Following the public dialogues on police brutality regarding George Floyd’s murder, University of California President Michael Drake announced major changes in terms of law enforcement to be implemented by the University of California Police Departments (UCPD).
Across all 10 campuses, UCPD has to undergo significant shifts to address the concern that not all people have not been safeguarded equally.
Key Takeaways:
- University of California President Michael Drake announced significant changes in campus safety and law enforcement.
- UC Berkeley is shifting several non-law-enforcement operations away from UCPD to reduce their presence as much as possible for the people’s interest.
- UC Berkeley aims to be one of the first campuses in the UC system to implement this shift.
While the UCPD has already worked closely to implement the policy shifts, UC set up an Independent Advisory Board (IAB) to hear and learn from students, faculty, and staff how to improve campus safety and make Berkeley a more inclusive and safer place for everyone.
UC Berkeley is shifting some non-law-enforcement operations away from UCPD. For instance, as of this past June, individuals will not have to go to UCPD to get building access as it can already be handled at the departmental level.
The role of police during mental health crises has been a major issue raised by the IAB and the campus. The cops were the initial responders during these incidents as other forms of societal support.
According to Berkeley Vice Chancellor of Administration Marc Fisher, this is not the best response approach, and further asked why not grow the effort to include them in the crisis response.
They have started formulating a new approach to campus mental health crises, noting the role of mental health professionals and/or peer advisors instead of a UCPD officer. This new approach is expected to start this fall.
Fisher added that they aim to be one of the first campuses in the UC system to implement this shift.
Aside from this issue, IAB and other campus community members have recommended moving the UCPD office out of Sproul Hall, for which Fisher and the chancellor are supportive.
However, the recommendation has been a challenge to initiate because of related costs, space constraints, and the stringent building code for this particular function. The effort may now be on hold and will require further campus discussion, and the administration is working to reduce the UCPD presence as much as possible for the interest of the community members.
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