Public Safety Committee - Special Meeting

Good morning, and welcome to the special public safety committee meeting of today, October 14. The time is now 09:37AM, and this meeting has come to order. Before taking roll, I'll provide instructions on how to submit a speaker's card for item on this agenda. If you are here with us in chambers and you would like to submit a speaker's card, please phone on and out and turn it into myself before the item is read into record. Online speaker requests were due twenty four hours to this meeting, making that time yesterday at 09:30AM.

The meeting came to order at 09:37. Speaker cards will no longer be accepted ten minutes after the meeting has began making that time 09:47. With that, we would now to proceed to take roll. Council member Brown?

Present.

Council member Fife? Present. Council member Houston is excused. And chair Wong?

Present.

Thank you. We have thank you. We have four members present. We have three members present and one excuse Houston. Excuse me. Council member Wong, do you have any announcements before we begin?

Yeah. I just obviously wanna acknowledge the pretty enormous news last week that the police chief Floyd Mitchell has resigned from the department. He is staying with us until December 5 and I just want to thank him for his service. I remember when I was watching the NSA hearing that I just the way that he presented and his commitment to addressing the NSA and our tasks had set us up, I believe, for greater success. I am nervous how this upcoming December hearing will go given that he's resigning before that hearing.

But I I do want to acknowledge his service to the city and invite my council members if they want to add anything. And I would say too that I did some quick research this morning. There's apparently something called the police executive research forum, who knew? But it's a body that does research on police executives and apparently the average tenure is seven years for a police chief. We are far below that average and so I think we definitely have some work to do to really reform and and understand what is undergirding our our issues here because our residents and our personnel also deserve stability.

Thank you for your announcements. Moving to our first item of the day. Please as a reminder, this is a special meeting so there are no minutes to be approved. Moving to item two, determination of schedule an outstanding committee items also known as your pending list.

Administrator Williams, do you have anything to add? You.

Sorry. Thank you through the chair. We don't have any updates or additions. I'll move approval. Second.

Okay. Oh, and actually I had something to add here on the this is for the pending schedule. I did reach out just for everyone's information. City auditor Houston produced a really excellent report that was published last week on our nine one one response times and how they're both not in compliance and as as well as inequitable. He will be I've reached out to him. He will be presenting this to, to us on the twenty eighth. And he's also available for individual briefings.

Thank you. We have a motion made by council member Brown, seconded by council member Fife to accept the termination of schedule outstanding committee items as is. On roll, council member Brown? Aye. Council member Fife? Aye. Council member Houston is excused and chair Wong?

Aye.

We have this motion passes with three ayes. One eight skews. Houston to accept the termination scheduled in outstanding committee items as is moving to item three. Adopt a resolution authorizing the city administrator to enter into a, enter into an agreement with the California Fire Safe Council to accept grant funds in the amount of $107,275, b, appropriate and administer said funds, and c, expend grant funds in accordance to the city's purchasing requirements for the for the purpose of the fuel mitigation and goat grazing services in 2025. And you do have one speaker for this item and noting council member Houston is present at 09:42.

Thank you.

Alright. Thank you for joining us. Council member Houston, please go ahead.

Good morning. My name is doctor Sean Jones. I'm representing, the city of Oakland Fire Department. In 2024, the Oakland Fire Department applied for and was awarded a $107,275 grant from the CalSafe Council to cover the cost associated with goat grazing. Currently, we have we have a contract with Ecosystems Inc, which is also part of our ten year vegetation management plan.

The history of this is that in 1991, Oakland Hillside fire, the Oakland city department the Oakland Fire Department initiated several initiative strategies to ensure that the city and its residents never had to endure another tragic event like this again. So I'm asking that this resolution be adopted. Is there any questions?

Any questions, colleagues? Council member Brown.

Hey. Excellent. Thank you so much. I think the report is pretty straightforward. I just have one question. The report outlines that I'm looking for the sentence. That the grant will allow the work to be expanded like an expand expanded area. I guess I was curious if you had a map that was showing the expansion of the program.

