Center for Policing Equity releases report

SAN DIEGO – The San Diego County Sheriff's Department released the Center for Policing Equity's report on our participation in the 2014-2019 National Justice Database Project, Dec. 9.

It is important for the Sheriff's Department to understand stop data. The goal is to eliminate racial and identity profiling. It is essential our deputies serve with impartiality and cultural understanding to enhance the trust of the people we are sworn to serve and protect.

The Sheriff's Department is committed to protecting the safety of every member of our community. We embrace the challenge to do better so we requested CPE to examine our operational data on deputy actions, data collected under the Racial and Identity Profiling Act and to survey our personnel. This is a genuine effort to improve our policies, practices and interactions with the public so we foster an inclusive community where everyone feels safe, respected, heard and valued.

CPE spent two years analyzing Sheriff's Department data covering vehicle stops, pedestrian stops and force used between 2016 and 2020. We thank the Center for Policing Equity for their work and analysis of our data.

We are encouraged that the analysis showed traffic stops closely mirrored the racial demographics of the community. While it is not prominently featured in their report and requires a few steps to find it, it is an important function of RIPA. The most disproportionate result was that we stopped twice as many men than women. In the group of men who were stopped, there were more stops of younger men than older men.

Our use of force numbers may appear higher than other agencies in the national database. We believe this is because we have always been more proactive in reporting use of force incidents. For example, we report the use of a "spit sock" as force used, where other agencies do not. We also report the pointing of a firearm or less lethal weapon as force used. This is often referred to as a "show of force" by other agencies, while some agencies do not report it at all.

The study did not account for the complexities of a large agency. A police department is responsible for one city or community. In contrast, the Sheriff's Department is responsible for 4,200 square miles of unincorporated areas across the county, as well as nine contract cities. Also of note, the analysis for the Sheriff's Department included use of force incidents at seven county jails. The demographics of our jail population consists of individuals arrested by nearly two dozen agencies in the county, not strictly the jurisdictions we serve or those used for comparison data.

We continually seek to identify and understand the reasons for racial disparity in policing. We also engage in listening, building and maintaining collaborative relationships to develop best practices that will provide the highest level of service to all members of the community.

Our commitment to racial equity

The Sheriff's Department is dedicated to building a culture of trust with the people we serve. We routinely review our policies and procedures. During the two-year CPE study, we enacted the following changes:

• A ban on carotid restraint

• An increase in racial bias training

• Community partnerships that increased non-law enforcement response to mental health and substance abuse radio calls (Mobile Crisis Response Teams, Crisis Stabilization Units, Homeless Outreach Programs)

Standards and practices currently in place

• The San Diego County Sheriff's Department was the first law enforcement agency in San Diego County to provide formal de-escalation training

• Verbal warning given prior to use of force encounters when possible

• Shooting at a moving vehicle is prohibited

• Body-worn cameras for sworn personnel

• Every deputy has a duty to intervene when force is inappropriately used in their presence and are required to report the incident

• The use of no-knock warrants is banned

• We also engage in listening, building and maintaining collaborative relationships with community groups

Professional standards

Citizen complaints and use of force review process:

• First, second, and third level supervisors review all use of force incidents

• Sheriff's Division of Inspectional Services reviews all use of force incidents

• A Critical Incident Review Board reviews incidents for law or policy violations, training deficiencies and better practices

• Internal Affairs conducts investigations related to employee misconduct

• Cases can be referred to the District Attorney's Office Special Operations Division

• Citizen's Law Enforcement Review Board has oversight

Submitted by the San Diego County Sheriff.