In response to the Antioch City Council call for a special meeting on the idea of creating a police reform ad-hoc committee and City Council study sessions. The Antioch Police Officers Association (APOA) issued the following statement:
APOA Statement:
The amazing men and women of the Antioch Police Department need the support of our citizens. Council members Lamar Thorpe and Monica Wilson are attacking the great work being done by the Antioch Police Department. The special meeting set for Tuesday is nothing more than two Council members searching for power and using this platform to push their agenda and further their political careers.
The APOA believes we can always do better, and will always embrace conversation and positive change to strengthen the relationship with our community. The proposed ad-hoc committee is going to give politicians power to create policies within the Police department. No Council should have that power. The department head (chief of police) should be the only one making policies for the police department.
The Antioch Police Department has always maintained a high level of transparency, and will continue to do so under SB 1421. Additionally, The Antioch Police Department has some of the strictest hiring standards in the Bay Area, and will continue to maintain that high standard.
Lamar Thorpe wants power and control over the police department, a profession he knows nothing about and a department he should not be creating policy for.
Please send in your comments to the council showing support for the Antioch Police Department and letting the council know there is no need for an ad-hoc committee.
Sean Wright- [email protected]
Joy Motts- [email protected]
Lamar Thorpe- [email protected]
Lori Ogorchock- [email protected]
Monica Wilson- [email protected]
According to the agenda which was called by Mayor Sean Wright:
Discuss and consider formation of a Police Reform Ad Hoc Committee including whether it shall review existing policies, rules, practices, customs, and general orders of the Antioch Police Department and make recommendations including but not limited to:
- Prevention of excessive use of force by police officers against members of the public, including banning police from using carotid artery restraints and chokeholds;
- Elimination of military equipment from the police department (“Demilitarization”)
- Required use of conflict de-escalation approaches by all sworn officers when interacting with the public
- Increased police accountability, including the process for receipt and review of public complaints against the police for excessive use of force, racial and/or ethnic profiling, and other police misconduct;
- Improvement of police officer candidate recruitment, screening, training and hiring practices including an analysis of policies concerning implicit bias, candidate diversity and candidate background checks; and
- Police department budget appropriations
27 comments
Our only hope for a safe Antioch is our police force. This department is one to be proud of and celebrate. These council members aren’t held to the same high standard of ethics and standards as our police. This council just continues to make zero sense. I thought the homeless housing issue last week was the most ridiculous idea, but this tops it. I support the Chief and the members of our police force. I expect this council will move on to another waste of time and money next week. Support our police.
I 1000% percent agree. Loser City Council we have will never get any good business here and a decent economy going. Chief Brooks is awesome. We need to get rid of these stupid clowns on the City Council with no head for any business whatsoever but pot dispensaries. MORE funding for Antioch Police, not less. Stupid, Stupid, Stupid waste of time doing anything to APD. But, that is all our City Council does except raise taxes.
we need more control over the loser City Council poor spending and poor approach to literally everything. they get nothing done except fast food and pot.
The men and women of the Antioch Police Department are among the hardest working in their profession. This department has always done more with less. A city our size should have double the officers, but they don’t. Concord and Richmond have more than 50 officers more than APD. But yet, these Officers at APD at times carry double their workload with more solves cases and positive results than both of those agencies combined.
To have these idiot Council members to try and understand the workload, dynamics of the department, and skills needed to get this done is absurd!!! APD is just getting back to a reasonable number of officers and bring back programs they had long since our on hold due to staffing issues. See where this department goes if these idiots start dictating how the department is run. I guarantee there will be an exodus of top quality staff and only be able to attract inferior replacements.
These council members are the same to piss away over a half million dollars on homeless issues to only see a problem multiply out of control. Look at Wilbur? Tracks behind Sycamore? a St? They really did a good job, not!!!
Now imagine what will hope to APD. The Chief already made it know that most of their BS concerns are already addressed in current policy and procedures.
I say all Officers in this state take a few days off and see how long it is til people cry help, only to get no response.
Stop attacking Officers and their jobs and start looking at the root problems. Last time I checked, the looters weren’t officers, the violent protests weren’t officers, so who were those fools?? Might as well been the council members! Not much different than what they are doing now. So done with Antioch!! House going for sale and out of here!!!
Good bye…nothing wrong with oversight and reviewing our city standards. Bye…
What exactly is there to “reform?” The APD is doing fabulously well. The show restraint when they have to deal with some truly despicable garbage which has moved here.