Lee I do not have a map with me but there are some maps to show where Hillside and areas along the highway will also be mitigated with additional funding.

I see. Yeah. If possible I would love I'm sure, my colleagues that represent, the hills, would love to see a map highlighting, the expansion of of the of the because of this grant the expansion of that work.

Do we

vote it? Thank you.

Council member five go ahead. Move approval.

I second

it. Thank you. Moving to our public speakers. Wanna call your name, please approach the podium. If you're here with us in chambers, please state your name for the record. If you're participating via Zoom, please raise your hands so you're easily identified. Miss Asada Lobada.

Well, shows how important I am. He's leaving. No.

Go ahead. Let him go. Let him

go. Can you stay at the podium? Yes.

I think it needs to be identified that in order to do this work it is not simple. The complex part of the goat grazing is the ability to contain the goats to an area. So you have to have the capacity to contain them by fencing off a space. And that's not always achievable. So an explanation for what areas can the goats be able to do this grazing compared to what areas they cannot be able to.

The second question is, based on what you're trying to do, what percentage of the fire hazardous area identified will be covered by their grazing? What percentage has been done in the past and what percentage will be done with this? And in actuality, are we increasing And it says that we're going to areas It looks like you're saying you're increasing the amount of grazing. Lastly, you had an issue that happened with the last work of the grazing where the animals grazed in a toxic area, where the vegetation was hazardous and it killed quite a number of the goats. It was identified at the last meeting that you have the capacity to go into the space before they go in and identify dangerous vegetation.

I don't see that being achievable. There's no way you can go into an entire space and identify this. Having said that, if these goats go into a dangerous area and we have lost the goats, is that a liability for the city? Or is it covered under some insurance component that we have with the goater? Okay. They might they might let

I see council member Houston, you have your mic on. You have a comment or question?

Yeah. Left it on when I second it but I do have a question. Did we know how many goats that was Do we know? From what miss Asada, didn't you mention some goats died? Yes. Okay. So do we know how many died from that?

Okay. In charge of the contracts and grants.

Okay. I just wanted

to That's a question for the management team.

Yeah. But I just had left my mic on. But, yeah, that when she said that, I thought about that. So I just wanna know how many goats actually died. And that's not for you. That's just on the

Okay. Thank you.

Before we move to the vote, I just had a quick question. And, first of all, I loved this program. We actually did a council member Unger and I did a commendation about this recently just because it's, you know, it's it's innovative, it's eco friendly and why not use goats, right? I love that actually. But I, one question I just have is on the fiscal impact. Your report notes that we require matching funds for this program and it's noted that the OFD vegetation management funds originally budgeted for goat grazing in 2024 to 2025 are being used. What is what is the amount of the matching funds?

One to one. So it's 107,275.

Okay. Got you.

However, we've actually met that with that goal and mark already.

Okay. Okay. Understood. Alright. That's it.

Thank you. We had a motion made by council member five seconded by council member Houston to approve the recommendations of staff and the four decide them to the October 21 city council agenda on consent. On roll, council member Brown. Aye. Council member Fife. Aye. Council member Houston your mic is on. Aye. And chair Wong. Aye.

This motion passes with four ayes to approve the recommendations of staff and to forward this item to the October 21 city council agenda on consent moving to open forum. And we do have four speakers for open forum. When I call your name, please approach the podium. State your name for the record. You have two minutes. Samuel Ramsey, Omar Palmer, Rajani Mandal, and miss Asada.

Since I don't see anybody, I'll just go ahead. Rajne Mandel, District 4. I'm gonna read what the chief of police said back in January, has been quoted several times. The culture of the police Oakland Police Department and the way our command staff and supervisors have been trained and conditioned to find something wrong. There's a culture problem here from a police officer standpoint that they fear doing their job. There is in my view, there has been weaponization of the discipline process. I've been in this job for over thirty years. I've seen what happens when an officer is trying to do their job and has made a mistake. You cannot make a mistake here. If you make a mistake in the Oakland Police Department, you're gonna get days off and you're gonna get allegations levied against you, which will ruin your career and your opportunity to go anywhere else in The United States.

