From: Jenice A
To: Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; John Knox White; Malia Vella; City Clerk; Eric Levitt; Trish Spencer; Tony Daysog Subject: [EXTERNAL] Item 6-B Care Pilot Update
Date: Tuesday, April 19, 2022 2:11:24 PM
Dear Council and City Manager,
Today is one year since Mario Gonzalez was killed by our police officers. An unarmed man clearly in need of help was held on the ground by three officers and an off duty parking tech until he was no longer breathing. They didn't offer to call his family or wait for an ambulance to check his vital signs, they just attempted to arrest him for doing something that is done all the time in our city. As you recognize Victims' Rights Week please be sure to remember that Mario was the victim of one of few homicides in our city in 2021 and as you meet this evening his family will be marking that anniversary just blocks from City Hall.
The adoption of the CARE pilot program was at least partly intended to reduce contact between vulnerable community members and armed officers. This program was a recommendation of the Steering Committee and has been called for by the community since APD's assault on another neighbor nearly two years ago. Being a pilot program there will obviously be some things to work out along the way. However, I hadn't expected APD being on nearly all of the calls to be one of those issues. Not only are they on the calls, they are often the first to arrive, remain visible throughout contact with the person in need, and in some cases are the only ones on the scene. All of these are situations which have been observed in person by myself or others.
I still believe that AFD is an appropriate first response to people in crisis, sometimes they do need medical attention or transport to the hospital for more in depth care. But what may be missing from that first response is the trained AFS mental health care clinician. Someone who is trained to evaluate whether someone is a danger to themselves or others. A hybrid fire/clinician first responder team. These programs are being reimagined all over the country. I have no doubt that in 5 years there will be community college programs specifically for first responder mental health care professionals. But right now we need to reevaluate what resources the CARE team needs to make this program successful long term. Again, I support the extension of this program, but believe we need to make adjustments along the way to serve the best interest of community members who need this kind of outreach. And as data is collected we need to learn about APD's involvement to get a better picture of how the program is working and what resources are really needed. Reducing 5150s is amazing, I applaud this development, but if the cops are still sitting twenty feet from you as you receive care you may be less likely to engage this service again or continue follow up care. Especially if you are undocumented, have a prior conviction, have met with police violence before, or just have a trauma related mental illness.
With an APD forward system, like has been observed and reported, we leave the door open for another killing like Mario Gonzalez. Even if the CARE team had been implemented by April 19, 2021 Mario could have been killed before they arrived, as he was before the ambulance reached him. Lastly, I hope that the community advisory board is implemented soon and is given the tools they need to best move this work forward.
Sincerely,
Jenice Anderson
From: Ashley Gregory
To: Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; Malia Vella; City Clerk; John Knox White; Trish Spencer; Tony Daysog; Manager Manager Subject: [EXTERNAL] City Council Meeting Comments
Date: Tuesday, April 19, 2022 1:49:10 PM
Dear Honorable Mayor and City Council Members,
Today is a day of mourning. Exactly one year ago, Mario Gonzalez was murdered by Alameda Police Officers. While I know there are those within the community who do not view Mario's death as a homicide, there is truly no other way to understand this tragedy.
While I imagine for some people it's more difficult than others to do, I encourage you to question the lenses of criminalization and unquestioned authority of the police. Allow the grief, loss and anger to be present with you as you truly reckon with the abuses of power that are considered so everyday and commonsense. Experience the brokenheartedness. Join us in mourning the loss of a precious life.
Item 6-B: In hopes of creating community-led ways to address community concerns, I urge you to extend the CARE Team program. This program needs the support of a community advisory board to truly be effective and supportive. Furthermore, the board must consist of people with lived experience of utilizing crisis services, also known as peers. I believe that peer voices should be a part of the CARE Team program, and that those peers should be compensated at the same rate as licensed clinicians. I urge the council to look into collaborating with PEERS (Peers Envisioning and Engaging in Recovery Services) in Oakland, whose mission it is "to promote innovative peer-based wellness strategies... [and] create culturally-rich, community-based mental health programs that honor diverse experiences and eliminate stigma and discrimination." You can find more information about their work at peersnet.org.
In closing, it is paramount that this program de-center policing and punishment. We have the opportunity to redirect resources towards creating a life-affirming project.
With hope,
Ashley Gregory
From: Jackie Zipkin
To: City Clerk; Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; Tony Daysog; Malia Vella; John Knox White; Trish Spencer Cc: Eric Levitt
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Apr 19 Council Mtg - Item 6B
Date: Monday, April 18, 2022 8:42:50 PM
Dear Honorable Mayor and City Council Members,
I am writing to comment on Item 6B on the April 19, 2022 Council Meeting agenda. I strongly support extension of the CARE Team Pilot Program, along with ensuring that the Alameda Fire Department and Alameda Family Services have the resources they need to make the program a long-term success.
