LAKEPORT— The Lakeport Police Department reported to the council on the policies and procedures they follow, in light of current national events, during the Tuesday City Council Meeting.
Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen said the department has received many questions in regards to how local law enforcement operates, about policies, training and around activist group Campaign Zero’s “8 Can’t Wait Project,” which relates to the eight areas of concern surrounding police policies.
“I was pleased that the majority of our policies in those eight areas are already in line with what that campaign requests,” Rasmussen said, adding that his department has a long history of community policing in the city and is focused on working in partnership with community members in the interest of ensuring equal justice and protecting and respecting the rights of all individuals.
The department has also been working on making progress in other critical areas in law enforcement, Rasmussen added. They include the six pillars from the 2015 President’s Task Force on Community Policing. These six pillars include building trust and legitimacy, policy and oversight, technology and social media, community policing and crime reduction, training and education and officer wellness and safety.
Rasmussen said his department’s management team worked on integrating the eight critical areas in modern policing in January as determined by the Law Enforcement Best Practices report created by the United States Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.
These eight critical areas include community policing, de-escalation, crisis intervention, first line supervisors, early intervention systems, internal affairs, recruitment, hiring, promotion and recruitment, retention and data systems.
“We have and continue to try to weave all of those items in our daily policing activities and I am very proud of the efforts and commend our staff. Not only the men and women we have here now but [those] that have served over past decades in creating and maintaining the positive community relationships that we have today,” Rasmussen said.
Rasmussen noted that he believes that the department has been ahead of these issues and has worked them into their policing efforts. He added that the department will also continue to research any new suggestions and other police reforms as they continue to come to light at the state and federal levels.
“We are committed to continuing to ensure our policies and the way we operate has the ultimate focus on ensuring equal justice for all and protecting and respecting everyone’s rights equally without regard to any race or any other status. That is our mission and we will continue to do that,” he said.
Councilmember Kenneth Parlet said he is very impressed with the Lakeport Police Department and how they have stayed ahead of the curve with requirements that they are being asked to follow.
“The city, under the leadership of the chief, has been well ahead of the curve in almost every case and has done a magnificent job at keeping up to date with all the requirements and we can be very proud of the job that [the] chief is doing, staying up to date with all the policy changes no matter how onerous or how difficult they might be,” Parlet said, adding that In almost every case, initiatives were already under way, or (the department) had already completed all the requirements that were being asked of the other 500 cities in the League of California Cities.
The next virtual meeting of the Lakeport City Council is scheduled for July 7. The meetings take place on the first and third Tuesday each month. For meeting info visit https://www.cityoflakeport.com/agendas_and_minutes/index.php
