully implement its new use of force reporting and investigative process. In addition, the IMT provided a day-long training to OPD supervisors and commanders regarding use of force investigations. During the eleventh reporting period, the IMT conducted a compliance assessment of Task 24. We found OPD in compliance with all of the requirements of this task. Task 24.1 requires OPD personnel to notify their supervisors as soon as practicable following any reportable use of force or allegation of excessive use of force. It also requires personnel to report force on the appropriate forms. Based on the use of force investigative reports and supplemental materials reviewed, personnel notified their supervisors and properly reported the force used in 96% of the cases we reviewed. In the cases that were out of compliance, supervisors were notified but not as soon as practicable. This appears to have been due, at least in part, to a lack of understanding of OPD’s use of force reporting policies. Task 24 also requires supervisors to respond to the scene upon notification of certain levels of force in order to conduct a use of force investigation. Supervisors responded as required in 98% of the cases we reviewed. The remaining requirements of Task 24 relate to notification of OPD’s Homicide and Internal Affairs Divisions and the District Attorney’s Office and City Attorney’s Office when officers fire their weapons at suspects or use force that results in death or injury likely to result in death. We found that OPD notified Homicide and Internal Affairs as required in each of the officer-involved shooting cases reviewed. Likewise, although there were issues with documentation, we found that OPD notified both the District Attorney’s Office and the City Attorney’s Office as required by the Settlement Agreement. Our assessment included several recommendations to assist OPD to remain in compliance with Task 24. These recommendations included providing periodic refresher