By Lookout Staff
July 10, 2020 -- The City's first Black Councilmember, the two top local NAACP officials, two Santa Monica police officers and a dozen activists, residents and service providers have been selected to serve on the City's new Public Safety Reform Advisory Committee.
The Committee -- whose 15 members were chosen by Interim City Manager Lane Dilg -- will review proposals and recommend public safety reforms "for both use of force and invest/divest strategies," City officials said.
“Each of the appointees is committed to ensuring that the City follows best practices for creating a community in which all feel and are safe,” Dilg said in a statement announcing the appointments Friday.
“Together, they bring relevant knowledge and expertise as advocates for racial justice, residents, business owners, law enforcement officers with a commitment to public safety reform, mental health providers, and social services providers.”
The committee includes former mayor Nat Trives, who became the first Black Councilmember in 1971, and Darrell Goode and Rebecca Lantry, president and vice-president respectively of the Santa Monica/Venice branch of the NAACP.
Santa Monica police officers Darnell Crumpler, a volunteer with the Ploice Activities League (PAL), and Erika Aklufi, a member of the homeless outreach team, were also appointed, along with Robbie Jones and Angela Scott, members of the Committee for Racial Justice.
The committee also includes three counselors and social serive workers -- Shuli Lotan, mental health counseling coordinator for the School District; Rasika Flores, a case manager at St. Joseph’s Youth Resource Center, and Liz Cruz, a licensed clinical social worker.
George Brown, co-author of the "New Era of Public Safety" report for the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Downtown property owner Wally Marks and residents Michael Shotton, Ralinda Harvey Smith and Marc Morgenstern, president of the Ocean Park Association, were also appointed.
"Working together with City staff, the committee will first facilitate a community input process, and review local, regional, and national proposals advocating for changes to policing and the ways that cities conceive of and allocate funds to achieve public safety,' City officials said.
After gathering information, the committee will make recommendations to the Interim City Manager regarding reforms to SMPD's use of force policies and changes that should be made to the City’s budget, "informed by calls for divest and invest strategies, to better achieve public safety and wellbeing for all in our community."