Long-Awaited Report on Community Attitudes Towards Pasadena Police Heard, at Meeting Deemed “Unofficial”

When is a meeting not a meeting?

A special meeting of the Pasadena City Council Public Safety Committee was deemed “unofficial” by the City Attorney’s office Thursday when the Committee insufficient number of members convened to comprise a quorum.

Just two members of the committee — Chair John Kennedy and Councilmember Tyron Hampton — were present in the chamber, and Councilmember Steve Madison was present via telephone from New York City, where he was traveling for business. The committee only has four members (the fourth is Vice Mayor Gene Masuda) and at least three need to be “in the jurisdiction” to qualify as a quorum.

A visibly upset Kennedy said, “I am disgusted at this,” since the lack of a quorum meant the Committee was only able to hear but not respond to a long-awaited personal presentation by Cal State LA Professor Lisa Graziano of her study, “Community Perceptions of Policing in Pasadena.”

The Committee members only heard about the quorum decision minutes before the meeting was to begin.

While this was her first formal appearance before a Council Committee, Graziani’s report, written last fall, was presented earlier to the full council on April 18 in conjunction with a presentation by Change Integration Consulting (CIC) — police oversight specialists Kathryn Olson and Barbara Attard. CIC used the Graziano report and survey as background and research material for their own report to the Council recommending police oversight. Author Graziano was not present in for that April CIC presentation.

Graziano had also not appeared at an agendized meeting of the Human Rights Commission last week, but told Pasadena Now that no one from the Commission had ever informed her that she was scheduled to appear.

Last night, the Public Safety Committee was only able to hear public comments but not to respond directly to the speakers, and could not engage or interact with Dr. Graziano during her presentation.

Madison, in particular, had criticized the methodology of the presentation at the April 18 meeting, but was unable to interact with Graziano directly.

As a perturbed Kennedy described the meeting, “It’s just three council members who happen to be sitting here.”

Graziano reported, nonetheless, that “a strong majority (78%) of residents demonstrated belief in the Pasadena Police Department, expressing confidence in the department’s ability to do its job well, make decisions in their best interests, and protect people’s rights.” This confidence rating is higher than the national figure, which was cited at 60%.

In addition, said Granziano, almost half of Pasadena residents surveyed felt that the Pasadena Police Department was more likely to treat whites and the wealthy better than minorities and the poor. Again, this figure was less than the 60% who hold this position nationally.

A majority of residents rated the police in Pasadena as being effective in all areas of service and interaction with the community, said Graziano, but particularly for treating residents with courtesy, preventing crime, responding to emergency calls, and dealing with neighborhood problems.

A third of all residents felt police misconduct was “at least a minor problem in Pasadena,” she said.  Graziano also stated that “Latino residents had more negative assessments than Asian and White residents, while African American residents exhibited far more negative assessments than Latinos.”

Professor Graziano also added that White residents were more likely to consider the Pasadena Police Department as being very responsive to their concerns, with African Americans having the most negative assessments.

Although the meeting did not “officially” take place, Kennedy said, following the meeting, that Graziano’s presentation would not be heard again by the Committee or by the full Council.

A report by Police Chief Phillip Sanchez on Police Department staffing was also tabled until the next Committee meeting July 18.