Year after stipulated judgment, east Bakersfield residents speak out about BPD, hear of progress
Sep. 13—Dozens attended a town hall Monday to voice their concerns about Bakersfield Police Department practices to a third-party team tasked with monitoring reforms for the department, while also hearing an update on progress toward meeting the terms of a stipulated judgment.
The BPD entered into a stipulated judgment with the state Department of Justice in August 2021 after the DOJ conducted an investigation into police practices and found reforms were needed. By entering into the stipulated judgment, the police department avoided admitting any legal fault, but it agreed to a series of reforms such as of its search-and-seizure policies, mental health resources and language access for non-English speakers.
Nadine Escalante, a community policing advocate, said before the meeting east Bakersfield residents rarely receive the opportunity to voice their concerns to the BPD. Each area of Bakersfield has different shortfalls, she added. There have been in-person sessions, similar to Monday's, in the southeast and Silverlake communities, as well.
"The community doesn't have the opportunity to voice their concerns about law enforcement, unless something tragic happens," Escalante said. "And by then, it's too late."
No BPD officers were present, by design, to encourage people to speak freely. Escalante said it's intimidating when a person comes to a listening session and sees 20 police cars outside.
However, BPD Chief Greg Terry has said he is committed to transparency with the public about his processes and policies.
Debra Kirby, leader of the monitoring team, said reform can happen within the BPD, but it must come from those interested in making changes.
Residents spent two hours at Emmanuel Lutheran Church talking about their experiences with police — some were positive or neutral, but most said their experiences have been negative.
Three people, including Suzanne Gost, talked about how police officers don't show up to their calls, or arrive far too late. Gost, a 60-year east Bakersfield resident, understands there is a nationwide crisis of a shortage of police officers. But it's still frustrating, she added.
Bob Coons reminisced about officers conducting bike patrols and being intimately familiar with area residents. But responding and building bridges with the community isn't happening, he said.
Kirby also gave an update to those in the audience about the stipulated judgment's progress over this past year. The first year was spent laying the groundwork for the upcoming years, and not the "bells and whistles," she said.
She cited some progress in creating an application for a community advisory panel.
After the members of the panel are chosen, they will be involved in creating reforms for the department. The monitoring team has been working on the BPD's use-of-force policy, and the community advisory panel will give its input once the revisions are complete, she said.
She noted the team was shocked when it found out there isn't a Spanish-speaking police officer on every shift. Even though the city of Bakersfield has the largest percentage of officers living within its city limits in California, there still seems to be a disconnect between police officers and the community they are sworn to serve.
The monitoring team is scheduled to release a year-end report documenting its progress with the stipulated judgment in December.
