Attorney for Mother of Slain Youth Says Investigation Report Proves Police Did Not Act in Good Faith

An attorney representing the mother of Kendrec McDade, who was killed by Pasadena police in 2012, said Tuesday night that a report released today shows Pasadena police did not act in the spirit of cooperation and transparency promised by city leadership when they investigated the shooting.

“We have been mislead for three years by the City about their investigation of this shooting,” Skip Hickambottom said today.

Hickambottom represented Anya Slaughter, McDade’s mother, in a lawsuit which ultimately required Pasadena to release the Office of Independent Review’s report examining both McDade’s shooting and the handling of the aftermath by Pasadena police.

Hickambottom points to statements made by Chief of Police Phillip Sanchez at a public “Peace Walk” one week after McDade’s death.

“Rest assured,”  Sanchez said, addressing the crowd at that time, “that the level of investigation ensures transparency, it ensures openness.”

Then-Mayor Bogaard and then-Councilmember Chris Holden took the promise a step further and wrote an open letter to the community distributed via media news outlets in which the duo said they supported “the city manager and police chief, promising full cooperation and transparency to our community.”

Hickambottom says in retrospect, the OIR Report released today shows those promises were not delivered.

“Now that a portion of the McDade OIR Report has finally been released, it is crystal-clear that those promises of ‘transparency’ and ‘full cooperation’ with the OIR Group made by Mayor Bogaard, Councilmember Holden, and Chief Sanchez were immediately broken by the Pasadena Police Department” Hickambottom said.

In particular, Hickambottom points to the revelation that the OIR Group, contracted by the city to investigate the shooting and responsible to the City for participating in administrative review meetings by the Pasadena police command staff, was in fact effectively excluded from attending those meetings.

“We find it extremely troubling that the the OIR Group was not informed about the administrative review for the Kendrec McDade shooting until after it occurred. There is no excuse for that, ” Hickambottom said.

Hickambottom also points to the Pasadena Police Department’s decision not to conduct a separate administrative investigation. That, he said, has resulted in an incomplete record of the incident.

“After reading this Report,” Hickambottom said, “can anyone at the City tell me with a straight face that this was a thorough and transparent investigation?”