The death of George Floyd is appalling and unacceptable. We in law enforcement must continue to improve and hold ourselves to a higher standard. The men and women of the San Rafael Police Department (SRPD) strive to reach that higher standard every day and are committed to providing professional, fair, compassionate, and dedicated law enforcement with integrity and respect.
We have been a leader in California regarding de-escalation and force options training. We have incorporated de-escalation as part of our defensive tactics, firearms and less than lethal weapons curriculum for decades. We utilize scenario and reality-based training and testing to ensure our officers understand the concepts of de-escalation.
Since 2003, we have conducted regular training in Racial Profiling and Bias Based Policing. Additionally, every recruit who attends a California Police Academy receives training in Bias Based Policing. In 2014, we were the first agency in Marin County to utilize body worn cameras agency wide. Every uniformed officer in our department, including me, wears a body worn camera while on duty and engaging with our community. The use of recorders is intended to enhance the mission of the Department by accurately capturing contacts between members of the Department and our public. Our body worn camera program policy states, “The portable recorder is expected to be activated prior to, or upon arrival to any call for service, including self-initiated activity.”
The death of George Floyd is tragic and was unnecessary. My patrol officers discussed the incident in Minneapolis in our briefings this week. Proper and improper uses of force and the duty to intervene when they see something wrong were also discussed.
I am proud to work with every member of our department and I believe we conduct ourselves with the community’s best interests in mind and give our best effort every day.
A copy of the San Rafael Police Department Body Worn Camera Policy can be found online. Additionally, our SRPD Policy Manual is available for viewing online.
Respectfully,
Chief Diana Bishop