On July 13, the Vallejo City Council allocated time on the agenda for Oakland Privacy and the ACLU of Northern California to present on why the City, famous for an extremely high rate of police violence, would benefit from a surveillance advisory board.
The ten minute presentation (you can view the slides below), was followed by a 30 minute conversation when each and every one of the 7 council members weighed in to support the proposal, confirming the conceptual approval that also had unanimous support on May 26th.
A municipal ordinance to create and seat the 10-member advisory body had been provided on June 10th and reviewed by the mayor’s staff. However, when pressed for a date for the ordinance vote, the City Council hedged a bit and pointed, no doubt correctly, to the overwhelming workload for the City Attorney. The ordinance is three and a half pages long.
The City Attorney later punted and said it could be prioritized if the Council wanted it prioritized. Vallejo City Council? The next step is yours. We’re waiting.