Issue Position: Public Safety/Victims' Rights

Issue Position

As the Critical Response Chaplain for the Concord Police Department, I am keenly aware of the violence that can take place in our communities and the impact it has on individuals and families. I am honored to have earned the support of local police as we work together to assist victims of crime. Here are my positions on important public safety issues:

Support for Victims of Crime: As a police chaplain, I am called to the scene when there is a serious crime that has been committed and I am needed to counsel victims, victims' families, including the police officers and firefighters who are witnesses to such events. It is the reason I became co-founder of our region's Family Justice Center, out of a need to provide support and refuge for victims of domestic abuse, of child abuse, senior abuse and for victims of human trafficking. I am an ardent supporter of the Victims Bill of Rights Act -- Marsy's Law -- approved by the voters in 2008. I am fully supportive of its amendment which provides additional rights to victims of crime. I am also supportive of the expanded rights to victims in parole hearings for prisoners sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
Early Release/Prosecution of Criminals: I am concerned with the direction California is taking making certain criminals not eligible for prosecution and allowing other criminals to be released early from prison. AB 109 (2011), Proposition 36 (2012) and Proposition 47 (2014) all emphasize the placing of hardened criminals back into the community, which increases their potential for committing crimes (again) in our neighborhoods and communities. AB 109 has resulted in the early release of criminals; Prop 26 amended the three strikes rule, which has led to rising crime rates in our local communities (after the passage of the three strikes rule, there was an overall 37% drop in crime statewide); and, Prop 47 has allowed serious drug offenders and other criminals to escape prosecution -- and these are usually the criminals who are more likely to commit more serious crimes later on down the road. As your elected representative, I will always take the position that violent behavior needs to be dealt with immediately so as to protect the safety of our residents.
Police Body Cams: I believe one area of positive change needs to include providing body cams for our public safety personnel -- to give the vast majority of public safety officers who conduct themselves in a lawful manner the opportunity to show they operate within the law and as a safeguard against the few who may forget that a police shield is not a license for unlawful behavior. If elected to the Assembly, I will work to ensure that any/all legislation requiring body cameras allow each individual local police agency to retain control over each of their own body cam programs.
The Death Penalty: Working closely with local police, and counseling victims and families of victims, I have wrestled with my position on the death penalty and have concluded that I support it for criminals who mindlessly murder other human beings. Unfortunately, there are over 700+ violent criminals on death row and our system of dealing with them is seriously broken -- not to mention the millions in taxpayer dollars that continue to go toward their incarceration. I know there will be multiple measures on the ballot this year dealing with the death penalty and I am looking forward to learning the impact of each on California.

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