Police Oversight Commission Invites Police Union to Address Concerns

The Pasadena Community Police Oversight Commission has extended an invitation to the city’s police union to discuss concerns about hiring practices and oversight at the Commission’s upcoming October meeting.

The move comes in response to recent articles in Pasadena Now featuring criticisms from the Pasadena Police Officers Association (PPOA) regarding the Commission’s impact on police recruitment and morale.

The Commission announced the invitation during Thursday’s meeting. 

“We invited the PPOA. We did not give them sufficient time to be able to get their schedules together,” a Commission member said.

The offer will be reissued for the October meeting. 

In the initial invitation, Pasadena Police Officers Association representatives were asked to discuss “issues that they may have with CPOC and hiring practices and the history and the mission of the PPOA.”

Commissioners were asked if they had any specific questions to include in the new invitation within the legal constraints of the Commission’s scope.

Vice Chair Phil Argento emphasized the importance of engaging with all community segments, including the police union. “We need to be in touch and listen to all segments of the community,” he said.

Argento expressed hope for constructive dialogue, adding, “I’m looking forward to hearing from them about their history, their mission, and their specific concerns with the role of this Commission.”

At a City Council meeting last month, Kyle Hazen, a member of the Pasadena Police Officers Association Board of Directors, said the City’s oversight Commission is a problem.

“Pasadena is one of the few Departments with civilian oversight. While oversight is often viewed as a positive measure, it can become a deterrent when discourse from the oversight committee is perceived as hurtful, inflammatory, or even dangerous. This level of scrutiny drives officers to seek employment with agencies that do not subject their every action and intention to such intense examination, scrutiny, and bias.”

After that comment, Mayor Victor Gordo expressed concern to Pasadena Now about the way some Commissioners have treated officers.

“The CPOC was intended to provide oversight to the Pasadena Police Department,” Gordo said. “I am very concerned that individual members appointed by the City Council are using their position to unfairly attack police officers by making public statements that are unfounded, inaccurate.”

“Making unfounded and baseless derogatory statements about officers and the Department run contrary to the purpose,” Gordo said. “If the statements attributed to the Chair and other members are true, the appointment of those Commissioners should be reconsidered.”

The purpose of the Community Police Oversight Commission is to enhance, develop, and strengthen community-police relations and review and make recommendations regarding the ongoing operations of the Police Department to the Chief of Police, City Manager, and/or City Council, according to the City’s website. 

The October meeting is planned to include a presentation from the Pasadena Police Officers Association, while the Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission is scheduled to present at a separate time during the same meeting.

The Commission also discussed the low participation rate in a recent officer survey on pretext stops, with Police Chief Harris encouraging officer participation while acknowledging he cannot force compliance.

This development comes amid ongoing discussions about the role and effectiveness of police oversight in Pasadena, with the Commission seeking to balance community concerns with the perspectives of law enforcement.