Guest Opinion | Dr. Mikala L. Rahn: The San Rafael Incident on Sunday

I want to address the San Rafael incident on Sunday. I do not have much space to introduce myself, but I have lots of experience with the police, high risk populations, and I was a school board member. I am outraged by the incident at San Rafael with our long-term janitor at San Rafael. But more importantly by the responses by our current City Manager and our Interim Police Chief. Full disclosure, I love Cynthia Kurtz and was thrilled she even stepped in as Interim City Manager. We are lucky to have her. I love Commander Jason Clawson. I hope he is the next Chief and he won’t be because as a community we are so dumb to not hire him because he is white, I predict. But he is progressive and good for Pasadena. 

Why don’t we want to admit we made bad decisions? Humans. Bureaucracy. I want to point out the many challenges in this story:

• The San Rafael community has never liked having a school in their community, especially with mixed ethnicities at the school. Shame on the neighbors. You bought a house by a school that happens to be a bilingual English/Spanish school. If you don’t like our progressive education with multi-races, please move. We are here to stay. The District has many stories of the neighbors not being accepting of to a diverse population. 

• Did the police believe the call because it is a white neighborhood? But there is no proof someone climbed a fence with a backpack. Police should not be taking calls at face value.

• I might get the police response except the janitor is in uniform with keys. Nowhere in Kurtz and Clawson statements do they admit he is in uniform with keys. Just admit he was in uniform. Don’t skirt the issue. Don’t describe his clothes without saying in uniform. 

• Do the police have to always draw guns? Do they have to have rifles?

• Once searched and he has no weapons, do the police need to go through his phone before asking how do I get to contacts to contact your principal? (listen to audio)

• Why does a police officer on body worn cam say “he could have found that uniform in a room and changed?” Why not — oh, he is an employee!

• How des the security consultant hired by PUSD reveal information to the city/PPD without district approval (and record the principal without his consent) and how does the city/PPD reveal that to the media without district consent about the principal’s outrage. I would have used that word 15 times if my employee was treated this way. The District should drop the contract with their security consultant and sue them.

Every written response from the City has been that this response was within protocol. Well, change the protocol. We are saying as a nation and a community, we don’t want this protocol anymore. Change the protocol. And stop justifying bad behavior. Be curious, don’t believe, no gun needed right away, and why was this man ever in handcuffs. This poor man. I feel so bad for him and the effects of guns drawn on him. He was only doing his job on a Sunday which all city employees know is normal. Especially because we are opening schools in this difficult time. There needs to be a way better response. A way better training of young cops and maybe not by older cops in a new day. It sounds like the policy changes based on City Manager and Interim Police Chief responses, WE DO NOT WANT THIS RESPONSE TO BE WITHIN IN POLICY. 

Always available to talk (626) 688-7961.

Dr. Mikala L. Rahn, CEO Learning Works; Chief, Research, Evaluation and Strategy, Homeboy Industries