Item A: Downtown Public Safety Zone

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ATTACHMENT B - Public Comments Received bad activity with good activity. This Downtown Public Safety Zone is just one component of that strategy. Sometimes we talk about it as if this is the only tool used, but we need and use other tools as well. Regarding the Red Hats, the intent is that they supplement the work done by the Police. They’re helping to stretch the public safety capacity downtown. They also receive training on crisis intervention Jesse Lohrke – While it is a civil remedy, if you violate it, it is a crime. As far as the jail bed issue, there is a big problem with the county, and the city rents beds for its people. If you are told to a certain amount of days in jail, you will do those days. And as far as the judge making the decision, the police officer makes the decision to cite the person, the officer decides the person is excluded if the judge okays it. The person has to go court in a few days, and if they don’t appear, they are automatically cited. If they do go to court, they have to disprove that they committed a crime. The police officer makes the decision, because they are the ones who initially write the citation. The judge will likely support the officer’s recommendation if there is a preponderance of evidence that the person committed a crime. Mike Clark – There used to be three different citations. The first was that the officer had the capacity to temporarily exclude until the issue reaches a judge, but that was eliminated. The officer does not have the ability to exclude someone; the decision is made by a judge. Bernadette Conover – The citation to show up is no different than any other citation for open container, or trespassing, where the defendant has to show up for court. If they don’t show up in court, the officer has to show enough evidence for the judge to determine if it meets the standard for the downtown exclusion zone. If the person is present or not, it doesn’t mean the exclusion is automatically granted. It is still a civil remedy. If someone violates the exclusion zone, they’re violating a court order and that might result in a fine or jail. Bob Walker – There has been no evidence that this has been badly used, and there’s no record of complaints to the Auditor about this either. There’s $84 million of development underway downtown. We have a responsibility to make our downtown viable. James Manning – This tool is no different than things used in military installations or throughout the country. This isn’t unique to Eugene. It’s designed to shape behavior, and I support it. Tim Mueller – I think people with mental health issues do have a difficult time understanding the process and getting to court, so they end up going to jail when what they need is treatment. We spend the money on jails, because we won’t spend the money on treatment or other services. If you think of this as taking advantage of a person’s weakness, this isn’t the best thing. That’s why I support the advocacy program, so defendants have the opportunity to stand up for themselves. Bob Walker - I move that the Police Commission recommends to the City Council that the Downtown Public Safety Zone be continued and that the sunset provision be eliminated. The motion was seconded by James Manning, and approved 9-1 (Lohrke voting nay). Attachment B - Page 4