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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
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    Brawley, CA 92227
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    Default What Can You Do if the Police Won't Give You Records

    Does a city council have the authority to overrule an unlawful denial by police and the city attorney for public records in CA? We do not have an agency that reviews appeals and I would like to avoid the expense of going to court. Thank you.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Default Re: Can City Council Overrule Pd Denial of Request

    Quote Quoting huntsab
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    Does a city council have the authority to overrule an unlawful denial by police and the city attorney for public records in CA? We do not have an agency that reviews appeals and I would like to avoid the expense of going to court. Thank you.
    It is unlikely that the City Council is going to meet in open session and discuss a record that is arguably NOT a public record. It is kinda tough to argue about a record that may not be lawfully released, and I do not believe there is a closed session exception under the Brown Act that would allow for such a discussion unless it was as part of a legal action. More than likely, the Council might direct the City Manager to seek the advice of the city's legal counsel on the legality of the release of the record.

    What record are you being denied?

  3. #3
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    Default Re: Can City Council Overrule Pd Denial of Request

    Access to the recording of the radio traffic during a traffic stop that escalated to a homicide. If we have a right to appeal a decision by our DA to the AG for prosecutorial misconduct, we have to have access to some basic information. Otherwise, it's a catch-22.

  4. #4
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    Default Re: Can City Council Overrule Pd Denial of Request

    If the recording is part of an ongoing investigation, internal or otherwise, then it is likely not subject to public release. You can always take it to court and see if a judge will decide that it is a public record subject to release.

    And what action by the DA do you believe is "prosecutorial misconduct?"

    I assume you believe that the DA should have charged the officer(s) involved, correct? As a note, charging decisions are the exclusive decision of the DA. The AG cannot and will not intercede simply because the DA did not decide to prosecute someone.

  5. #5
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    Default Re: Can City Council Overrule Pd Denial of Request

    "The Attorney General's intervention is appropriate only where there is a demonstrated conflict of interest that would disqualify the district attorney from a particular case; or there is an obvious abuse of prosecutorial discretion. The fact that an incident has created strong feelings within the community or the prosecutor's decision may be controversial or unpopular does not provide a basis for intervention by the Attorney General."~CA AG website.

    The investigators make numerous, significant, factual errors. They demonstrate blatant bias. They misunderstand and misrepresent the autopsy results. The ME was given false information by the coroner. Information which would have helped the ME was withheld. There is a witness who overheard investigators at the hospital, in the room with the body, talking about how they would explain the decedent's injuries: "All we have to do is say he resisted." The AG can review the investigation. That's all it would take. Then they can conduct there own investigation.

    We derserve an investigation that is factually correct. I don't know if the DA should charge the officers. We don't have a proper investigation, yet. If you knew that investigators screwed up an important investigation, what would you do? Who would you talk to? I asked the DA to read the autopsy reports, himself, to do a thorough review, himself. He trusts these guys.

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Can City Council Overrule Pd Denial of Request

    Knock yourself out and contact the AG. I think I have more experience dealing with the AG's office than you do, and absent some clear evidence of malfeasance, the AG is not going to intercede. But, you are certainly free to ask.

    As for "factual errors" you are not privy to the facts, so you really do not know whether there were errors. There might be what you see as inconsistencies, but that will not be sufficient to compel the AG to get involved.

    And, as a note, the AG's investigative resources have been greatly diminished. Their ability to look into matters is often done by attorneys now, and not by investigators because they don't have very many.

    But, as I said, you can ask.

  7. #7
    Join Date
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    Default Re: Can City Council Overrule Pd Denial of Request

    Quote Quoting huntsab
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    There is a witness who overheard investigators at the hospital, in the room with the body, talking about how they would explain the decedent's injuries: "All we have to do is say he resisted." The AG can review the investigation. That's all it would take. Then they can conduct there own investigation.
    Does your witness know the context of that comment? It's possible that it had absolutely nothing to do with a cover-up.

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