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Your Help is Needed
October 14, 2000

Since sending our August 24th letter to the Mayor and City Council of Santa Rosa:

a) we've had four new case complaints against Santa Rosa Police,
b) instead of granting our request to the council for independent review of the seven cases, the Santa Rosa City Council has asked Santa Rosa Police Chief Mike Dunbaugh to convene a meeting, with the largest segment of attendees at the meeting set to be ranking Santa Rosa Police officials. The Council states that it then plans to take the recommendation of this meeting as to whether or not the cases should get independent review.

As such, the Santa Rosa City Council has taken the women's complaints of misconduct by Santa Rosa Police and put them back under the control of police; Despite the fact that we've told the council the long history of the department's defensive and obstructionist response to women's complaints, Despite the fact that we have reminded the council that this is the same department where in the last few years nearly half the female officers have found the internal work environment to be so hostile and discriminatory that the women officers have up and left the department, Despite the fact that we have informed the council that since writing the August 24th letter, we continue to receive new complaints against Santa Rosa Police from new victims who have called them for help, and Despite the fact that we have given the City Council more than ample witness and document leads to corroborate the validity of the seven original complaints.

Knowing all of this, it is unspeakable for the City Council to throw the fate of the women of Santa Rosa back into the hands of the same Department that is so evidently systematically endangering women's lives and violating their rights.

Please Help

First, please make five photocopies of the August 24th letter and this follow- up. Pass the copies on to other people. Begin talking with people about what you and they think needs to be done to stop this police abuse of women.

Second, please take a set or two of this August 24th letter and follow-up pages, add your own written comments and request for independent review of the cases, and send it all to one or two of the following officials or organizations. And please send a copy of your letter to us.

Santa Rosa Mayor Janet Condron
and All City Council Members
P.O. Box 1678
Santa Rosa, CA 95402

U.S.Attorney General Janet Reno
Ms. Bonnie Cambell, Director Violence Against Women Office U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Ave.
Washington, D.C. 20530

California Attorney General Bill Lockyer
California Department of Justice
P.O.Box 944255
Sacramento, CA 94244-2550

Consulate General of Mexico
870 Market St., Suite 528
San Francisco, CA 9402

Mr. Phil Montez, Director Western Regional Office
U.S. Civil Rights Commission
3660 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 810
Los Angeles, CA 90010

Ms. Celia Munoz
National Council of La Raza
1111 19th NW Suite 1000
Washington, D.C. 20036

Fourth, please call us at 575-3150 if you'd like to get more involved in helping to stop the Santa Rosa Police violations of women's and children's rights.

Thank You. Your Help Makes the Difference !