After two and a half years, the city of San Diego has a new Commission on Police Practices.
The commission, selected by the city council, will review complaints against the San Diego Police Department, shootings involving officers and in-custody deaths, and will make recommendations to the Chief of Police.
The commission's 25 members represent not only the city council districts, but also low to moderate-income people and youth. The group, which replaces the Community Review Board, was formed after 75% of San Diegans voted to pass Measure B in 2020.
“I thank you for this day finally coming. It’s been many years and I’m happy we’re here,” Andrea St. Julian, with San Diegans for Justice said.
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The San Diego Police Officers Association said in part it, “firmly believes that police officers, like all citizens, are entitled to due process within our legal system.” It said it stands with most of the commissioners selected, but it said a few of them seem to approach their roles as, “more anti-police activists than as neutral arbiters.” Adding that, “Such bias can undermine the overall effectiveness of the commission’s work and skew its outcomes.”
The Union did not specify which members it was referring to.
"Out of the 3,000 people that work for the police department, the great vast majority do their job and do them well and we would be in trouble without them. On the other hand, we also want to remember that not everybody acts properly, and those times when people get out of order those people need to be appropriately responded to,” Clovis Honoré, who was elected for the Commission at-large said.
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The city said it's unclear when the newly-formed commission will begin reviewing cases. The next steps will involve background checks, training, and voting on policies and procedures.
