COTATI POLICE DEPARTMENT
2021 ANNUAL REPORT
203 W. SIERRA AVE, COTATI, CA | NON-EMERGENCY 707-792-4611 | FAX 707-795-0168 The women and men of our Police Department are committed to providing quality public safety services to our community. I am very proud of our dedicated employees and volunteers who, through our daily activities, are making a positive difference by improving public safety and continuing the great quality of life in the City of Cotati. Our members of the Cotati Police Department are committed to being responsive to our community in the delivery of quality services. We recognize our responsibility to maintain order, while affording dignity and respect to every individual.
Our objective is to provide contemporary police services through a community partnership which promotes safe and secure neighborhoods, parks, roadways, and recreation/shopping/commercial areas visited by all.
As we move forward in 2022, we will continue our focus on 1) being fair in processes, 2) being transparent in actions, 3) providing opportunities to hear from our community, and 4) being impartial in decision making.
We will continue our community policing philosophy through personal outreach to stakeholders to remain proactive in reducing crime, increasing traffic safety, enhancing citizen and business engagement and overall wellbeing of the City. We will continue our focus of training on employee health and wellness, effective ways to engage people who are in mental health crisis, continue understanding implicit bias, provide new de-escalation options through equipment and training. The Cotati Police Department will continue to become a progressive department looking for unconventional ways to build trust and legitimacy in our City.
The 2021 Cotati Police Department Annual
Report is herein presented for your review. I
thank you for taking time to read this report. I
hold in high regard the opinions and input of
Cotati’s citizen’s and business owners.
A MESSAGE FROM THE CHIEF
Michael Parish
Chief of Police
Officer Reinke, a young recruit, and Chief
Michael Parish
TABLE OF CONTENTS
COVID-19 ............................................................................................................................. 1 ORGANIZATIONAL CHART................................................................................................ 2 CRIME ANALYSIS & REVIEW............................................................................................. 3 CALLS FOR SERVICE 2020 VS 2021........................................................................... 3 COTATI ARREST STATISTICS 2019-2021................................................................... 4 COTATI VIOLENT CRIME STATISTICS 2019-2021...................................................... 5 POLICE POLICIES.............................................................................................................. 12 HI-LO SIREN DRILL............................................................................................................ 12 COTATI PROPERTY CRIME STATISTICS 2019-2021................................................. 6 COTATI OTHER CRIME STATISTICS 2019-2021........................................................ 7 COTATI CITATIONS 2021............................................................................................. 8 CITIZEN COMPLAINTS........................................................................................................ 9 SPECIALIZED ASSISTANCE FOR EVERYONE (SAFE) TEAM........................................ 10 RACIAL & IDENTITY PROFILING ACT (RIPA).................................................................. 11 DEA PRESCRIPTION DRUG TAKEBACK......................................................................... 13 TRAINING............................................................................................................................. 14 POLICE DEPARTMENT POLICY COMPLIANCE REVIEW............................................... 12 RECRUIT TRAINING OFFICERS......................................................................................... 15 USE OF FORCE.............................................................................................................. 17-18 LOCAL ROAD SAFETY PLAN (LRSP)............................................................................... 16 BODY WORN CAMERA (BWC) UPGRADE........................................................................ 19 NEIGHBORHOOD OFFICER MEETINGS........................................................................... 20 PATROL ............................................................................................................................... 21 ANIMAL CONTROL .............................................................................................................. 22 DISPATCH ............................................................................................................................ 23 MADD AWARD...................................................................................................................... 23 TRAFFIC OFFICER................................................................................................................ 24 K9 TEAM ............................................................................................................................... 24 CADETS & VOLUNTEERS.................................................................................................... 25 PARTNERSHIPS.................................................................................................................... 25 COMMUNITY OUTREACH.................................................................................................... 26 COMMUNITY INFORMATION............................................................................................... 26 The Pandemic continues to be a challenge for the Police Department’s normal operations.
We reopened our police building lobby in 2021 following County Health directives to allow citizens greater access to our department to conduct their affairs. Even though we modified our usual daily activities during the pandemic, we remained working 24/7 answering 911 calls, responding to calls for service and we continued our high visibility patrols.
