The Fairfax County Police are out of control and need oversight but are slick enough to organize "Campaign contributions" during election time to avoid it.

Citizens oversight panel urged for Oakland police force


Chief, union oppose councilman's plan
Will Kane
A panel of Oakland residents should be appointed to oversee the city's troubled Police Department - a common practice in other cities - a member of the City Council said Thursday.
Councilman Noel Gallo introduced a plan pushed by police accountability groups that calls for 12 civilians to investigate complaints of officer misconduct, recommend the hiring and firing of a police chief, and monitor quality overall.
Oakland's proposed commission would be similar to those in San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles.
Increased oversight of the Police Department would help stem the kind of police misbehavior that has led to more than a decade of federal oversight of the police force, Gallo said.
As federal monitoring winds down, Gallo said, Oakland should create a new way to monitor the Police Department.
"What we currently have has not worked and is not working, and that's why we have had a federal judge for 11 years who is about to leave, and that is why we need this initiative," Gallo said.
The commission would have the ability to subpoena police officers, conduct investigative hearings, direct a chief to impose discipline on an officer and ensure that the Police Department follows applicable laws, according to Gallo's proposal, which was drafted by PUEBLO, a police watchdog group.
The 12 members would be appointed by the mayor and the City Council's Public Safety Committee, which Gallo chairs. The costs of such a proposal were not immediately clear.
"We have spent so many millions of dollars trying to get our Police Department to behave, to reach and do what they are supposed to do responsibly," said Gwen Hardy, an Oakland resident and c0-founder of PUEBLO. "I do not understand why we would not want to have police accountability."
But the plan has powerful critics, notably police officials and the police union.
It would also face a number of hurdles to take effect.
Review, OK needed
The plan would have to be approved first by a majority of the City Council by early August, then by a majority of voters in November.
The plan must also be reviewed by the city attorney and city staff, who only learned of the proposal late this week.
"I think it is best to slow it down if you want to get to where you want to get to," said Councilman Larry Reid, who sits on the Rules Committee that reviewed Gallo's proposal Thursday. "I think this is just being thrust on the council."
Police Chief Sean Whent said he thought creating a commission to oversee the Police Department is unnecessary because the Police Department has "demonstrated an ability to police ourselves."
"I think that we have a fair amount of oversight already here in Oakland given that we've been under federal oversight for the last 10 years," Whent said.
Barry Donelan, head of the Oakland Police Officers' Association, accused Gallo of abdicating his responsibility to oversee the Police Department.
"It is clear that Noel Gallo doesn't want to take responsibility for public safety in his district, so he wants to create a commission instead," Donelan said. "A classic political move - create a commission."
Gallo, who called the current operations of the Police Department "below basic," said increased oversight is necessary.
But he agreed it may be difficult to push the full proposal through the council in the next two months.
Instead, he said, the city might use the debate about the citizens commission to find other ways to keep the Police Department accountable