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 69 OPD installed kiosks in the report writing room and Internal Affairs that can be used to reviewing in-car video footage. OPD also started to use the footage to review misconduct complaints and critical incidents such as vehicle pursuits. During the past year, as discussed as an area of concern in our last status report, OPD’s progress in implementing the in-car camera system has stalled. While OPD purchased approximately 101 cameras, according to OPD, only 45 of them were made operational in OPD vehicles. Due to vendor installation problems and attrition, as of June 2009, only 30-35 cameras remained operational. The original vendor went out of business and OPD is negotiating with a new company to complete the installation of cameras. According to OPD, however, completion of this process may take several months. While OPD has some minimal ability to repair camera equipment, it reports that it does not have adequate support for servicing cameras that malfunction or break. In-car video cameras are an important risk management and officer safety tool. They have the added benefit of promoting transparency and community confidence. The cameras are able to document officer interactions with civilians, to capture video evidence of criminal conduct, and to document officer adherence or non-adherence to OPD policies and procedures. The cameras also assist officers in documenting their activities during contacts, arrests, and citations. This is why law enforcement agencies across the country are using them with increasing frequency and they are viewed by many agencies as critical policing tools. Despite the small number of operational cameras in OPD, the cameras already have been used both to corroborate allegations of misconduct and to exonerate officers accused of wrongdoing. Video captured by the cameras has provided irrefutable evidence to investigators, saving them both time and money in investigation costs. Actual footage from the cameras also has been used for training purposes for OPD officers to demonstrate proper and improper police tactics. Despite all of these benefits, this important risk management tool has never been fully implemented and is in danger of disappearing altogether. We continue to urge the City to assist OPD in fully implementing the in-car video system as soon as possible. B. Reporting Procedures (Tasks 33–39; S.A. VI.) Section VI of the Settlement Agreement, Tasks 33–39, requires OPD to change or enhance reporting procedures in a variety of areas in order to bolster officer accountability. The Settlement Agreement imposes new requirements for how misconduct, uses of force, and detainee transports are reported. The Settlement Agreement makes it clear that retaliation for reporting misconduct cannot be tolerated, making dismissal the presumptive disciplinary penalty for even subtle retaliation. In addition, the Settlement Agreement spells out when an officer must report being arrested, sued, or otherwise involved in litigation. This section of the Settlement Agreement also requires OPD to begin recording data about every individual and vehicle stopped by OPD officers, permitting tracking of trends in stops, discriminatory or otherwise. Each of the seven tasks in this section was due during the first reporting period. During the first reporting period, OPD developed compliant policies for two of the tasks: Task 34,