COVID-19
1 ORGANIZATIONAL CHART
PSA
Katie Hulderman
Chief Michael
Parish
Lieutenant
VACANT
Sergeant
Paul Goodin
Sergeant
Tyler Wardle
Sergeant
B Gallo
Corporal
Brian Deaton
Corporal
VACANT
DISPATCH
Kirsten Ott
Cristina
Montoya
Renee Harris
Michael Callen
Adrien McGoon
VACANT
Community
Services
Officer
Carrie Peoples
OFFICERS
Bennet Knight
Ryan Reinke
Anthony Garber
Jerry Cunningham
Ryan Sullivan
VACANT
Volunteers/
Cadets
2 CA
L
L
S
F
O
R
S
E
RVIC
E
2020
CRIME ANALYSIS & REVIEW
(average of 37 events per day)
3 2021
(average of 34 events per day)
COTATI ARREST STATISTICS
2019-2021
4 COTATI VIOLENT CRIME STATISTICS
2019-2021
5 COTATI PROPERTY CRIME STATISTICS
2019-2021
6 COTATI OTHER CRIME STATISTICS
2019-2021
7 CITATIONS
2021
8 CITIZEN COMPLAINTS
9 In 2021, the Police Department received
a total of 10 complaints out of a total of
12,455 events, which is a complaint rate
of 0.08%. The total logged events does
not include numerous other interactions
with the department, such as daily
informal interactions, citizen business at
the Dispatch counter, etc.The police
department receives complaints through
a variety of sources, including the official
complaint "blue" form, city website,
emails, telephone, and in-person. For
every complaint received, the Police
Department investigates the allegations
The process begins with the Lieutenant reviewing the complaint, reviewing all available materials (such as police reports, body worn camera, etc.), followed by interviews of the complainant and any involved police staff. The Cotati Police Department was the first agency in Sonoma County to implement a full deployment of body worn cameras on all of our officers, which has greatly assisted in the review of complaints or other events.
For the purposes of this report, the complaints have been grouped in two ways: by outcome after investigation and by category of initial allegation. Of the 10 complaints received, the categories of initial allegations are as follows:
Procedural : 2 Conduct Unbecoming : 6 Use of Force : 0 Not Related to Department: 2 The definitions of the terms used are as indicated below. Not all terms are used this year due to the nature of the complaints received.
DEFINITIONS OF TERMS:
OUTCOME AFTER INVESTIGATION
EXONERATED - Allegation is true but actions were lawful.
NOT SUSTAINED - Facts revealed do not substantiate the allegation.
WITHDRAWN/CLOSED - Case was closed as matter was withdrawn by the complainant or complainant was unresponsive to attempts to contact.
SUSTAINED - A true finding supported by facts, generally results in officer discipline and/or re-training.
UNFOUNDED - Not true. Actions alleged did not occur.
CATEGORY OF ALLEGATION
PROCEDURAL - This category of typically involves complaints of unfair parking enforcement, contesting traffic tickets, failure of the officer to act, etc.
CONDUCT UNBECOMING - This category of allegation is a complaint of rude or discourteous behavior of the officer.
USE OF FORCE - This category of allegation is a complaint regarding officer use of force.
In-Person: 0 Complaint “Blue” Form: 5 Webform: 1 Email: 1 Telephone: 3 and responds to the complaining party if they provided their contact information. The following are the sources of the complaints:
SPECIALIZED ASSISTANCE FOR
EVERYONE (SAFE) TEAM
10 The SAFE Team provides three main services to the community
1. Response to issues relating to mental health, addiction and homelessness
2. Non-emergency response for people in need
3. Proactive and continued community outreach
Cotati and Rohnert Park have partnered to provide a mobile mental health crisis response team for our cities. The SAFE team began service November 1, 2021 starting with 12 hour daily coverage from noon to midnight. We are currently at 18-hour daily coverage, but our goal is to provide 24 hour daily SAFE response by the end of 2022. Our SAFE team is modeled after the successful Cahoots program in Eugene Oregon, which consists of a mental health professional, resource advocate and medic (nurse, paramedic or EMT).