STOP SYSTEMIC LIBERAL FAKE MANUFACTURED POLICE CRISIS
Antioch residents really need to support their police. Their hiring standards are extremely high. The officers are truly among the hardest working and most capable in California. They have a chief that takes his job seriously and wants the best for Antioch residents. Don’t take a step backwards, it takes way too long to recover once you’ve lost it. Let the council now you support YOUR police, and let YOUR officers now how much you appreciate them during these difficult times.
This is such a sad time in America…Such disrespect for law enforcement…Who among us would want to deal with the situations they have to deal with day in, and day out…Now they are being told to stand down, and allow rioters to burn down their cities …all while they are pelted with rocks,bricks,urine,vomit,and a steady stream of insults…Who among us is willing to put up with this!!??…
Idiotic policies such as the ones being proposed by these council members, are only going to make current officers question why they should stay…and will result in the hiring of new officers that just won’t have the same emotional investment to the community they serve…
I moved to Antioch in 2008, and have always been impressed with Antioch PD…They have continued to do their jobs through lean budgets, and a growing community…My interactions with them have always been courteous and professional, and I am proud to have them here…Most citizens don’t get up in arms about things, thinking that things will never get that bad…But this is different…These kinds of ideas are destabilizing our nation, and our communities…We will act lawfully…Recalls of elected officials are on the rise around the country…
Mayor Wright;
Don’t be part of the game, they’ll turn on you in a heart beat. Do the right thing and be the solution! Political posturing will destroy our community, if it’s not to late already, what a selfish little man game!
When you have proven competent leaders, which you do; get out of their way and let them do their jobs, trust their decisions and leadership. Your roll is to make sure that they have the tools to do “Their” jobs in the most efficient manner as possible. Doing an oversight committee shows that you’re questioning them along with the councils decisions in putting these leaders in their positions in the first place because. Don’t think for a second that those department heads can’t feel the lack of support, where do you think that leads?
As a small example; I want to make certain you and the others recognize the personal sacrifices that the officers of this department, including the command staff, have made over just the past couple of weeks to keep this community safe. The majority of Officers, Detectives, Dispatchers and Administrators worked 14-16 hour shifts for days on end to keep Antioch as safe as possible. When it was necessary they were there; while Antioch slept. Yes, there were minor incidents; but nothing like what was planned due to the sacrifices of APD. And now this..
I can assure you that; under Chief Brooks APD is in good hands. I’ve known him for well over 20 years, I know his heart. I can tell you from first hand knowledge that he lives & breathes the City of Antioch, the Antioch Police Department and the Officers and employees of this Department. He is loved and respected by both the public and the members of the department.
I am sure that you’re aware that the Chief meets with community groups, structured & not, on a regular basis. He even met with protesters during marches to listen to them. He has and will make changes when necessary and legal, but you need to trust him and your decision to put him in the position that he’s in.
With all due respect; keep the politics out of the Police Department, you’ll destroy it.
Let the Chief do his job
To Council members Lamar Thorpe and Monica Wilson, PLEASE PLEASE leave our APD out of your political agenda. The ADP and especially Chief Tammany has done nothing but do their jobs and doing it with transparency, integrity, respect and love for this city. Chief Tammany has put the safety of the citizens of our city as his top priority and it shows…His leadership and respect that his staff has for him is evident. What experience/training/schooling, may I ask, do you have in policing? In law enforcement? In handling crowd/protesters?
As a citizen of Antioch for many many years, I see no reform necessary. Our ADP is doing a stellar job with the current funding, DO NOT RUIN A GOOD THING!
I would like to know why the Antioch pd is so quick to try and seize cell phone video when they are caught on camera using excessive force?
https://youtu.be/3mp27xDkqaE
Probably because it had information on the phone from a previous crime that had just been committed. Also, this happened about 8-months prior.
Our APD is loved and respected by 95% of our community. Where is the statement about that from our council when they need it the most!
Uh what is wrong with having a committee with discussions about Police protocol. I find it disturbing that the union would be against this AND it’s is proposed that they would be included in the conversation. We all know policing is a tough job in Antioch, but the last Chief was horrible. He was given too much power, allowed stonewalling, and gave the union whatever they wanted breaking the city’s bank. The current Chief is doing a good job but he isn’t the issue.
At one time, POA endorsed Wilson. Now they don’t like something she’s doing, so they come down on her. Doesn’t look very good to me.
The POA should stay out of politics then.
This committee should move forward.
Thank you.
