HomeMy WebLinkAboutPSC minutes 5-25-17Council Public Safety Committee
May 25, 2017
MINUTES
Members present:
Councilmember Dulce Gutierrez
Councilmember Kathy Coffey
Councilmember Bill Lover
Staff:
City Manager Cliff Moore
Chief Dominic Rizzi, Police
Chief Bob Stewart, Fire
Prosecutor Cynthia Martinez, Legal
Scott Schafer, Public Works
Joe Caruso, Code Administration
Brad Coughenour, SunComm
Terri Croft, Police
The meeting was called to order at 3:02 p.m. Councilmember Gutierrez chaired the
meeting.
1. Approval of minutes of April 27, 2017
It was MOVED by Coffey to approve the minutes of the April 27, 2017 meeting as
presented. Motion was SECONDED by Lover. Motion PASSED unanimously.
New Business
New business was deferred until the arrival of City Manager Moore.
3. Old Business
3.a. Arterial cameras
Martinez presented policies that were obtained from the cities of Colville and
Woodinville. Purchasing Manager Ownby is obtaining pricing from those cities,
however she is currently out on an extended leave. Other considerations for pricing
include working with Pacific Power for electrical needs and installation, and IT Services
for data storage requirements.
Woodinville appropriated $50,000 for their pilot program and staff is awaiting return calls
for detailed information on actual expenditures. Woodinville did not use their system for
real-time surveillance, but viewed footage after the fact for investigative purposes.
Rizzi advised that real-time observation is the most effective, however is costly. Having
the cameras as an investigative tool is better than having nothing.
Lover asked if the city had previously had a similar surveillance system. Rizzi advised
there had been a system, but it was photographic and not video, so it was not
successful.
Martinez stated she would like to have the topic brought back when more information
has been obtained. Rizzi will put the item out on the WASPC information boards to
request information from other agencies.
Lover asked if the cameras used by the private businesses are successful. Rizzi
advised that they were, and that the police receive excellent video from many banks,
convenience stores, and other businesses. Coffey asked if a survey of private sector
cameras could be conducted. Rizzi stated that would be beneficial and recommended a
private entity conduct the survey.
Coffey requested that an e-mail be sent to Downtown Association of Yakima requesting
they conduct the survey.
3.b. Body Cameras
Martinez reported that Seattle had conducted a study of the costs to respond to public
records act requests for body cameras. The legislation allows agencies to charge for
time to produce the video. Seattle calculated their cost to be .60/redaction minute. The
Yakima Police Department has one full-time employee who processes Coban and
expect they would need another full-time position to process body camera requests.
Lover inquired if community members could make blanket requests for a large time
frame. Rizzi advised that the current legislation prohibits that type of request. He
further advised there are limitations on who can be charged for the recordings.
Gutierrez inquired how many FTEs Seattle PD has. That information was unknown.
Lover asked if there was enough value to body cameras to pursue the issue further.
Rizzi advised that even with the camera limitations, when residents complain about
officer conduct, 90% of the time the video will exonerate the officer. Even in incidents
when the officer is not exonerated, that is important information for the department to
have and does have value. The question becomes how much can the community
afford. There are other needs of the police department, more officers, other equipment,
station needs, etc. Council needs to determine how to prioritize funding for those
needs. Martinez noted that the video is beneficial from the prosecution side as well.
Coffey stated that a lot more research needs to be done, and recommended a test case
be reviewed throughout the process to determine what the costs would be. She
requested Purchasing, Police, and Legal create a combined document with all of the
associated costs included. This will be completed in time for the Council budget
discussion. Rizzi stated that the Seattle information was a good starting point, it would
just need to be tailored to Yakima's expected requests and salaries. Having the full cost
analysis will help set the priorities.
Gutierrez asked if there were any studies that indicated civilians were less aggressive
when they were being recording. Rizzi was not aware of any studies, but advised there
were fewer complaints and more exonerated incidents.
Lover inquired if there were any statistics on officers opening themselves up to liability
or injury to "get a good shot" of an incident. Rizzi replied he was not aware of any
instances of this, that wearing the camera becomes automatic and the officers tend to
forget they are wearing it.
2. New Business
2.a. — Faith -based coalition
Moore reported that he had reached out to the faith -based community to assist with
addressing issues of violence. He met with a group earlier in the week. Four attendees
were former gang members who discussed "street ministry". The group is concerned,
mobilized, and the city will work to connect them with funding opportunities. One
member has experience with international shuttle diplomacy who is interested in helping
broker a cease-fire. Police staff has some suggestions on how that should transpire,
but additional discussions need to be conducted.
Lover expressed the need to verify the credentials of the member volunteering for the
negotiations before sending her out to negotiate. He has concerns for her safety, but
will leave that area up to the judgement of the police.