SAFE works proactively to address low level issues and provides preventative outreach to help ensure individuals don’t end up needing a higher level of care. SAFE can identify shelter options for the homeless, mental health services for people in crisis, connect people with resources to address addiction and provide health care that does not meet the threshold of an ambulance response.
When SAFE is not responding to calls-for-service they conduct outreach to the homeless, including evaluating their condition and providing shelter and counseling information.
SAFE is intended to benefit everyone by
keeping police officers, firefighters and
paramedics available for appropriate
emergencies. During the initial startup of
SAFE, the earliest available statistics are from
December 2021. During that month, the
SAFE team responded to 87 calls (76 in
Rohnert Park and 11 in Cotati). The majority
of the calls were public assistance, followed
by welfare checks and counseling requests.
During this particular month, most calls came
in on Monday and Thursday, typically around
noon and 4 pm, and to a lesser degree 6 pm
and 10 pm.
If you observe someone experiencing mental health issues or homelessness you can contact SAFE by calling 707-792-4611 for non-emergencies or 911 for emergencies.
RACIAL AND IDENTITY PROFILING ACT
(RIPA)
11 The Racial and Identity Profiling Act (RIPA) was formed as part of AB953 (Weber, 2016).
The Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board (RIPA Board) is a diverse group of members that represent the public, law enforcement and educators. At the direction of the Legislature, their charge was to eliminate racial and identity profiling, and improve diversity, racial, and identity sensitivity in law enforcement.
The RIPA Board goal is to strengthen law enforcement-community relations in California through collaboration, transparency, and accountability. The California Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of the Attorney General, has the primary oversight of the RIPA Board.
One of the responsibilities of the RIPA Board has been to develop the stop-data collection process. On July 1, 2018, the eight largest police agencies in California began collecting stop data and reporting the information to the DOJ.
The bill requires an agency that employs one or more but less than 334 peace officers to issue its first annual report to DOJ by April 1, 2023. (All police agencies in Sonoma County, including the Cotati Police Department, are in this category).
For transparency, the Cotati Police Department decided to collect RIPA data before the scheduled mandate. Our Police Department is a member of a Public Safety consortium.
Members of the consortium include the Sonoma Sheriff’s Department, cities of Cotati, Petaluma, Rohnert Park, Santa Rosa, Sonoma and Windsor (Sonoma and Windsor contract services with Sheriff’s Department).
Collectively, the consortium agencies started collecting RIPA data using patrol cars mobile computers and smart phones on July 1, 2021. The data is collected by the consortium and transmitted to the DOJ daily for review and quality control. This data set then becomes the single “point of truth” for validated data statewide. Later this year, DOJ will provide the statewide report on RIPA data from 2021.
HI-LO SIREN DRILL
12 All Sonoma County Law Enforcement Agencies use “Hi-lo” sirens for emergency evacuations. Hi-Lo sirens have a distinct European emergency vehicle sound. When you Hear the Hi-Lo its’ Time to Go. We will only use Hi-Lo sirens for emergency evacuations. In the Fall of 2021, during the fire season, the Cotati Police Department, Sonoma State University Police Department and Rohnert Park of Department of Public Safety conducted a coordinated Hi-Lo Siren evacuation drill. In 2022 we will conduct another evacuation Hi-Lo Drill. To see which evacuation zone you live in, go to the City website (www.cotaticity.org) and click on the Police page.
POLICE POLICIES
Our department policy manual is available on the City Website. The California Legislature continues to enact laws that direct law enforcement towards police reform. Our policies were amended in 2021 ensuring our compliance with current law. Whenever there are changes to our policy, we republish the manual and repost it on our City Website.
POLICE DEPARTMENT POLICY
COMPLIANCE REVIEW
The City of Cotati retained an independent auditor to review the Police Department’s compliance with areas of existing policy. City leaders and I requested the study focus on policies that are considered “high risk”, as it relates to the potential for negative outcomes and/or significant risk to citizens, staff, and ultimately City liability. By ensuring the department is appropriately adhering to policy and/or identifying areas in which policy and practice contradict, the City has demonstrated a commitment to safeguard the mission to provide quality public safety services.