As the Staff Report outlines, the CARE Program was an outgrowth of the community-led Steering Committee on Police Reform and Racial Equity and had the primary objective of reducing police violence in our community by doing the following:
Provide an alternative to APD involvement in calls for service for community members experiencing a mental health crisis.
Allow APD to have Officers available to respond to higher-priority calls by assigning CARE Team to calls associated with residents or visitors experiencing a mental crisis.
It should not go unrecognized that the Council will be hearing this item one year to the day after Mario Gonzalez’s murder by APD. While we will never know whether an alternative care-not-cops response could have prevented Mario’s homicide, I believe that the hope of everyone in our community is that implementation of the CARE Program in Alameda will prevent future violent police interactions with our vulnerable community members.
It’s for this reason that I was distressed to learn that APD is routinely responding to CARE Team calls. APD’s presence is itself threatening to many community members, and it runs completely counter to the stated goals of the program. I therefore request that AFD and AFS be given the training and resources they need, on an ongoing basis, to phase out police presence and realize the original vision of CARE. The public should be kept informed as this transition is implemented. Ideally, the Community Advisory Board would include representatives with lived experience informing their knowledge of what compassionate response looks like, and they would carry forward input from our community and press for this transition.
In closing, I support extension of the CARE Team Pilot and use of the data to inform a long-term approach to mental health response in Alameda. If police continue to be involved, however, it will be very difficult to assess the data stemming from this pilot to determine its success. Please direct staff to implement this shift away from APD response as quickly as possible.
Respectfully,
Jackie Zipkin
From: Is Sullivan
To: Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; John Knox White; Malia Vella; Trish Spencer; Tony Daysog; City Clerk Subject: [EXTERNAL] Item 6-B on April 19, 2022 Agenda
Date: Monday, April 18, 2022 5:03:44 PM
Dear Madam Mayor and members of Council,
I am writing in support of the extension of the CARE Team program.
I also share some concerns with other community members that I hope will be addressed tonight:
One of the intentions of this program is to shift the responsibility of mental health response and support from APD to non-police agencies. It has been reported that APD is still responding to calls along with the CARE Team. Does APD attend every call? Is there data that shows how involved APD is in responding to calls? What is the plan to reduce police-community interactions as this program moves forward?
Are the AFD employees on the CARE Team receiving the training and preparation, on a continuous basis, that they need for their new roles? What are the training goals and outcomes for this team?
What is the status of the community advisory board? How will people be selected for the board? How will selection prioritize people with lived experiences around police involvement in mental health crisis response, who can advise the City and CARE Team of what care-not-cops looks like? I support the extension of the CARE Team program, and I hope the program can continue to improve, in particular by APD refraining from responding to calls, and with the implementation of a community advisory board.
Thank you,
Is Sullivan
From: Savanna Cheer
To: City Clerk; Lara Weisiger; Trish Spencer; Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; Tony Daysog; John Knox White; Malia Vella Cc: Manager Manager
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Public comment for item 6-B tomorrow Date: Monday, April 18, 2022 4:31:21 PM
Hello:
Thank you for hearing an update on the CARE Team pilot program. I am writing in support of continuing the CARE Team program as requested in the proposal in item 6-B. Tomorrow marks one year since APD killed Mario Gonzalez, and as such, community care should be very front of mind for everyone in Alameda. After experiencing such a heartbreaking tragedy, each and every one of us should firmly stand against police violence ever happening here again.
We have a chance to begin this stand with the CARE Team pilot program. It is a generational opportunity to shift from a punishment and criminalization-centered approach to addressing peoples' survival needs towards a care-first approach. In order to do this thoroughly and thoughtfully though, a few commitments need to be adhered to:
1) Police-community interactions must be reduced during CARE Team calls for service.
While this might not be happening at this moment in the program's infancy, there should be a clear plan as to how to remove police involvement completely. This might mean elevating clincians' role in community interactions. It might mean more targeted and in-depth training for the AFD personnel on the CARE Team. Maybe it's further community partnerships with street medicine experts or addiction treatment clinicians. 2) The community advisory board must include impacted people and Alamedans with experience with crisis care and people in crisis' needs. This body should not give equal weight to police voices and community voices. Community voices should be guiding the program forward and suggesting improvements, not police department employees. Perhaps this body can also share with the community what progress is made to remove police presence on the CARE Team calls.
Please take these considerations in mind as you take a look at this first report on the pilot program. Let's do our best to get this right as a community. We have the chance to actually deliver on this phrase I hear getting thrown around so much in Alameda, "the beloved community." Please extend the pilot and continue to engage in its improvement and delivery.
