Oakland politics

Yes, Ignacio has apparently voted "on the side" of the CPRB on this one, but it is obvious why:

There is only one investigator, a substantial backlog, trouble getting quorum at meetings, and little political support for the institution as a whole.

When you compare that to an independent investigator who will address the Port protests with two months, which do you think has a better chance of getting to the bottom of what happened?

Now is Ignacio's motive a little clearer?

Also, the overwhelming majority of folks who have ever spoke before the Council have called for an independent investigation, not one by the CPRB, which many folks think is just an arm of the City Manger's office.

Giving an important job to someone you know can't do it is an old political tactic. His vote is also setting up an assault on the CPRB which will happen in the next few months, I guarantee it.

No reason to be confused. The Oakland Citizen Police Review Board (CPRB) is a commission with little funding and little power that is comprised of Mayoral appointments. In Tuesday nght's City Council meeting, Nancy Nadel characterized the CPRB as being populated solely by lawyers and uniformed people, suggesting a lack of diversity and community activists.

Since the incident on the docks, activists (both anti-war and community) have been calling for an independent investigation. In their eyes, an investigation by a commission of mayoral appointees is NOT independent, particularly in light of Jerry Brown's eagerness to support the police.

Ignacio suggested that all investigations ot police practices should be treated consistently and that calling for an independent investigation undermined the prospects of making the CPRB relevant and effective. That actually may be a legitimate objective, but that should be started from the ground up (though funding, networking), not by handing the CPRB a high-profile incident like this one.

That said, the independent commission that the City Council is calling for is expected to be a three-person panel including legal and uniformed folks. Still no "regular" citizens. At least they won't be mayoral appointees.

An aside: I saw some of the video footage, and I am just amazed at how non-violent the protesters were in the face of relentless police aggression.