DEA PRESCRIPTION DRUG TAKEBACK
Annually, the Cotati Police Department hosts a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) prescription drug takeback. Proper disposal of prescription drugs makes your home a safer place and it also benefits our environment. Throwing medications away in the garbage may be dangerous and lead to tragic accidents, as they can end up in the mouths of children or household pets. Many people also flush expired or unused medications down the toilet or drain, resulting in these drugs ending up in our lakes, streams, and water supplies.
The Cotai Police Department also has a bin in our public access lobby where you can dispose of prescription pills throughout the year. Please remove pills and bag them up so there is plenty of room for all to dispose of their unwanted and expired medications. 13 TRAINING
14 The Cotati Police Department is certified by the California Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST). Sergeant Paul Goodin is our training manager assigned to keep our department in compliance with POST. Some POST training is mandated, such as perishable skills. However, the Cotati Police Department routinely trains beyond POST mandates with our police officers, police dispatchers and other civilian staff.
In 2021, one of these extra trainings included “Principled Policing”. This course teaches policing approaches that emphasize respect, listing, neutrality, and trust (Procedural Justice) while also addressing the common implicit bias that can be barriers to the approaches. Developing an understanding of these two concepts will enable us to improve safety and well-being for the public and our officers alike.
Another extra training in 2021 was suicide prevention and response. “Callers in Crisis:
Suicidal Callers” was attended by our dispatchers and one officer. This course provided actual 911 call scenarios teaching techniques to build rapport with a suicidal caller and help the dispatcher get the information needed for the best potential outcome.
Finally, our police staff also attended two courses de-escalation training in 2021. These courses teach police officers and dispatchers methods to de-escalate volatile situations to improve outcomes and prevent harm. These trainings also include training on when to not respond, duty to intercede if it is believed that excessive force is being used, and when it’s safe to retreat to help de-escalate a situation.
RECRUIT TRAINING OFFICERS
15 The Cotati Police Department is proud to have two Recruit Training Officers (RTOs) assigned to the Santa Rosa Junior College’s Public Safety Training Center (Regional Police Academy). Sergeant B Gallo and Sergeant Tyler Wardle are cadre at the Academy assisting full-time faculty and instructors to provide our future law enforcement officers with the knowledge and skills to better serve and protect California communities.
LOCAL ROAD SAFETY PLAN (LRSP)
16 In 2021, our City developed a LRSP by identifying the top systemic collision patterns throughout the City and top collision locations. The LRSP was a public effort, with key input by Public Works, traffic engineering experts and Police. This safety plan provides the City with a toolbox of countermeasures to reduce collisions through future traffic projects and traffic enforcement by our officers. The City will use the LRSP to make it safer for vehicle, pedestrian and bicycle travel in Cotati.
USE OF FORCE
17 In 2021, the Cotati Police Department experienced zero (0) URSUS (California Department of Justice Use of Force Incident Reporting database) reportable use of force.
URSUS Criteria
1. An incident that involves the shooting of a civilian by a peace officer.
2. An incident that involves the shooting of a peace officer by a civilian.
3. An incident in which the use of force by a peace officer against a civilian results in serious bodily injury or death.
4. An incident in which the use of force by a civilian against a peace officer results in serious bodily injury or death.
In Cotati, we have adopted a far more expansive definition of use of force (UOF), including reviewing any incident beyond simple handcuffing. Reportable UOF events in Cotati include the display of force (such as unholstering any type of police tool, including taser, pepper spray, or firearm). In 2021, we began the year tracking Use of Force (UOF) using a paper form, but subsequently transitioned to using the police record management system software system for better tracking. When UOF occurs, officers record their incident using a checklist, which lists which officers were present (including mutual aid officers), what tool was used (i.e. Taser, control hold), whether officers or suspects received injuries and why force was used. When supervisors review the arrest/incident reports it is flagged for UOF. Sergeants read the report narrative, review the UOF module and view the officers Body Worn Camera.
As Chief of Police, I also review each UOF for any policy violations or an opportunity to consider alternate equipment, techniques, or training in the future to reduce or avoid the use of force.
Control Hold: Controlling someone who is not doing what they are being instructed to do Defensive Techniques: Defending yourself against someone who is actively attacking the officer
WRAP: A safe restraint system, designed to protect subjects, officers Firearm Displayed: Firearm removed from holster
Firearm Pointed: Firearm pointed at subject
Taser Displayed: Taser Removed form holster
Taser Deployed: Taser Darts Launched or Taser Contacting Subject.