It has been weaponized. Whether you agree with me or not, I'm telling you from my standpoint, and being here and seeing what's occurred over the last eight months, it has been weaponized. I associate it with a pet or dog that constantly got hit over the head with a newspaper. Sooner or later, all you have to do is pick up the newspaper and the dog is cowering down because it's afraid it's gonna get hurt and it's hurting our city because our officers are afraid to do their job. It's important for this commission and community to understand that I have absolutely no problem with civilian oversight, but it has to be measured and it has to be thought out.

We have to give people the space to make mistakes. I believe that this is an honest and balanced quote, and what he said, I agree with it. But unfortunately, parts of this quote have been taken and he and used against him. He's been vilified by the some members of the police commission, anti police activists, and even questioned by the federal judge of the NSA about this quote. And I feel that this is a pattern of losing chiefs who dare to speak up against the NSA and the discipline process. Thank you.

Public safety as it relates to parents, potentially will be greatly impacted by AB four ninety five. The intent of AB four ninety five is to protect immigrant families in case of enforcement that results in separation because of immigration enforcement. So what it allows is for caregivers to take over for the medical and school decisions of the children who no longer have their parents. But this caregiver affidavit that allows them to be in place to do this does not require any parental consent, does not require notification in terms of being notarized, it does not require background check of the caregiver, it does not require verification or identific requirement when the individual comes to the school or the medical facility. In other words, people, parents who are against this have said you are interfering with their parental rights in order to protect immigrant families.

And I say that a lot goes on in this city related to that. In order to do sanctuary city business, you then impose on particularly African Americans. Look at the N. S. A.

You have the capacity, being a sanctuary city, to make sure your police department does not interact with ICE. You do not have, for twenty two years plus, the ability to control your police department as it relates to excessive force and racial profiling. For twenty two years, your own police department, you can't make that happen. But you can protect immigrants in this city from our police cooperating with ICE. And you didn't need the federal government courts to do it or a mandate to do it, you just did it.

But you can't protect African Americans.

Where is my breakfast at Oakland? Good morning, guys. We have a problem. It's been here all along. Social injustice. You can't do one for another and do another. You gotta do both. How could you lock up a person because they're homeless? I got this 96 year old woman in Florida. She homeless in Northfield all day at McDonough, 96 year old lady. You're gonna lock her up? You're lock her so called before? That's what you're doing? It ain't no work. You were supposed to do.

Share the money. Bring the pile. Do money right. I already know. Bring the pile so we can cut the pile and give everybody the money right. Okay? That's Oakland 35 Years ago. I've been working here for thirty five years. I knew all the funds yet. I knew who worked with and how. I don't care if you skip over we don't skip over the people. Y'all doing the people wrong. She says, no, y'all doing them wrong. Ain't no police gonna come up and throw nobody at your house they're poor. They didn't wrong. This is The United States. You take care of immigrants, but judge their own people. Y'all trust in my own world, but us. I brought a belief and give take me and all to immigrant. What about oh, I'm an immigrant.

We all immigrants. Who gonna have equal justice for all? Who gonna do our people right? It's wrong. It ain't their fault. It's y'all fault. Y'all allowed this to happen. Y'all have power changed it. Which y'all y'all expect, uh-huh. Yes, ma'am. And then we'll probably, Oh, you're gonna probably come along because you ain't doing nothing about it. Do something about it. A $100,000,000 from the sea. I have to get to work. I don't get a hot dog out of it. I'm still homeless. It's really tight training program. For an earthquake, 08/09 '28 August. We're still homeless. We're in the SRO.

They supposed be a part it a long time ago. They took our money and built this high rise.

That concludes your public speakers for open forum.

Any final announcements or closing statements from colleagues?

Yes. Was I apologize for being late colleagues. But what I wanted to do, I tried to be early. I wanted to and I'm not stepping on anyone's toes. I wanted to open up our meetings with Love Life Donald Lacey. So if we didn't do that, could we close it with Love Life council member?

