California
Overall Grade:
F
131 deadly force incidents
Based on population, a Black person was 8.3x more likely and a Latinx person was 2.8x more likely to have deadly force used on them than a White person in Los Angeles from 2016-17.
5,026 civilian complaints of police misconduct
Only 1 in every 24 complaints were ruled in favor of civilians from 2016-17.
106,281 arrests made in 2016
Police made 5.4x as many arrests for low level offenses as for violent crimes in 2016.
Less-Lethal Force
Using batons, strangleholds, tasers & other weapons
1,492 Uses of Force | 70.2 uses every 10k arrests
^ Used More Force per Arrest than 70% of Depts
Deadly Force
85 Shootings + 46 other deaths or serious injuries
131 Total Incidents | 6.2 every 10k arrests
^ Used More Deadly Force per Arrest than 78% of Depts
Policies Adopted to Limit Use of Force
Requires De-Escalation
Bans Chokeholds / Strangleholds
Duty to Intervene
Requires Warning Before Shooting
Bans Shooting at Moving Vehicles
Requires Comprehensive Reporting
Requires Exhaust Alternatives Before Shooting
Has Use of Force Continuum
Policies Making It Harder to Hold Police Accountable
Disqualifies Complaints
Restricts / Delays Interrogations
Gives Officers Unfair Access to Information
Limits Oversight / Discipline
Requires City Pay for Misconduct
Erases Misconduct Records
2016-2017 California
Police Department Grades
About This Scorecard
This is the first statewide Police Scorecard in the United States. It was built using data from California’s OpenJustice database, public records requests, national databases and media reports.
Use this Scorecard to identify issues within police departments that require the most urgent interventions and hold officials accountable for implementing solutions. For example, cities with higher rates of misdemeanor arrests could benefit most from solutions that create alternatives to policing and arrest for these offenses. In cities where police make fewer arrests overall but use more force when making arrests, communities could benefit significantly from policies designed to limit police use force. And cities where complaints of police misconduct are rarely ruled in favor of civilians could benefit from creating an oversight structure to independently investigate these complaints.
Here’s how to start pushing for change:
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Contact your Mayor and Police Chief, share this scorecard with them and urge them to enact policies to address the issues you’ve identified:
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Mayor Eric Garcetti
Phone: 213-978-1028
Email: mayor.helpdesk@lacity.org -
Police Chief Michel Moore
Phone: 213-486-0150
Email: contact.lapdonline@gmail.com
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Mayor Eric Garcetti
- Find your California State Senator using the Campaign Zero Advocacy Tool and urge them to support Assembly Bill 392, which would limit deadly force to be legally authorized only when necessary, a change that can reduce police shootings statewide.
Campaign Zero Advocacy Tool
If you have feedback, questions about the project, or need support with an advocacy campaign, contact us directly at feedback@joincampaignzero.org.
What's Next
Step 1
Inform data-driven interventions in California’s 100 largest cities. Update scores and track progress over time.
Step 2
Expand to every law enforcement agency in CA and include additional indicators such as police budgets and disciplinary outcomes.
Step 3
Work towards a national police scorecard as more data are made available by federal, state, and local agencies. Create the foundation for a National Policing Intervention System to improve policing outcomes nationwide.