March 5, 2019
Last night 200 people, many of them student leaders, gathered in East Sacramento for a non-violent protest in response to District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert’s decision to file no charges against the officers who killed Stephon Clark while she also defamed his character to support her lack of action.
The Sacramento Police Department responded with a massive, militarized show of force and arrested 84 protestors, including clergy, faith leaders and a journalist, after herding them onto a bridge.
Sacramento ACT condemns this police response in the strongest terms. While faith leaders and community leaders have been preparing for protests with de-escalation and non-violent protest trainings, the Sacramento Police Department chose to appear with a disproportional show of force. Protests will continue as the community gives voice to its anguish and pain over the ongoing deaths of black and brown community members at the hands of law enforcement. Where is the de-escalation on the part of the police?
We call on all people of good conscience and good faith to join us in speaking out for justice to our elected officials and lawmakers to demand change:
The officers who killed Stephon Clark should no longer be able to police our communities.
Empower our Police Commission to make disciplinary recommendations and restore their ability to review any and all policy that impacts Public Safety in our community.
The City Council should implement a higher standard for the use of deadly force that mirrors AB392 on a local level.
The City Council should lead the State conversation to raise the standard for the use of deadly force to that of AB392.