Impact Weapon: Use of a baton on a subject
Pepper Spray: Use or pepper spray on a subject
Use of Force Summary
Firearm Displayed Arrest, active warrant.
Firearm Displayed Arrest, battery
Firearm Pointed Medical assist, felony vehicle stop.
Firearm Pointed Arrest, assist Sheriff’s Office on vehicle pursuit Firearm Pointed 5150 Hold, subject with loaded gun
Firearm Pointed Arrest, felony car stop
Firearm Pointed Arrest, felony car stop w/SSU assist
Firearm Pointed Arrest, assist Sheriff’s Office on felony car stop Firearm Pointed Arrest, felony pursuit and warrant, mutual aid Taser Deployed/Defensive Technique Arrest, auto burglary, assault on police officers with deadly weapon, threats to officers.
Use of Force Number of Events
Control Hold 15
WRAP 2
Control Hold/Defensive Technique 2
Taser Deployed/Defensive Technique 1
Control Hold/WRAP 1
Control Hold/WRAP/Taser Displayed 1
Control Hold/Taser Displayed 4
Firearm Displayed 2
Firearm Pointed 7
Shotgun Bean Bag 0
Taser Displayed 4
Taser Deployed 0
Impact Weapon 0
Pepper Spray 0
Totals 39
USE OF FORCE
(continued)
18 For the uses of force that included displaying or pointing a firearm, or using a Taser, the following table summarizes the incidents leading to this type of force being used.
BODY WORN CAMERA (BWC) UPGRADE
19 For 2021 the Cotati Police Department transitioned from Generation 2 to Generation 3 BWC’s.
For transparency and accountability our police department was the first law enforcement agency in Sonoma County to issue BWC’s to all officers. Our BWC media is stored in a “cloud” when cameras are docked to download and recharge.
Moving from Generation 2 to Generation 3 BWC technology is a significant improvement, both in function and transparency. Sometimes during stressful circumstances, officers my not have the time or ability to activate their BWC. The upgrade automatically activates the new BWC when the officer’s firearm or Taser is drawn, vehicle emergency lights are activated and when the BWC detects gunfire.
The upgrade includes livestreaming capabilities when the BWC are activated. This allows for the 911 dispatchers or command staff to view live video from the officers BWC to allow for better outcomes.
Additionally, the new BWC has longer battery life and better video quality in all lighting conditions.
NEIGHBORHOOD OFFICER MEETINGS
Cotati Police Officers hosted two Neighborhood Officer meetings for each of the neighborhood areas in 2021. Cotati is comprised of six (6) areas (beats), which are coincident with evacuation zones. Maps of both beats and evacuation zones are available for view on the Police page of our City Website. An individual officer is assigned to each of the six areas and their phone numbers and emails are available to citizens and business owners to ask questions and make requests. Officers rotate annually to allow officers to better learn the areas and for residents and businesses to better know our officers. We invite you to attend one of our meetings.
20 PATROL
21 Our sworn police staff are here 24/7 to keep our community safe. The list of things that officers do on a daily basis is long, including the following summary of the main things our officers do to enhance the quality of life in Cotati.
Protect life and property through the enforcement of laws & regulations; Proactively patrols assigned areas
Conduct traffic and parking enforcement
Respond to calls for police service
Conduct preliminary & follow-up criminal and traffic investigations Conduct interviews
Prepare written reports and field notes of investigations and patrol activities Arrest and process criminals
Testify in court
Emergency duties required during adverse weather conditions Exercise sound judgment in determining when to use force and to what degree Operate a law enforcement vehicle under emergency conditions day or night Comprehend legal documents including citations, affidavits, warrants and other documents.
Active Community
Oriented Policing
Self-initiate traffic
and/or criminal
investigations
Supplement animal
control
Perform bar and
business checks
ANIMAL CONTROL
22 Community Services Officer Carrie Peoples is our designated animal control officer. When Carrie is not available, our police officers respond to calls for service regarding both domestic and wild animals. Carrie is also in charge of dog licensing for our City. Please license your dogs so that we can better serve you and your pet if they get loose or have other issues. Cotati contracts with Rohnert Park Animal Services for sheltering our animals.
