Police
The Richmond Police Department is facing an uphill battle in its search for new recruits. “Not very many people want to be in law enforcement anymore,” said Sgt. Donald Patchin, spokesperson for the department’s Personnel, Recruiting and Training unit. “It’s not just us. It’s industry-wide. Everybody is struggling to find qualified applicants.” A survey published in April by the Police Executive Research Forum shows agencies are losing sworn officers faster than they can hire them, with responding agencies saying they’d…
“People of Richmond” is a regular series in which reporters pose a question to people in the community. Answers are presented verbatim, though sometimes edited for brevity. Q: Do you think Richmond’s plan to create an alternative response team to handle mental health calls will be successful? “It could be successful – I mean, it depends on how well it’s funded; how well it’s staffed. But, as a concept, I think it’s an interesting and a good one.” (Karin Rosman,…
It’s Friday night around 7 p.m. at Richmond’s Communications Center and Yvonne Lima is just 30 minutes into her 12-hour graveyard shift. The center, which answers emergency and non-emergency phone calls for both Richmond and El Cerrito, is in charge of dispatching police, fire, and medical services. “911 what’s the address of your emergency?” echoes through the room, which is smaller than the 911 dispatch centers depicted on television. Brief alarm sounds blare in unison every 30 seconds from speakers…
Richmond City Council took a big step this month toward an alternative emergency response program that would give residents an option to calling the police. Expected to start in August as an 18-month pilot, the Community Crisis Response Program will serve as a non-police emergency service, responding to mental health or low-level emergency 911 calls such as family disputes or wellness checks. The decision comes after Oakland and Contra Costa County put similar programs in place. Since the murders of…
Nine years after Richard “Pedie” Perez III died at the hands of a Richmond police officer, the department will honor Perez’s memory by requiring officers to participate in new cultural sensitivity training, beginning in November. On Sept. 14, 2014, Perez was shot and killed by then-Richmond Police Officer Wallace Jensen outside of Uncle Sam’s Liquor Store on Cutting Boulevard. He was unarmed and nonviolent, according to six witnesses. Jensen retired from the department and the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office…
Catalytic converter thefts have been rapidly climbing since 2019, with California leading the nation in thefts. And Richmond is no stranger to the surge, as auto repair shops cite a steady stream of vehicles that need catalytic converters. To address the problem, legislators passed three laws this summer that would put trackable labels on converters, impose harsher criminal penalties for those selling or buying converters without documentation, and prioritizing vehicle parts thefts for the California Highway Patrol’s Regional Property Crimes…
For Richmond resident Rasmo Moses, ‘public safety’ is the absence of litter from the street corner near his house. For Leslie Townsend, it is “having more options than calling a gun to the scene.” For Kelbin Guterres, the concept means clean air and water and a protected natural environment. And for Josue Contreras, it’s about ensuring everybody feels safe walking down the street. For the seven candidates running for the three available City Council seats in the election next month,…
“People of Richmond” is a regular series in which reporters pose a question to people in the community. Answers are presented verbatim, though sometimes edited for brevity. Q: Should Richmond increase police pay to make it easier for the city to recruit officers? “Yes, but only if it goes to training. We shouldn’t be defunding the police. They should be given moretraining. You know, we can all use a little more training in our jobs. They should be trained in…
Police have arrested four juveniles and are looking for others who they say are connected to break-ins at five West Contra Costa Unified School District buildings last month, smashing windows and electronics and ransacking classrooms. The juveniles who were arrested late in July and early this month ranged in age from 12 to 16 years old, said Sgt. Aaron Pomeroy of the Richmond Police Department. He said police are still gathering evidence and working to identify other suspects. Richmond Police…