Meeting_Body
REVISED
OPERATIONS, SAFETY AND CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE COMMITTEE
NOVEMBER 18, 2021
Preamble
Motion by:
DIRECTORS BONIN, MITCHELL, HAHN, SOLIS, and DUPONT-WALKER
Related to Item 25: Transit Law Enforcement Services
Commitment to Reimagining Public Safety
In the summer of 2020, the killing of George Floyd and the nationwide demonstrations for racial justice that followed sparked a national conversation about the appropriate role of police in our society and the particular threats faced by Black people and other people of color during interactions with law enforcement. Here in Los Angeles County, those demonstrations renewed attention on longstanding issues of bias and disproportionate enforcement faced by Black and brown communities. Just this month the Los Angeles Times exposed a pattern of disproportionate stops and searches of Latino and Black bike riders by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department in unincorporated areas. Earlier coverage has documented a similar pattern for traffic stops by the Los Angeles Police Department in South Los Angeles. On Metro’s own system, fare and code of conduct enforcement has also disproportionately targeted Black and Latino riders.
In June 2020, the Board voted to embark on a process to reimagine public safety on Metro. Metro has since taken significant steps toward this reimagining, including the creation of the Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) to advise the agency on an appropriate reallocation of resources and the subsequent approval in March 2021 of over $40 million to launch alternative approaches to public safety on the Metro system.
This month, Metro staff is bringing a recommendation to the Board to extend the current police contracts in order to allow more time for PSAC to reenvision the role of law enforcement as part of an overall new approach to public safety on the Metro system. PSAC’s new Mission & Values statement is a concrete first step toward this new direction, but much more needs to be done to put this new vision into practice.
While Metro staff is recommending a number of initial reforms to policing on the system to be implemented as a part of this short-term extension, the recommendation defers a decision about funding levels in FY23 to the annual budget process. In consideration of PSAC’s opposition to continued reliance on law enforcement services and the Board’s prior allocation of funding for alternative approaches, the FY23 budget should begin to reflect the agency’s new public safety Mission & Values by renewing financial commitments to the alternative approaches and commensurately shifting away from reliance on law enforcement.
Furthermore, Metro should accelerate the transition to PSAC’s vision for a public safety approach that leads with unarmed staff presence, outreach, and services with a reduced role for law enforcement by piloting these strategies at specific locations and evaluating their effectiveness. Preliminary results from such a pilot will inform a rescoped role for law enforcement beyond the 18-month remainder of the contracts.
Subject
SUBJECT: COMMITMENT TO REIMAGINING PUBLIC SAFETY
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
APPROVE Motion by Directors Bonin, Mitchell, Hahn, Solis, and Dupont-Walker that the Board direct the Chief Executive Officer to:
A. In February 2022, report on the status of the initiatives funded by Motion 26.2 (March 2021), including projected launch dates, program elements, input received from PSAC, and projected funding needs in FY23.
B. During the development of the FY23 budget, ensure a continued minimum commitment of $40 million for the public safety alternatives outlined in Motion 26.2, in addition to rolling over unspent funding from FY22.
C. In April 2022, report to the Operations, Safety, and Customer Experience Committee with a recommended public safety budget for FY23, including proposed funding levels for police services and public safety alternatives, with consideration of the Board’s directive to realign resources.
D. Consult with PSAC throughout the FY23 budget development process.
WE FURTHER MOVE that the Board direct the Chief Executive Officer to:
E. Develop a place-based implementation strategy that identifies station locations that are good candidates for piloting a reimagined public safety approach consistent with the new Mission and Values statement, including the deployment of some or all of the public safety alternatives identified in Motion 26.2 and modifying law enforcement deployment at these pilot locations while continuing to ensure fast emergency response times.
F. Consult with PSAC on the design, implementation, and evaluation-including quantitative and qualitative metrics-of this pilot.
G. Explore partnerships with academia, medical schools, promotores, and community-based organizations on the design, implementation, and evaluation of this pilot.
H. Report periodically on the pilot implementation and evaluation as part of the regular system security report.
DUPONT-WALKER AMENDMENT: Develop key performance indicators that reflect how the pilot influences rider experience.