DISPATCH
The Cotati Police Department employs six (6) Police
Dispatcher/Clerks. Our police dispatch is a Public
Safety Answering Point (PSAP) receiving all 911
calls for law enforcement, fire, and medical
emergencies for both the City of Cotati and the
Sonoma State University campus (we have a
dispatch contract with SSUPD). In addition to 911
calls-for-service, our dispatchers answer regular
police business call for our City and the University,
and our dispatchers are also clerks who process
police records, Public Records Request and other
administrative duties. Our lobby is open to the public
24/7.
23 MADD AWARD
MADD changed the criteria for the Drunk
Driving Enforcement Award from a threshold
of 25 DUI arrests for a small agency to the
individual officer with the highest number of
arrests. Sergeant Tyler Wardle (who held the
rank of Police Officer in 2020) had 17 DUI
arrests, which was the highest of any Cotati
Police Officer in 2020 and was given the
MADD Award in 2021.
This is Sergeant Wardle’s second MADD
Award during his service with the City of
Cotati. Please join me in congratulating him
for his efforts to make Cotati a safer place.
With the ongoing Pandemic, there have been fewer cars on the road. Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) recognized that because of a decreased volume of vehicle traffic, that fewer drunk driving arrests would occur.
TRAFFIC OFFICER
Officer Ryan Reinke is our full-time Traffic
Officer. Officer Reinke completed Motor
Officer training in 2020. His primary duty is
traffic enforcement, concentrating on driving
behavior that causes accidents such as
speeding and distracted driving. Officer
Reinke is also assigned to traffic accident
investigations. If you have a traffic
complaint or request, please go to the
Police page of the City website to submit
your concerns.
K9 TEAM
We are fortunate to have Corporal
Brian Deaton and his partner REMO
as our K9 Team. REMO is a dualpurpose trained Police K9 for the apprehension of violent offenders and
the detection of Cocaine, Heroin and
Methamphetamine. We also make our
K9 Team available for mutual aid,
when requested by our law
enforcement partner agencies. REMO
was procured through the Sean's K9's
grant program.
24 CADETS & VOLUNTEERS
The police department has both Cadets and Volunteers, providing them with an opportunity to assist our department and learn about career opportunities in law enforcement. Our cadets are normally high school students who help with mutual aid for parades and other events in Sonoma County, including the Butter and Eggs Festival, the Apple Blossom Festival, and our own Kids Day Parade and Festival. Cadets also go on ride-a longs with officers, attend in house trainings and criminal justice field trips. Our volunteers help with daily duties at the police department such as processing alarm permits and maintaining the inventory of police equipment and supplies. Often our cadets and volunteers become police officers, deputy sheriffs and public safety dispatchers.
PARTNERSHIPS
The Cotati Police Department has a strong relationship with the Rancho Adobe Fire Protection District, Sonoma State University Police Department and the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety. Together, through teamwork, mutual aid, and allied training, we make all of our jurisdictions a safer place to live and improve the quality of life for our residents and businesses.
25 COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Pandemic restrictions in 2021 limited the amount of in-person outreach events that we held.
However, we did host Coffee with a Cop events while observing masking requirements and social distancing. Additionally, we resumed National Night Out at La Plaza Park, after pausing it for 2020, including free food from a local restaurant, and partnering with our Recreation Department to show the Tom & Jerry movie. We also continued our Annual Holiday Toy Drive, partnering with the Rohnert Park/Cotati Rotary and Rancho Adobe Fire Protection District to collect, wrap and deliver many toys to children throughout the Cotati area. 26 COMMUNITY INFORMATION
I also want to take this opportunity to invite you to follow us on one or more of our social media platforms. Our police department has a robust public information presence to better engage with our residents and to be accessible to our community where they are. In addition to the police page of the City website, and regular pieces in the Cotati Connection newsletter, we use Facebook (now with over 4,300 “friends,”) Instagram (now with over 2,800 followers) and Nixle for time sensitive and emergency information. We encourage you sign up for Nixle alerts by downloading the Everbridge application on the Google or iOS app stores, or by texting your zip code to 888777.