Local council candidates rated on criminal justice issues
Yolo People Power issues a 2020 ‘Candidate Survey’
A Yolo County group “working toward criminal justice reform” has issued a score sheet of candidates it is supporting in the upcoming election based on their responses to a series of questions.
Yolo People Power was formed in early 2017 in response to a call from the National ACLU and initially focused on understanding the degree of collaboration between ICE and local law enforcement. Since then it has expanded its mission to get involved in police accountability, and other criminal justice issues.
According to member Franchesca Wright, the group has no formalized membership but indicated its most active volunteers number 81.
In its 2020 Candidate Survey, the group posed a series of six questions in collaboration with the Woodland League of Women Voters. There were 14 candidates countywide who responded to the questionnaire, including those running for county supervisor, and the Davis and Woodland city councils.
In Woodland, only three of the six candidates responded to the questionnaire. Both District 2 candidates, Tom Stallard and Karen Rosenkilde-Bayne responded. In the District 4 race, only Victoria Fernandez replied. Those not responding were District 4 candidate Magda Padilla and District 5 candidates Mayra Vega and Joe Romero.
Based on the responses to the questions, Yolo People Power assigned a series of scores. The candidates with the higher scores “demonstrated complete answers and awareness of impacted populations. “They provided examples of previous reform efforts, offered specific ideas they would support going forward and demonstrated a commitment to civic engagement, particularly with the most impacted populations,” the group reported.
A perfect score would be a “4.” In the case of the Woodland Council, Rosenkilde Bayne received a score of 3.3, Fernandez a score of 2.5 and Stallard a 2.0.
The questions and answers were:
What in your opinion are the strengths and weaknesses of modern policing and specifically the policing in your city/county? In your role as an elected official, what is your responsibility to address weaknesses in policing in your jurisdiction?
Karen Rosenkilde-Bayne: Woodland Police Department uses Community-Based Policing. Their School Resource Officers focus on mentoring, counseling, & restorative practices. For the SRO’s, enforcement is their last priority. WPD has a partnership with the Yolo County Conflict Resolution Center. All WPD officers go through anti-bias training every other year. Woodland’s 3x2x2 committee, which consists of elected officials representing Woodland Joint Unified School District, Woodland City Council, Yolo County Office of Education, and Woodland Community College, and which focuses on youth development, has had many discussions about the six gang-related homicides which occurred in Woodland last year. WPD Chief Kaff, who earned a BA sociology, has displayed an excellent understanding of the relationship & causality between racism, poverty and crime in these conversations. As a professional counselor myself, I was impressed. As an elected official, it is my responsibility to address racism in the law enforcement department under the council’s jurisdiction, and also to insist that there be a philosophical orientation that values all humans equally and understands Adverse Childhood Experiences.
Tom Stallard: The primary strength of the Woodland Police Department is its people. From the Chief on down, ours is a focused, caring organization that always tries to do the right thing. From four ride-alongs, I have seen firsthand how officers work with the public. The protection of the public as well as the officers themselves has been enhanced by technology including the use of laptops, body cams, mobile phones and the like. An obvious weakness is the limited officer time available and the increasingly diverse demands for service.
Victoria Fernandez: I believe community policing should be encouraged. We should be proactive with our youth resources so that youth encounters with police are positive. Community Outreach should also be supported. Residents should feel comfortable calling the police for assistance. Victims should not be victimized by their perpetrator and the police. There should be open communication between the public and myself. I would be available to listen to their concerns and find ways to resolve or address those issues.
Do you believe there is systemic racism in your jurisdiction? Please elaborate.
