Public speaks out on use of force, accountability after viral video in Patterson
The video shows Deputy Alexander Helms punch, fire a Taser at, point a gun at and then arrest Joshua Rhodes' after he failed to exit his car when ordered to. Cell phone footage taken by Rhodes' passenger, Elliana Barraza, and Helms' body camera footage have made the rounds on social media.
Rhodes was arrested on suspicion of resisting arrest by force, delaying or obstructing a peace officer and battery on a peace officer. Barraza was arrested on suspicion of delaying and obstructing a peace officer.
At Patterson's City Council meeting Tuesday, nearly all of the about 20 public speakers complained about how the interaction was handled and how the Sheriff's Office conducts its internal reviews.
Samuel White-Ephraim, vice president of the Stanislaus County NAACP, questioned virtually every aspect of the stop — saying that as a former cop, he saw a violation of many policies and procedures.
'I also know there is something amiss in that agency — that many need to be reeled in,' White-Ephraim said about the Sheriff's Office. 'If I were in charge of internal affairs, that deputy would not be having a badge.'
Six public speakers supported creating a community police review board such as the one in Modesto, which was put together in 2022. Modesto's CPRB was part of the city's 2021 Forward Together Initiative, which came from a growing response for police reform across the country and locally.
Some speakers also called for Patterson to create its own police department — citing smaller communities in Stanislaus County, such as Newman, that have them. Patterson Police Services are contracted under the Sheriff's Office.
'We've been demanding our own police department, we've been asking you for years,' said a public speaker who referred to himself as Mr. Gonzalez, a Patterson resident. 'What are you doing about it? Have you brought up any numbers? What has been done?'
Mayor Michael Clauzel responded by saying he worked with the Sheriff's Office for two months on the city's strategic plan. 'You need to read it and see what I've done,' Clauzel said. 'I have worked very hard behind the scenes with the Sheriff's Office. … You can see we have in fact done something.'
Patterson's strategic plan lists six bullet points of what it hopes to accomplish for 2024-28, which includes performing an analysis on the feasibility of creating its own police department. It also aims to 'explore options to expand law enforcement' through its partnership with the Sheriff's Office. There is not, however, any mention of exploring a community police review board.
'Let's be clear, public safety is not just about policing. It's about trust, accountability and protecting the right of everyone in our community,' said Valley Improvement Projects director Bianca Lopez, who called for the creation of a review board in Patterson. 'Yet too often when concerns are raised about misconduct, use of force, racial profiling or abuse or power, those concerns are investigated behind closed doors. … That is not accountability, that is a conflict of interest.'
Since 2016, Stanislaus County sheriff's deputies have used force against Black individuals at a rate of more than six times their population, according to police data.
A two-hour event on Feb. 18, organized by the NAACP, invited community members, dignitaries and law enforcement leaders to talk openly about solutions regarding use of force against Black people in Stanislaus County. The hope was the event was the first of many.
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