With Governor Jerry Brown’s signature, California passed two laws relating to police use of force. SB227 prohibits grand juries from conducting secret hearings to determine whether a law enforcement officer should be charged with a crime following use of force against a person detained or arrested. SB411 reaffirms the right of citizens to take videos of police providing that the citizens are not resisting or obstructing an officer and are in a public place they have to right to be. (Daily Kos, August 12, 2015, by cany)
The author of SB227, Senator Holly Mitchell, D-Los Angeles, hailed its passage, citing the failure to indict in Ferguson and the resulting “atmosphere of suspicion that threatens to compromise our justice system.” The district attorney’s association objected pointing to the infrequent use of grand juries in the case of lethal force. (San Francisco Chronicle, August 11, 2015, by Melody Gutierrez)
An editorial in the The Sacramento Bee, August 12, 2015, by the editorial board, said California is in the forefront in establishing transparency in lethal force involving police officers but said there is much more to do. The editorial board cited the need for “tough statewide standards for body cameras” and record-keeping of “use-of-force incidents and deaths in custody.”