Karen Rosenkilde-Bayne: Systemic racism exists throughout society, so it’s likely to exist in every law enforcement jurisdiction as well. But to say that all law enforcement officers are racist is simplistic and untrue. In fact, most people would define themselves as “not racist,” but this is myopic and simplistic. It is more accurate to say that we are all products of a society built on racism, and the systems we’ve created contain power dynamics derived from racism. Those dynamics continue to infiltrate all of us, no matter our background. Our responsibility is to create space in those systems for change. It is important that everyone is aware of our history of systemic racism and examine our systems for both overt and covert racism, as well our own running dialogue inside our heads. In Woodland, all voters are constituents, but not all constituents are voters. Many constituents do not vote: the young, the disenfranchised, and non-citizens. If non-voting groups were victims of racially biased policing, they would be unable to impact change through the democratic process. This leaves them especially vulnerable. Therefore, elected officials must be their voice.
Tom Stallard: Having taken two courses on implicit bias over four days in the last two years, I realized that systemic racism is a reality in America. Even those of us who do not like to think of ourselves as racist, have unconscious attitudes that form our behavior, particularly our response to certain situations. The way to address this is to understand it, accept it, and seek ways to provide antidotes such as dialogue among diverse groups. Being optimistic, I believe we can do this and that current challenges will lead us to a better place.
Victoria Fernandez: I believe systemic racism exists throughout our country, and unfortunately, Woodland is no exception. Although we may want to believe that it does not, we must examine our policies, our hiring practices, our schools, our real estate market, and our daily interactions with others. Every person who lives in Woodland should feel equally valued and respected.
If elected, are there any changes in public safety and criminal justice systems you would work towards and how? Please address budget implications and be as specific as your present thinking allows.
Karen Rosenkilde-Bayne: My platform supports the creation of a Public Safety Commission (PSC). PSCs are considered best practice in community policing. They develop trust, buy-in, and partnerships, and ensure that communities receive the law enforcement they deserve. My platform also supports releasing data regarding local crime statistics. This allows communities to see incident and arrest data online, increases transparency, promotes trust, and increases problem-solving. Limiting the number of data categories shared with the public can decrease costs. WPD has a “Crime Map,” but each crime category must be accessed separately. This makes usage difficult and prevents observing any relationships and patterns between different categories of crime. In addition, once data is over 30 days old, it cannot be accessed on the map, preventing the observation of long-term trends. Finally, my platform supports the policies from the “8 Can’t Wait” Campaign. The Campaign grew out of the recent homicides of members of the Black and Latinx community at the hands of law enforcement. WPD’s website has no mention of this current climate, a huge oversight.
Tom Stallard: As an incumbent, I am always working on improving our criminal justice system. I supported and voted for a budget that included the hiring of our first social service worker who has been embraced by our police department. More recently, our new budget provided for the hiring of a mental health worker to assist our police. Historically, these services were provided only by Yolo County staff. They have retreated somewhat from this role, leaving it to our city to pick up the slack. So, we are increasingly looking to other professionals to assist our police in working with those who really need help from a non-judicial perspective. Of course, these staffing alternatives cost money, but we are already changing the allocation of resources in our public safety budget.
Victoria Fernandez: Our hiring practices and training should reflect our commitment to end systemic racism within Woodland’s public safety and criminal justice system. These should not cost additional. P.O.S.T. requires officers be trained and racial sensitivity/bias training will be or should be required for all law enforcement.
Of the reforms that you create, how would you ensure that they are instituted with full accountability and transparency and are achieving your goals?
Karen Rosenkilde-Bayne: A Public Safety Commission is essential to the ethical and transparent implementation of my platform’s policies. The commission’s members must be diverse, with no conflicts of interest. My platform asks that the commission examine racial and ethnic data, as well as incident data, and report to City Council quarterly. City Council must hold the police chief accountable for the actions of the department. The implementation of the commission must be done carefully, so as not to undermine the community’s confidence in their police department or cause the department to become defensive. Creating a commission when there hasn’t been a recent policing incident may be ideal, as this allows the commission to develop its goals, roles, and procedures without the intense pressure, publicity, and politicizing that an incident would bring. Obviously, if a community has an incident, they should create a commission immediately, but the creation of that commission will be forever linked to the incident. Instead, when a community creates a commission as a best practice, this allows for an opportunity to see the commission as a positive step forward in the life of the community.
