Public Comment

Statement from Vice-Chair Mizell* of the Berkeley Police Accountability Board* calling on the Berkeley City Council to delay the confirmation of Interim Chief Louis until a full investigation of allegations of severe Berkeley Police misconduct


I have become aware of allegations of severe misconduct within the Berkeley Police Department. These allegations come from a former BPD officer.

Currently, Interim Chief Jennifer Louis, who served as a Captain during the period of the alleged misconduct, is scheduled to be confirmed as the Permanent Chief of Police at a Berkeley City Council meeting tomorrow at 6 PM. 

The alleged misconduct includes text messages from Downtown Task Force/Bike Unit group chats with racist and anti-homeless statements and texts describing patterns of unlawful police practices. These include the establishment of arrest quotas, profiling, and rewards/punishments for arrest numbers. Additionally, it is alleged that Interim Chief Louis had prior awareness of the misconduct and took no action.

The allegations specifically implicate officers of BPD's DTF/Bike Unit and its Supervisor, Sgt. Darren Kacalek, President of the Berkeley Police Association. Sgt. Kacaleck is specifically alleged to have ordered the DTF/Bike Unit to make 100 arrests per month. In the texts Sgt. Kacalek allegedly makes anti-homeless and racist remarks, including suggesting that homeless individuals in the city could be “wipe[d] out” and that the bike unit would “ride by the bodies”. Sgt. Kacaleck also allegedly texted a link to a racist Facebook post suggesting a person could trade a “White Privilege Card” for a “Black Card” to receive “welfare checks”, “free college”, and an “Obama cell phone”. According to the former officer, these messages are only the “tip of the iceberg” and hundreds of corroborating records allegedly exist. 

Despite these severe allegations, City Manager Dee Williams-Ridley concluded that the City Council should still confirm Interim Chief Louis tomorrow. After an “initial inquiry”, she believes that Interim Chief Louis was not aware of the alleged misconduct. These allegations involve multiple BPD policies, making it a matter squarely under the Board’s purview. I am not currently aware whether the City Manager had knowledge of these allegations before Thursday, but I do know that the PAB was never informed of any such allegations at any point before or during the hiring process. 

Hastily confirming the Interim Chief now would severely undermine public confidence in the independent oversight that Berkeley’s citizens voted for in establishing the Police Accountability Board. It will also erode the City’s ability to “promote public trust”, a responsibility the City Charter entrusts the Board, and the City as a whole, to uphold. There is no conscionable way for the confirmation process to go forward tomorrow. 

I call on the Berkeley City Council to delay the confirmation of Interim Chief Louis until a thorough independent investigation has been conducted by the PAB and the public has had the opportunity to review the evidence. I additionally call on community groups to amplify this message and call on all community members to come to the Tuesday, 6 PM meeting to urge City Council to delay the confirmation.