Councilmember Kennedy Cautiously Optimistic Police Oversight Plan Can Pass

[UPDATED] While the City Council last week rejected sending a charter-amendment proposal on civilian oversight of the Pasadena Police Department to the voters in November, Councilmember John Kennedy now is cautiously optimistic that another oversight model – co-authored by himself and Mayor Terry Tornek – might have the five council votes needed to pass. 

Kennedy, who is chairman of the council’s Public Safety Committee, acknowledged that the so-called Tornek-Kennedy reform plan will likely need some changes from its current form – but that with further discussions, starting at Wednesday’s committee meeting and likely at a future full council session, some version of his and Tornek’s model could eventually fly.

“I think that, based upon the conversation that took place at the council level (last week), there are possibly five votes to pass a version of the Tornek-Kennedy proposal,’’ Kennedy told Pasadena Now on Sunday in an exclusive interview.

“It seemed to me that there were council members who wanted to go back and talk to their constituents to find out more about their sentiments before they crafted any amendments, per se, to the proposal.’’

Kennedy went on to say, “Five members of the council have intimated – haven’t voted, but have intimated — that they would support some version of the Kennedy-Tornek proposal.’’

Five votes constitute the majority needed for any measure to pass the council, which consists of seven members and the mayor.

Kennedy pointed to Councilmembers Margaret McAustin, Andy Wilson and Gene Masuda as having “intimated’’ they could possibly support some amended version of the Tornek-Kennedy proposal — along with Kennedy himself and the mayor.

The Tornek-Kennedy police-reform model, as well as a second plan proposed by Vice Mayor Tyron Hampton, both were discussed at length during last Monday’s full council session.

Hampton’s plan called for amending the City Charter and creating a nine-member Community Police Oversight Commission, as well as an independent police auditor – significantly, both with subpoena power. The commission and auditor would have operated outside the purview of the city manager, who also oversees the police.

However, amending the City Charter requires voter approval, and the council nixed that idea by a 6-2 vote, with several members expressing worries the plan was too hurriedly put together.

The Tornek-Kennedy plan – at least in its current form — calls for a 13-member Community Police Oversight Commission, coupled with an independent police auditor. However, both would fall under the city manager’s purview, and neither would have subpoena power, a set-up that Hampton has criticized as falling “very short of true changes.”

The Tornek-Kennedy plan calls for the 13 commissioners to be appointed by the council and nominated as follows: one by each member of the council, including the mayor; one by the city manager; one by the chief of police; and three by community groups with specific qualifications.

That will be the starting point for further discussions when the Public Safety Committee meets by teleconference on Wednesday at 3 p.m. The civilian oversight matter is Item 1 on the committee’s agenda.

“It (the proposal) will probably have a much fuller discussion at the City Council level given the discussions that have already taken place by several of my colleagues,’’ Kennedy said on Sunday. “But… there may be members of the committee that have some recommendations related to the (Tornek-Kennedy) proposal.’’

The Public Safety Committee consists of Kennedy, Tornek, Hampton and Councilmember Steve Madison.

Possible amendments to the Tornek-Kennedy plan are what figure to dominate the discussion at Wednesday’s Public Safety Committee meeting, as well as at any eventual full council discussion on police civilian oversight.

Support among council members for some form of police oversight plan appears to be growing, but some members have questioned particular points in the Tornek-Kennedy framework.

McAustin, for one, has called the plan a good start, but said she doesn’t think members of the commission should be chosen by the City Council.

“It’s inherently political if council members appoint,” McAustin said. “I think the idea is for regular folks [to] evaluate these things without the filter that we have by sitting on the council. This time, I think it’s important that community folks be on the board.’’

Wilson, during last week’s full council session, said he was “not sold on some of the selection process’’ regarding commission appointments, and that some form of stipends might be in order, as is the case with other city commissions.

“That would be an area of investigation,” Wilson said, though he stressed, “I think these can be worked out.”

Wilson said he also “would look for a work plan, in terms of what is the vision of success, and what do the metrics look like, and if we’re not meeting those metrics, then I think that becomes the basis for taking further action.

“I think we should get started,’’ Wilson added. “I don’t think charter reform is quite the right thing for us right now. I think it should be on the table at a future date. But I think that the citizens have spoken, and I think we should take action. The Kennedy-Tornek model is a place to get going, and I would ask that we commit to moving that quickly and set a timeline to when we expect to be able to get that in place.’’

Masuda, addressing the mayor during last week’s council meeting, said “I always felt that the Public Safety (Committee) and the full council are the best oversight. (But) I’m kind’ve moving from that now, from what I’ve been hearing tonight. I am getting closer to yours and Mr. Kennedy’s oversight model.’’ 

Madison and Councilmember Victor Gordo, meanwhile, have been skeptical of the Tornek-Kennedy plan, and a “yes” vote from either of them would appear to be a tougher pull. Hampton’s vote should be interesting to watch, given that he supported the charter-reform plan and questioned the strength of the Tornek-Kennedy model.

Madison, among other issues, has wondered if Tornek-Kennedy “would dilute the authority and the responsibility of the Public Safety Committee and the full council (to oversee the police department). He has also expressed concern that, with Tornek up for reelection in November, politics could be a factor.

Gordo voted in favor of independent oversight and a charter change last Monday.

Kennedy, who championed a failed 2016 push for civilian police oversight, has said he’s been “bruised through this process,’’ but feels more sanguine today than he has been in the past.

“I would simply say in terms of optimism, I’m not going to be overly optimistic until there’s a vote of five of the council to produce a community or civilian oversight model that the council can embrace by a showing of hands,’’ he said Sunday. “You don’t prematurely make that leap until the council has voted.

“But I will say, there’s more optimism today than there was five years ago, more optimism today than there was three weeks ago, more optimism today than there was a week ago. I think it’s just an appreciation that the old way of doing business is insufficient.

“The objective,’’ Kennedy added, “is to have a unanimous vote. I’m not sure we’ll get there, but there’s certainly a pathway if other members of the council want to participate to help us get to that unanimous vote. I think it sends a very positive message to the community.’’ 

The Public Safety Committee’s 3 p.m. meeting on Wednesday will be broadcast live on cable Channel 3, as well as streamed on line at http://pasadena.granicus.com/mediaplayer.php?camera_id=2&publish_id=9 and https://www.pasadenamedia.org/watch/ (Click on video streamlining on the right side of the screen).