Coffey stated she was thankful and impressed with the involvement of the faith -based
community. She encouraged Chief Rizzi's involvement in all aspects of this program.
She advised Bishop Tyson offered his support and opportunities for youth.
Gutierrez was hesitant about the "cease fire" moment, but was thankful for those who
were willing to step up and help. She sees value in meeting the gang members where
they are at. She is interested in continuing to explore this option.
3. Old Business — continued
3.c. — Emphasis patrols
Rizzi reported that the Police Department had made some adjustments which have
improved intelligence gathering. There have been a decrease in shots fired calls and
shooting injuries. The Department needs to keep the pressure on the gang members.
Lover asked if the Department was recovering guns. Rizzi advised they were.
Gutierrez asked if they were looking for gang affiliates or groups of members. Rizzi
replied police staff believes a small group of subjects is involved in the majority of the
robberies, so resources are focused on them. Police investigators are also working to
link shootings together and including the surrounding areas.
Moore reported that the governor's policy advisor on public safety recommended city
officials to discuss with area legislators the issues we are facing and request funding to
continue the emphasis patrols and keep the pressure on. Moore asked if the committee
would support allowing him and the council members discussing special funding with
the legislators.
Coffey stated that Representative Newhouse has been responsive. She advised time
was short to put together this request and asked if Moore could contact the remaining
council members the next day. Moore advised he would do that with the committee's
support.
It was MOVED by Coffey and SECONDED by Gutierrez for the city manager to move
forward contacting the remaining council members to advise and set up a meeting with
the state legislators as soon as possible. Motion CARRIED.
3.d. — Domestic Violence
Martinez reported she had the opportunity to send two prosecutors to training regarding
the psychology behind domestic violence. She has a meeting scheduled with the head
of the Yakima County Special Assault Unit to discuss coordination and cooperation,
more information sharing regarding declined cases, and helping with offender scores.
Gutierrez asked if legal staff had previously attended this training. Martinez advised
they had not, she thought this was the first time this training was provided. Gutierrez
followed up asking if she still planned to send one person to the domestic violence
symposium in Seattle. Martinez confirmed she did. Gutierrez asked if there were any
domestic violence PSAs still airing. Moore did not know but advised he would find out
and report back. Gutierrez expressed her desire to have more council input and
involvement with the content of the PSAs, as she felt the predominantly female council
has a unique opportunity to impact the community on this topic.
Gutierrez requested information and follow up on prosecuting domestic violence cases
without a cooperating witness.
4. Other Business
4.a. — Town Hall meeting
Gutierrez asked the other committee members if they would entertain the idea of a
Town Hall meeting to get community input on violence prevention and intervention.
Previous forums have had a lot of sharing of personal experiences by the community
but did not address ideas, strategies, or solutions.
Coffey felt community input is good and can be critical to change, but it must be
thoughtfully approached to be successful. Coffey was in favor of the idea.
Lover had concerns with the community forum format, as he felt most citizen input was
activist supported or driven. He suggested one of the television hosts from the Hispanic
community could effectively conduct such a meeting.
Coffey recommended the committee members continue discussions to address the
details before taking the idea to the full council. They will work to have that prepared for
the June 6 council agenda.
4.b. — SoCal Crossroads
Coffey reported that the members of the committee had a conference call with
representatives of SoCal Crossroads, a non-profit group with experience working with
gang and violence in Southern California. They are interested in assisting Yakima with
the issues happening here and provided a list of questions for the council members to
consider before embarking on any programs. Gutierrez felt the questions posed would
assist in the planning the town hall meeting. Lover inquired if the group was part of the
California legislature. Gutierrez replied that they were not, they were the executive
directors of a non-profit organization. Lover asked if there were costs involved. Costs
would be determined after a scope of the project was determined. Lover stated he
wanted the full council to have the opportunity to discuss before additional discussions
were held with SoCal Crossroads. It was MOVED by Coffey and SECONDED by
Gutierrez that a report from the City Manager be included on the June 6 agenda
advising the council of the discussion with SoCal Crossroads and requesting permission
from the council to contact SoCal Crossroads to continue discussions, with a
recommendation from the Public Safety Committee to approve that request. Motion
PASSED unanimously.
4.c. — Statewide Coalition on Juvenile Delinquency and Violence
Moore advised that there is an opening for an Eastern Washington representative on
this statewide board. He advised there was some positive news regarding federal
funding for juvenile justice and crime reduction. Additionally, the Annie E. Casey
Foundation is willing to provide technical assistance to communities. If any council
members are interested in serving on that coalition, Moore will get additional
information.
5. Information items
There were no information items
6. Recap of future agenda items
Budget policy issue on body cameras if ready
Domestic violence PSA information and further discussion
Faith -based community update
7. Audience Participation
There was no audience participation
8. Adjournment
Meeting was adjourned at 4:30 p.m.
Approved:
/11Kt,