San Mateo Daily Journal
By Rudy Espinosa Murray
One of the most infuriating things I’ve ever heard about San Mateo County was that we have one of the highest disproportionate arrest rates of Black and people of color in the country. Another infuriating fact is that until the end of last year, the county Sheriff’s Office was the only Bay Area police department to collaborate with ICE. To add insult to injury, the county Sheriff’s Office is almost completely without an authority to hold them accountable.
But, Assembly Bill 1185 was signed into law in August of 2020 that grants power to the Board of Supervisors or the voters to create an oversight board and Inspector General’s office and provides it with subpoena power. After the deaths of local people of color, like Chinedu Okobi and Yanira Serrano-Garcia, why has the Board of Supervisors not used its authority to provide oversight to the Sheriff’s Office? It has the power to make sure that all residents of San Mateo County, no matter the color of their skin, get the same protection and service from our sheriff.
Like any power, it requires checks and balances to keep that power from being abused. We should all welcome a healthy system of checks and balances that holds power accountable. The Sheriff’s Office’s lack of oversight is problematic and unjust, and frankly, is just bad governing. Luckily, there is a group called Fixin’ San Mateo founded as a direct result of a lack of accountability after egregious actions from the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.