Absolutely.

Okay. That'd be great. And also I like to I was gone visiting my 90, what, four year old grandmother in in in Mexico, right, for the last seven, what, eleven days. That's where I was at. And I was looking at one of the meetings and I saw that the governor pulled down, like, $50,000,000 for immigrants to protect them.

I don't know if I got that numbers right because I saw it online. I got a real concern about being able to pull that money down. I know I don't know if I'm off subject, but it is public safety for me that my black young men in Oakland, especially East Oakland, are that need help and been needing help for years and years and years before I was council member, killing each other, starving out there, and we can actually pull $50,000,000 down to address our immigrants. I'm half Latino and I'm half black so I can speak to this. I can speak to this.

So if we can pull that type of money down out of nowhere for my Hispanic side, why can't we pull that type of money down for my black side? I got a problem with that. I'm a go back and look at that and make sure I got the numbers right. But I just wanted to share that with you since I was gone but I am back. I'm back.

It's good to have you back council member. And yeah you're free to disseminate to your colleagues and myself here the the funding that you're talking about. Okay. And with that, unless anyone wanted to add anything else about Love Life, I'm gonna go ahead and adjourn.

I wanna ask my my council member Carol Fife to read it for me because I don't have it on me. You can't

Council member Fife, you wanna lead us?

No. You got it. And thank you.

Yes. Donald Lacey did bring this up and we typically read this at the beginning of council meeting. So I I I hope that we can start with that next week.

Yes. But this is

the love life acknowledgment. We acknowledge that in service to our beloved city of Oakland and all people who inhabit this community adhering to the city Of Oakland's official motto Oakland Love Life established in 2016 in memory of 16 year old Loishae Lacey who lost her life to a senseless act of violence in '26 1997, we enter into this space committed to embody love as the guiding principle in our words, actions, spirit, tone, intentions, and with regard to each other and all who engage and enter into this meeting space. We acknowledge love life is our motto as we denounce violence in all forms and the conditions that create violence. We commit to working against these conditions to create a safe space for all who operate in love and peace on our streets. We acknowledge that when we demonstrate love, we also manifest qualities of respect, kindness, grace, truth, understanding, humbleness, and forgiveness towards each other.

We commit to acts of love as an intentional force to generate tangible solutions in regards to all policies, declarations, recommendations, resolutions, appointments, and actions. We recognize as leaders we must set an example and precedent for those who have entrusted us with these duties. We accept the responsibility to make our city a better place by bringing inspiration instead of insults, contributions instead of complaints, constructive feedback instead of criticism, and even in our passion for all issues, no matter how difficult, we lead with the guiding principle of love. We ask that all who participate in this event and its proceedings to share with us in this commitment and practice of exhibiting love, good faith, positive energy, and respect in how you comment, present information, report out, or inform on this meeting. We appreciate all contributions to the space and even when expressing hurt, harm, disappointment, dispute or disagreement, we request that we lead with love in your heart.

We acknowledge love in practice even when there is different when there are differences strategies, procedures, and process. And we will seek to find common ground and tangible solutions that demonstrate love for our city, its residents, and all constituents. We acknowledge and recognize that when we model this practice of love, it will establish a norm that will resonate exemplified throughout our city and create the change we all wish to see in our communities. We acknowledge that when we lead with love, we are able to uplift a thriving city rooted in equity, equality, justice, inclusion, and opportunity for all regardless of race, gender, age, class, socioeconomic status, nationality, religion, housing status, sexual orientation, or political affiliation. We acknowledge that when we uplift love, we uplift those impacted by violence and all of in any kind.

We acknowledge that when we uplift love, we uplift traditions of our ancestors, our arts, our culture, our businesses, our educators, our unhoused, our civic servants, and all who contribute to the fabric and well-being of our community. We commit to the action of love life as our motto and mantra. Love life.

Thank you so much for that beautiful reading, council member Fife. And also thank you to Donald Lacey and his advocacy in light of his daughter's tragic passing. And with that, we're adjourned.

Thank you.