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Letter to LA Police Commission Re Predpol – March 9, 2020

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Stop LAPD Spying Coalition

March 9, 2020

Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners
100 West First Street, Suite 134
Los Angeles, California 90012

Commissioner President Eileen Decker

Commissioner Vice President Commissioner Shane Murphy Goldsmith

Commissioner Sandra Figueroa-Villa

Commissioner Steven Soboroff

Commissioner Dale Bonner

Dear Commissioners:

On behalf of the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition we write with deep concern and disappointment on the failure of the LA Police Commission to uphold and uplift the best interest of Angelenos with regard to the continuing use of Predpol and the impending release of Data-Driven Policing Strategies handbook.

The commission continues to willfully neglect the concerns raised by Stop LAPD Spying Coalition along with hundreds of Academics about the inherently racist practice of Predpol and the ethics and merits of research in the development of Predpol.  Concerns were also raised by the LAPD Office of Inspector General’s about their inability to audit Predpol in March 2019.  Furthermore, several Police Departments around the country have reportedly discontinued the use of Predictive Policing

In a February 28, 2020 interview with CBS – Dallas affiliate evenJamie Mcbride of the LA Police Protective League (Police Union) said “Predictive Policing doesn’t work and even the stupidest criminal would notice and go elsewhere.”

In closing, the commission has repeatedly shown and rejected many concerns shared by the community.  It is also increasingly evident that the corporate power and conflict of interest of Predpol’s claims of success based on its own analysis of the program along with the bribing of a sitting police commissioner – Sandra Figueroa-Villa by Predpol drive decisions by the commission to completely reject concerns raised by hundreds of academics, the discontinued use of Predpol by several other police departments around the country, and the mockery made by leadership of LA Police Union of Predictive Policing. 

This is utterly shameful and makes it very clear that regardless of all the concerns and above stated facts, the LA Police Commission has once again failed to uphold what’s in the best interest and safety of the community.

We demand that the commission take immediate action and dismantle the use of Predpol and hold public hearings on current and pending Data Driven Policing programs.  

Sincerely,
Hamid Khan

Stop LAPD Spying Coalition

Cc:

Michel Moore – Chief, Los Angeles Police Department

Richard Tefank – Executive Director, Los Angeles Police Commission

Mark Smith – Inspector General, Los Angeles Police Department

Eric Garcetti – Mayor, City of Los Angeles

Ana Guerrero – Chief of Staff, Mayor of Los Angeles

Mike Feuer – City Attorney, City of Los Angeles