The Santa Barbara City Council will hold a special meeting Friday regarding civilian oversight of the Santa Barbara Police Department.
The meeting will be held at 1 p.m. in the David Gebhard Public Meeting Room at 630 Garden St. It can also be viewed online at www.santabarbaraca.gov/cap.
The Community Formation Commission is recommending Santa Barbara create a Civilian Oversight Board to review and recommend police policies, and provide opportunities for community input and education on policing practices. The board is also intended to provide a mechanism for the impartial and fair review of Santa Barbara Police Department probes into allegations of misconduct.
Santa Barbara established the Community Formation Commission in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd, a black Minneapolis man, at the hands of law enforcement.
The commission recommended the board be made up of seven at-large members and encouraged young adults who have experienced homelessness or arrests to apply.
The commission suggested the board include at least one member with a law enforcement background who has not served in Santa Barbara County and no current city employees or family members of city employees or Santa Barbara police officers.
The Community Formation Commission, made up of 13 members and two alternates, has spent more than a year studying, researching and reviewing community feedback regarding a civilian oversight system.
The commission also recommended the establishment of an independent police monitor position, considered to be an executive-level employee. Similar positions receive about $196,000 for a salary, according to a council agenda report.
The independent police monitor would be responsible for multilingual and accessible outreach and education for the community. The monitor would also be responsible for tasks such as building relationships between law enforcement and the community.
The agenda, which includes the commission’s report, can be found here: santabarbaraca.gov/gov/cityhall/council/meetings/videos/default.asp.
email: kschallhorn@newspress.com
