In two days, the City Council is scheduled to have the public discussion it promised five months ago following a spike in serious allegations against San Diego police officers.
Earlier this year, local law enforcement agencies acknowledged 11 investigations involving San Diego’s cops. Five officers were charged in court, the most serious charges including felony drunken driving, on-duty sexual assault and on-duty rape.
Since then, authorities said one of the officers facing hit-and-run charges killed himself at his Linda Vista home and another pleaded guilty to misdemeanor stalking. Others still await court dates or jury trials.
Police Chief Bill Lansdowne apologized for the spike in May and rolled out a seven-point plan to tighten internal oversight, which had deteriorated following years of budget cuts.
Though supportive of police throughout the scandal, council members promised to hold department leaders accountable to their response. Marti Emerald, chairwoman of the council’s public safety committee, planned a public hearing to address Lansdowne’s seven-point plan, but it’s been repeatedly delayed.
Emerald pushed back the hearing in July because Lansdowne couldn’t attend. She again delayed the hearing in September because two council members couldn’t attend.
Now, five months after the scandal made headlines, the public safety committee is finally scheduled to discuss the Police Department’s response. I’m planning to attend the hearing and will be live tweeting from my Twitter account (@keegankyle). You can also follow along by watching video of the meeting through CityTV’s live feed.
The agenda focuses on Lansdowne’s seven-point plan, which police say has largely been completed.
Keegan Kyle is a news reporter for voiceofsandiego.org. He writes about public safety and handles the Fact Check Blog. What should he write about next?
Please contact him directly at keegan.kyle@voiceofsandiego.org or 619.550.5668. You can also find him on Twitter (@keegankyle) and Facebook.
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