PRESS CONFERENCE TOMORROW TO NOTIFY ALL LAW ENFORCEMENT-#AB953 SIGNED!
October 6, 2015 Press Advisory
CONTACT:
Jay Jordan, LA Voice,jerronlavoice@gmail.com, (209) 225-5005
Kim McGill, Youth Justice Coalition,kim@youth4justice.org, (323) 327-1259
Sandra Hernandez, ACLU – SC,shernandez@aclusocal.org, (914) 299-0714
Community Gives Notice to LA County Law Enforcement Agencies
that Governor Brown Signed AB 953
Asian Americans Advancing Justice, ACLU of Southern California, L.A. Voice and the Youth Justice Coalition to Gather at LAPD’s 77thDivision to Notify Law Enforcement of their New Obligations under AB953
What: Press conference will notify local law enforcement agencies about upcoming changes in state law with Governor Brown’s signing Saturday of AB953 (Weber: The Racial and Identity Profiling Act of 2015), the first-ever data collection bill to analyze all police stops. The new law will require that: 1. Law enforcement collect and release data on all stops; 2. Law enforcement follow a stronger definition of racial and identity profiling that more forcefully outlaws racial and identity profiling based on race, gender, age, religion, LGBTQ identity, physical or mental condition, housing status, and national origin and immigration status; and that 3. A State Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory (RIPA) Board will be appointed to monitor implementation of the law and analyze the data.
When: 10:30 am on Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Where: 77th Division LAPD, 7600 South Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90003 between 76th and 77th Streets
Who: Families whose loved ones have been killed by law enforcement, youth who have been regularly impacted by racial profiling, and faith leaders.
Background: On Saturday, October 3, 2015, Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 953: The Racial and Identity Profiling Act of 2015 into California law. Authored by Assembly Member Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), AB 953 now requires law enforcement agencies to collect information on police stops in response to growing concerns about racial/identity profiling and police misconduct.
“We celebrate Governor Jerry Brown’s signing AB953 into law. We have taken a historic step towards ridding our society of racial injustice. This groundbreaking legislation will lead to better policing and ultimately safer communities,” said Reverend Gary Williams a Clergy Leader from LA Voice, a local affiliate of PICO California.
Juan Pena is a youth leader with the Youth Justice Coalition. “I was first arrested in 4thgrade. Another student who was White brought marijuana to my Wilmington elementary school and when he was caught, he blamed me. As an undocumented student with limited English, my ‘guilt’ was never questioned. I was arrested and also suspended. By middle and high school, I experienced stops by law enforcement on a regular basis. Once, sheriff deputies checked me for my bus pass and searched my backpack seven different times on one route to school! I hope that this law will help to ensure that my younger brothers and sisters won’t have to go through the same constant criminalization that I do.”
In Los Angeles County alone, at least 642 people have been killed by law enforcement officers since 2000, making ours the most deadly county in the nation. According to an independent, nationwide analysis, unarmed Black men are seven times more likely than unarmed white men to die by police gunfire. California also holds the ominous state record for the highest number of deaths in the country, with 151 people killed by law enforcement in the state so far this year. However, our state still does not collect, analyze, or make available basic information about who the police, stop, search or even shoot.
AB 953 will:
· Update California’s definition of racial and identity profiling to be in line with federal recommendations by including other demographic characteristics, such as gender and sexual orientation.
· Require that California law enforcement agencies uniformly collect and report data on stops, frisks, and other interactions with the communities they serve.
· Establish an advisory board to analyze stop data and develop recommendations to address problems with disparate policing where they exist.
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AB 953 cosponsor organizations: PICO California, ACLU of California, Youth Justice Coalition, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Reform California, and Dignity and Power Now.