Explain to me, Mr. Thorpe and Ms. Wilson, what horrific acts the officers and chief of the Antioch Police department have done or been complicit in perpetuating? The answer is zip. The Antioch Police Officers Association (APOA) have been supportive of all things youth in this community when I moved here in 1988. They have supported soccer, baseball, and even rugby programs, financially and with volunteers. As a teacher at Deer Valley, they have treated students and staff with compassion and dignity when aboard our campus. It’s a propaganda technique
Bandwagon
The desire to fit in with peers has long been recognized as a powerful force in society. Propagandists can exploit this longing by using the bandwagon technique to appeal to the public. This common propaganda technique is used to convince the public to think, speak, or act in a particular way simply because others are. The public is invited to “jump on the bandwagon” and not be left behind or left out as the rest of society engages in what they perceive to be correct behavior.
Mr. Sagehorn I can’t speak for our city council members. In fact I shouldn’t have to. Surely, you read or watch the news. It is not a secret that our fine police department has had a history of corruption, racial bias, and violence. Surely you know about the case the city settled where the police department was shown to be racially targeting only African American Section 8 voucher holders. You couldn’t have missed that one it was all over the news for years. Let me give you a refresher. The APD acted criminally against an innocent and vulnerable group in our community in an effort to run them out of town.
I do undertand what you mean about propaganda. If you read most comments here they almost paraphrase the original statement given by the police association. Even your comment is just a repeat of what the police said. That goes to show you just how powerful that bandwagon and propaganda stuff can be.
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There is nothing wrong with the APD! Leave them alone and don’t waste valuable time trying to find something which does not exist. They are doing a fabulous job considering how this town has attracted garbage from the crime-ridden cities thanks to Section 8 and like programs.
Thorpe & Wilson–People need to be held accountable, which includes YOU and the CRIMINALS which Antioch seems to attract.
APD does a fanatic job in this nanny environment trying to keep some sense of civility and hope for community. GOD HELP US purge you asshat butts off the council this fall. We don’t need anymore publicity sucking jerks doing a hatchet job on our fine police department and phonemail chief.
Ask the woman that was carjacked last august by 3 semi-automatic weapon toting 14 & 15 year olds how much help they want from you assclowns, ask all the parents in this town that have lost children to gun violence, how much help they want from you two idiots. Ask my neighborhood the have had 3 huge criminal dope growing operations shut down because of the fine work of APD what help they want from you.
Resign in shame now and save us the hassle of throwing you out of office in November. APPALLING!
Chief Brooks, I wish I could apologies for these clowns, I’m quite sure the only folks in this town that think Thorpe and Wilson are helping them are the criminals they support!
Well said, Geoff! I couldn’t have said it better. Those clowns must be gotten rid off one way or another.
“Dope growing” was made legal by California voters.
I understand your fear Geoff. I have been studying it for five years. Just like most others who have commented here it is your fear that drives your judgement. You say the APD is doing such a fine job, and then you go on to list a handful of crimes that have occurred recently. When we convey our message in such a way it is termed a ‘contradiction’. It pretty much nullifies any credibility that we might have otherwise had.
Also, you may want to take a grammar refresher course. I count only one or two of your sentences that are not riddled with gramattical errors and mispellings.
Leave the Police Department alone.
Chief Brooks is doing a great job and so is his staff.
Why would two people want to have a private meeting to decide what is best for our PD. and the people of Amtioch?
Leave the Police Department alone.
Chief Brooks is doing a great job and so is his staff.
Why would two people want to have a private meeting to decide what is best for our PD. and the people of Antioch?
Stop with this AD-HOC shit! Those meetings must be open to the public and to the PD! I can’t wait for November to kick this whole idiotic Antioch council out. We voted for the wrong people and now we are suffering the consequences. Out with them!
Are you kidding me?? Obviously 90% of the people commenting here are cops pretending they are supportive citizens. Gee, why would they have a problem with police oversight? Umm, because the police are shady AF of course they don’t want anyone finding out how they REALLY operate. God forbid! How funny now they need the citizens’ support. Maybe they should have thought of that the countless times innocent citizens needed THEIR support, only for them to NOT SHOW UP, or show up and ARREST THE INNOCENT CALLER, or worse, shoot an innocent person? Sorry, but almost everyone who has lived in Antioch over the past 20 years has seen (if not experienced personally) how FILTHY corrupt AND prejudiced AND violent so many officers are toward ALL it’s citizens. Whose fault do you THINK it is? How pathetic is it when council members are forced to make it THEIR job to try and protect the citizens from their own police force? Absolutely APD needs SERIOUS OVERSIGHT! Should have done this 50 years ago…
Very well said Sabrina Kary.
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