Police ShootingsBy: Eva Chu, ACLU Chair
Published: Press Democrat March 29, 2007
Following the death of Jeremiah Chass, a 16-year-old honor student shot eight times by Sonoma County Deputy Sheriffs while experiencing a mental breakdown, the public awaits the findings of the investigation by the Santa Rosa Police Department to provide some understanding as to why the pattern of mentally ill people being shot by law enforcement in Sonoma County continues and how it can be stopped.
Unfortunately, what many do not realize is that the “investigation” is not being conducted to seek answers to questions the public is asking. The “investigation” is merely an exploration of criminal issues limited to answer the question, “Did the officers commit a crime in taking the life of this boy?” Santa Rosa Police Department’s conclusion will then be passed on to the District Attorney who will review the report to answer questions of law, “Should these officers be prosecuted for unlawfully taking a life?”
What is missing is an independent investigation to provide insights into why this happened and how to prevent such tragedies in the future.
Our “system” of reviewing deaths and injuries committed by law enforcement is cloaked in secrecy in which selected information is slowly leaked to the press by both the agency being investigated and the investigators. The public is prevented from having input into how the investigations are conducted or what solutions might be implemented to change training and procedures to assure that these tragic events do not keep occurring.
There can be no “independent” investigation when one local law enforcement agency “investigates” another local law enforcement agency. This system fails to provide an independent and comprehensive review of all the circumstances and causes of the event by an investigator that has no vested interest an outcome. All of Sonoma’s police agencies work together in numerous multi-agency task forces and their chiefs work together to coordinate policies as the Sonoma County Law Enforcement Chief’s Association. All have a shared interest in keeping on good terms with each other and with the public they serve. A finding of misconduct by one agency raises questions as to the professionalism of all. Jeremiah’s shooting is being investigated by Santa Rosa Police officers at the same time Sonoma County Sheriff deputies are investigating Santa Rosa officers shooting of a murder suspect outside a Santa Rosa motel. Such an arrangement cannot assure the public that the results of these investigations would not be different if an independent outside investigator were conducting them.
As a result of eight killings in Sonoma County by law enforcement in a two and one-half year period, the California Advisory Board of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission held hearings in Santa Rosa to examine “Community Concerns About Law Enforcement in Sonoma County.” In May 2000 the Commission issued its report. Among its recommendations were that the law enforcement departments should increase training in the handling of suspects who may be experiencing a psychiatric, drug or alcohol episode and that “the cities of Rohnert Park and Santa Rosa and the county sheriff require the immediate creation of a civilian review boards.” Unfortunately, these recommendations were not followed, but instead roundly criticized by our law enforcement chiefs.
The result is yet another tragedy. It is time to put into place the recommendations of the Civil Rights Commission and set up independent community review boards. Only with a new independent “investigation system,” one that answers the questions that need to be answered when our law enforcement officers use violence and looks at what changes need to be made in the training and procedures used, can we ensure that Jeremiah Chass will be the last person with psychiatric problems killed by law enforcement in Sonoma County.