From the beginning, public safety has been a top priority. I have called this community home for thirty three years and believe that all of us and our families deserve safe streets, safe parks, and safe neighborhoods.
Throughout my term, I have met with neighbors throughout District 2 to hear their public safety concerns, have supported the formation of neighborhood safety groups, and have listened to the community at each town hall and safety pop-up. Berkeley’s mercurial political climate makes it challenging at times to pursue common-sense and evidence-based safety measures. Moreover, there is at times aversion to law enforcement and crime intervention from some community members despite the City of Berkeley and the Berkeley Police Department’s legacy as national leaders in progressive reform and community policing. Safety can mean different things to different people, and no one measure will accomplish all of our goals.
However, it is the responsibility of city leaders to ensure the safety of our communities and to put public service before all else. To that end, my team and I have worked to craft and advance a suite of safety measures through the legislative process. These include:
- West Berkeley Bike Patrol to expand community policing
- Ghost Gun prohibition
- Automated License Plate Readers to aid traffic enforcement and reduce stop disparity
- Security cameras at strategic locations in the public right of way to aid investigation (not surveillance)
- California Violence Intervention and Prevention grant
- Flex Team for Problem-Oriented Policing
- Berkeley Ceasefire
- Guaranteed Income & Re-entry Program Pilot
This is just the beginning. I will continue pursuing everything it takes to ensure that our community is safe. To share your perspective on public safety, please speak at City Council meetings when specific items are on the agenda or during non-agenda public comment periods at the beginning and end of Council meetings. Please also speak during Public Safety Committee meetings and submit written comments to Mayor@cityofberkeley.info, Council@cityofberkeley.info and Policycommittee@cityofberkeley.info.
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