Tom Stallard: I believe it is my responsibility as an elected representative of the people to constantly watch what is happening in our police department. That is why I take ride-alongs occasionally. I also go out of my way to interact with department staff whenever I can. I send the Chief several emails every week on issues of concern, and he courteously gets back to me on everyone. Currently, I am assisting with a conflict in my jurisdiction in which one of the sources of disagreement involves the different ethnic backgrounds of the neighbors. I have been impressed with the department’s sensitivity in approaching this from a healing perspective. I am working to get the elderly complainant to participate in a Neighborhood Court conversation to help resolve the situation.
Victoria Fernandez: An oversight committee comprised of community members from diverse backgrounds and neighborhoods, elected officials, Public Defenders/District Attorneys and law enforcement representatives should be created and supported to provide accountability and transparency.
Do you believe the public needs to be engaged? If so, how do you ensure that the public will be engaged throughout the reform process?
Karen Rosenkilde-Bayne: My platform has an entire section on “Community Engagement.” Woodland needs a commission for this as well. Community engagement is essential! On my platform, I wrote, “If running for or serving on a city council had a final exam, it would be called “Community Engagement” because it encompasses all of the other policy areas. The public must drive whatever government does if it is to work. When there is community engagement, there is typically buyin, and a leader who is a good facilitator can help the public to define their own goals, based on the needs they create. For such collaborations to work, the community must have great trust in its leaders. Town halls, focus groups, one on one discussions, and similar types of meetings can provide good information. A survey can yield some valuable information, but a survey isn’t a dialogue, so it doesn’t build community like the other types of information-gathering methods. Therefore, the other methods are preferred. Continual outreach and check-ins must occur to ensure that the community remains engaged and trust levels stay high, and if the levels drop, adjustments must be made immediately.
Tom Stallard: Woodland Police Department regularly reaches out to engage the public through programs like “Coffee with a Cop”, the annual operation of a citizen’s academy, ride-alongs, Police Athletic League, Police Cadets and more. We also have around 40 police volunteers including a group of chaplains that work daily with the department. I also championed the re-activation of the reserve program using materials I obtained from the Rocklin Police Department. I appreciate Chief Kaff’s efforts to work with the community because he and his command staff genuinely want to work with the public.
Victoria Fernandez: Most definitely, public input and support are crucial to its effectiveness. I believe an oversight committee should present quarterly informational/ town hall meetings. The City Council rep. or Oversight Chairperson should provide a monthly report to the Council. Social media and public outreach should be encouraged.
When there is a conflict between the recommendations between executive staff and the public, how would you decide which recommendation to implement?
Karen Rosenkilde-Bayne: This is never an easy answer, and it depends upon many factors. I do tend to side with the public, because at the end of the day, I represent them and not staff. I try to look for the feelings and fears behind the issue and examine the values underneath the concerns. I value collaborative decision-making, and if there is an opportunity for a win-win, I will seek it. However, I don’t always side with the public. For example, this year, the WJUSD School Board, of which I am a member, had to decide in early May whether to hold an in-person graduation ceremony on the original scheduled date, or postpone the ceremony until August. Some 80% of the parents and students wanted to postpone it. I voted not to postpone it. Simply put, the students who join the military or leave for service academies immediately after graduation would not be able to attend. Everybody ought to be able to go to their high school graduation, however it happens, whatever it looks like. It is just not fair to leave anyone out, period. When I vote in open session, I like to explain my thinking. Ultimately, my thinking is guided by what is best for the community and what will do the most to build up the community.
Tom Stallard: I believe in dealing with “burrs under the saddle” before they fester. We all govern with the consent of the governed. We need to have the discipline to dialogue until we reach a consensus so we can move forward together. I support staying with an issue until we, as a community, arrive at a position with which we all can thrive. To me, that is the responsibility of leadership.
Victoria Fernandez: I value the opinion of the public, as I consider myself a public servant. I would evaluate the facts presented by both sides and determine which would be the most effective recommendation for all the residents of Woodland. However, if an Oversight Committee existed, their responsibility would be to uncover the facts and make a recommendation that should be trusted.