DATE:
April 5, 2022 and April 26, 2022
09
TO:
Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT
Title
ADMINISTRATIVE ITEM:
SECOND CONSIDERATION AND ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE:
NOTICED PUBLIC HEARING:
SHERIFF - AN ORDINANCE ADDING A NEW SECTION 449 TO ARTICLE XXV OF THE SAN DIEGO COUNTY CODE OF ADMINISTRATIVE ORDINANCES FOR APPROVAL OF SHERIFF'S MILITARY EQUIPMENT USE POLICY (DISTRICTS: ALL)
Body
OVERVIEW
On April 5, 2022 (14), the Board of Supervisors took action to further consider and adopt the Ordinance on April 26, 2022.
On September 30, 2021, Governor Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 481 (AB 481). Assembly Bill 481 is intended to increase transparency, accountability, and oversight surrounding the acquisition and use by state and local law enforcement agencies of equipment the state has identified as "military equipment." For law enforcement agencies such as the San Diego County Sheriff's Department that currently utilize equipment identified in the new law, AB 481 requires approval by the governing body for the continued use of the specific equipment no later than May 1, 2022.
Governing body approval under AB 481 must take the form of an ordinance adopting a publicly released, written military equipment use policy, which must address a number of specific topics, including the type, quantity, capabilities, purposes, and authorized uses of each type of equipment, the fiscal impact of their acquisition and use, the legal and procedural rules that govern their use, the training required by any officer allowed to use them, the mechanisms in place to ensure policy compliance, and the procedures by which the public may register complaints.
The department currently owns equipment that falls under the identified types as defined in AB 481. The listed equipment is used to respond to critical events and assist in de-escalation. The equipment increases the safety of law enforcement personnel and citizens. It allows access into difficult terrain and provides a variety ...
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