Thank you,
Savanna Cheer
From: Marilyn Rothman
To: City Clerk
Subject: [EXTERNAL] CARE Team
Date: Sunday, April 17, 2022 12:37:02 PM
While I heartily support the extension of the program, I am appalled that APD shows up first and stays in the foreground during the calls. I know folks who have witnessed such calls I thought the whole idea was to make the visits without APD to eliminate such interventions, as what happened to Mario Gonzalez, who’s one year anniversary of his death is the day of the Council meeting…
Marilyn Rothman
Homeowner, Alameda
From: Alexia Arocha-Bergquist
To: City Clerk; Tony Daysog; Malia Vella; John Knox White; Manager Manager; Trish Spencer; Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft Subject: [EXTERNAL] Items 6A and 7B
Date: Tuesday, April 5, 2022 2:48:22 PM
Dear Mayor Ezzy-Ashcraft and all,
I am writing regarding tonight’s city council meeting and I’m mid-international so please excuse this email’s brevity.
Item 6A:
I strongly oppose the fixed ALPR proposal. First, as an attorney, I know all too well how malleable and subjective the term “reasonable” can be and it should be very clearly defined. Second, since APD already takes almost 1/3 the entire city’s funding, this should come from their budget if it is to happen at all. Third, I strongly urge you to read the important studies done on how these aren’t accurate, invoke obvious biases, and are costly with little to gain. As someone who has had their catalytic converter stolen 3x even I oppose this and do not see this to be any sort of realistic solution. I also have concerns regarding data storage, vague training, and not clearly outlined protocol for the pilot (eg- it’s temporal existence, measurements of accountability, what triggers a shut down, etc.).
Item 7B:
I have always supported the CARE pilot program, but what is happening is not what was promised or asked for.
How can this be called a police free response if police are indeed going out to the calls? Whether they sit in their car is irrelevant if they are seen and known to be attending these calls as backup. It defeats the purpose entirely and the community has a right to transparency and data around this. Also, where is the community advisory board? Will folks be cherry picked or can they apply? Will it involve folks with actual lived experience? Will it entail a more detailed and accessible process than the steering committee had? These questions need to be answered.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Alexia Arocha
Sent from my iPhone
From: Ashley Gregory
To: City Clerk
Cc: Manager Manager; Trish Spencer; John Knox White; Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; Tony Daysog; Malia Vella Subject: [EXTERNAL] Items 6-A and 7-B
Date: Tuesday, April 5, 2022 1:53:18 PM
Dear City Clerk, Councilmembers and City Manager:
I am writing to voice
my concerns about the APD policy for Fixed Automatic License Plate Readers. Given the concerns
many of our community members have voiced, I believe it prudent for APD to be clear in addressing the following questions:
Why is data stored for 90 days vs 60 days?
Who determines what might become evidence? What are the official parameters for that distinction?
What is the cost of long term storage? Who actually owns the footage under that agreement? Who can access footage once uploaded to
evidence.com?
And, is footage able to be edited once stored?
The policy document mentions: “Department-approved training for those authorized to use or access the ALPR system.” Residents and visitors of Alameda have a right to know what that training entails! Are there pre- determined courses or vendors that offer training on usage of this technology?
As this is a pilot program, the auditing of data should be monthly, not yearly and at the very least quarterly. What happenings would trigger an end to the pilot? Data misuse? Lack of improvement in clearance rates? Expensive repair costs? In regards to the CARE team, as a mental health professional who has seen first hand the harm police-involvement has in escalating mental health crises, I am extremely concerned about this program's ability to truly be the alternative intervention so many community members imagined it would be. I request that the council address the status of the community advisory board. Also, what data is
available for how involved APD has been in responding to calls for the CARE Team? Does APD go out on every call and if so, what is the plan to reduce police-community interactions as is the intention of the program?
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Ashley Gregory
From: Jennifer Rakowski
To: John Knox White; Manager Manager; Trish Spencer; City Clerk; Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; Malia Vella; Nicholas Luby; Tony Daysog
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Care Team Pilot program
Date: Tuesday, April 5, 2022 12:25:21 PM
I would like to register my strong support for the continuation of the CARE team pilot program.
Authorizing an extension of this program until June 30 2023 is both necessary and prudent.
The goals of the program are both challenging and worthy of support. •
Provide an alternative to APD involvement in calls for service for community members experiencing a mental health crisis.
• Allow APD to have Officers available to respond to higher-priority calls by assigning CARE Team to calls associated with residents or visitors experiencing a mental crisis.
• Foster a robust private-public working relationship between AFD and AFS to foster positive outcomes for community members needing mental health services.
• Assist residents experiencing mental or social challenges with navigating and accessing the appropriate resources to allow them to have a pathway and plan for a safe and balanced lifestyle.
• Reduce the repeated need of community members to utilize emergency services to progress towards mental health or addiction recovery/stabilization.
• Reduce the use of AFD ambulances to transport 5150 patients so that they are available to respond to higher priority medical calls within the city that have continued to increase with population growth. • Reduce census impacts to regional emergency departments and psychiatric hospitals (John George) by identifying alternate treatment facilities and plans for affected community members.
• Provide services to community members that have historically not had access to services that could assist them in navigating a successful outcome.
This program has already started to have some positive community impacts . It will take time and resources to realize the programs full potential.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Rakowski