Justice 4 Pedie

https://www.change.org/p/value-human-life-bill?recruiter=64006897&utm_campaign=signature_receipt&utm_medium=facebook&utm_source=share_petition

Proposed Initiative Measure for a Value Human Life Bill

We the undersigned see a dire need for change. The average American taxpayer understands that communities need good police officers and they are willing to compensate them with a great salary and benefits for their commitment to protect and serve. As law-abiding taxpayers and residents of those communities, we are no longer willing to tolerate our tax dollars being used to reward cowardly-incompetent police officers.

An incompetent officer, is an officer equipped with a bullet proof vest, pepper spray, a taser, a baton, a radio to call for assistance, a canine police-companion and training in hand-to-hand combat, but favors using deadly force; knowing that the police department will rally in support of their actions, simply because they are members of the same union.

Since 1974, police officers have benefited tremendously from having additional rights bestowed upon them, through the passage of Joe Biden's Law Enforcement Officer’s Bill of Rights. Yet, the taxpayers have not gained any additional protection under the law. As a result, each year there are hundreds of officer involved homicides, which the general public overwhelmingly believes were 100% preventable.

Despite having an understanding of basic criminal laws and tactical training, the number of people killed by the police, is a clear indication that there is a need for legislation to protect citizens. We need protection from officers who have undetected mental illness, egos, unknown biases and the propensity to kill although other options are available. There is no test that can accurately detect those character traits because no one can be certain of what’s in a person’s heart.

As taxpayers, who are concerned about everyone’s safety, it is time to reaffirm the value of human life by putting our support behind a Value Human Life Bill.

Value Human Life Bill

First, police officers who kill or cause serious injury to an unarmed civilian must be suspended without pay during the investigation. Due to the nature of the job, officers should be required to carry insurance that will help their families financially if this were to happen. A police officer's CalPERS Industrial Disability Insurance will not be pre-funded by tax dollars.

Second, police departments cannot investigate themselves. The blue code of silence and cover-up is blatant, and it's evident in the long list of no conviction cases. There are too many cases where charges are not filed by top officials despite physical evidence and eyewitness testimony, contradicting the police department's statement of events. The investigation process must include an immediate toxicology exam. In addition, unedited civilian video recordings must be considered evidence.

Third, police officers who fire upon an unarmed or legally armed civilian who is not in the act of committing a felony offense will be fired, and charges brought against that officer. They do not get to continue their careers within law enforcement. Taxpayers will not cover the cost of that officer's legal defense.

Fourth, the number of White, Black, Hispanic, Asian and Native American police should be proportionate and reflective of the members of that particular city. Officers should be working in pairs, with those officers identifying as two different races.

Written with love, signed in blood. Thank you for your support.

If you have any questions regarding this petition, please visit:

justice4pedie.com or Email K. Harley

[email protected] or Patricia Perez at

[email protected].

This petition will be delivered to:

California’s 9th District

Senator Nancy Skinner

Assemblymember (D-Richmond)

Tony Thurmond

Richmond City Councilmember

Jovanka Beckles

Richmond City Councilmember

Gayle McLaughlin

Richmond City Councilmember

Jael Myrick

Richmond City Councilmember

Melvin Willis

Richmond City Councilmember

Ben Choi

Richmond's Vice Mayor

Eduardo Martinez

Editor (for publishing as a My Words / Guest Commentary - as recommended by your news person):

The Richmond Police Officer's rapidly fired shooting death of Richard "Pedie" Perez was unwarranted. And the Officer-absolving findings by the RPD and District Attorney's Office also was wrong! I know because I personally investigated the matters for the Victim's family.

I have about 75,000 hours combined of Law Enforcement related investigations employment, experiences, training, education, and a lot of expertise in death cases' investigations. For over 33 of those years, out of 50 years total, I was a full time sworn Officer, District Attorney's Office Inspector, Police Supervisor, Investigations Units' Supervisor, and State certified Police Supervisor and Homicide Investigator.

I personally closely examined and photographed Perez's deceased body, finding that he had more gunshot bullet entry wounds than the three that the Police claimed. In my opinion Perez was not in violation of Penal Code Section 647f - Public Intoxication (as corroborated by the surveillance video tapes). Perez was also not "swaying from side to side" as Police claim. Perez obviously was able to hold his liquor, as many others have been found to be capable of. The agencies' use of DUI levels regarding Perez was also disingenuous and misleading, also since Perez was not driving or in a car!

I also interviewed Eye Witnesses who personally witnessed the events, and reviewed the store's surveillance footage of the events, including Perez's and the responsible Officer's actions. I overall determined that the Officer didn't have to use deadly force when he instead had readily available non-lethal alternatives at hand.

As in the Oscar Grant shooting death case, which I also personally investigated, the Officers' actions in these and other similar cases have further increasingly endangered other uninvolved Officers' lives, performances, and community support (as evidenced, unfortunately, by the on-going and continuing attacks and deaths nationwide of even uninvolved Officers)! I've been alerting and warning Law Enforcement agencies over the years about such possibilities and predicted repercussions. Very recently I again personally alerted a Law Enforcement agency about such concerns and predictions, coincidentally just before the Dallas, Texas, murders of the five innocent Officers. It however seems to have fallen on deaf ears, with more uninvolved Officers who will suffer the public repercussions. What Law Enforcement and their agencies, it seems, refuse to acknowledge is that the public is no longer going to tolerate Police misconduct and unwarranted deaths at the hands of the few out-of-control Police Officers, or believe their defenders' pat excuses or suspected cover-ups!

One obvious option to correct it is to no longer have either the involved Officers' agency personnel and local District Attorney's Office investigate these matters - serious injuries and deaths at the hands of Police! There has to be created and activated a special State/Federal body of seasoned Investigators that are unbiased, unconnected, and non-conflicted doing the investigations. Under the current investigation methods used there are firmly existing local Law Enforcement conflicts of interests involved that produce nothing more than a 'white wash' of sorts that overwhelmingly make determinations favoring the Police, and unfairly weigh heavily against the public's interests and real justice!

It's time that they finally admit that they've responded wrongly, have obviously been biased and close-minded in favor of Police, and should now move forward by honestly and fully addressing how to positively try to correct this dangerous and deadly environment they've obviously contributed to. They can continue to hide from it but I again warn that it could cost more citizens' and Officers' lives, and their families, while they remain in their self-protecting denials with their heads buried in the sand! Don't they even care? And the reported intimidation and verbal harassments of the incidents' news Reporters by Police defenders and POAs is also reprehensible!

The Perez shooting death case therefore needs to be freshly, fully, and completely investigated by an unbiased, non-conflicted, and outside unconnected superior investigative agency! I challenge them to do so!

Ralph A. Hernandez

(Private Investigator & Consultant)

Click here to read the article published by Mercury News.

Protest scheduled to Repeal the 'Police Officer's Bill of Rights' on Thursday, August 18, 2016, 9 AM - 2 PM, 16th and H Street, the Govenor's Mansion, Sacramento, CA.

These videos were given to us by Kaylah Jones

The struggle:

Jensen 1:

Jensen 2: