A Question for Anaheim Police

A jury’s decision to accept the word of a former Anaheim policeman rather than to believe police brass should prompt the department to review its practices and relationship with city residents.

The Police Department argued strenuously that Steve Nolan had been fired from the force for insubordination and other disciplinary reasons. But a Superior Court jury last week sided with Nolan, who contended he was fired in 1993 in retaliation for breaking an unwritten “code of silence” among officers. That situation centered on what he said was police mistreatment of suspected gang members. Jurors awarded him $340,000.

One juror said panel members had found Nolan “a believable person” when it came to deciding why he was terminated. Of larger importance is whether Nolan’s claims of police brutality are to be believed. Both sides in the trial agreed that Nolan reported to superiors that members of the department’s anti-gang unit beat suspected Latino gang members. Police said their internal investigation concluded that wrongful conduct by officers named by Nolan could not be proved.

Jurors heard little about Nolan’s claims of brutality. The department’s lawyers said the trial grew out of “an employee-employer dispute . . . not an excessive force case.”

But Nolan’s claims suggest that the department may have some work to do on its standing in the community. Jurors may not hit the mark in every trial, but when they do not believe police testimony, it’s troubling.

Police depend on community support to do their jobs effectively. That’s especially true in the type of anti-crime work known as community policing, which has become increasingly popular in recent years. Anaheim is one of a number of cities in Orange County that have embraced community policing.

The concept calls for police to get out on the streets, seeing the residents and becoming an accustomed part of the scene. It’s an attempt to prevent crime rather than react to crimes, one which requires that residents look on the police as their protectors, not their foes.

Allegations of harassment by Anaheim police will also be the subject of a hearing in May by a citizens advisory committee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. That follows complaints by Anaheim activists that some officers have used excessive force when questioning suspects and have photographed and videotaped minors and adults not suspected of crimes.

The lawyer who defended the Police Department against Nolan’s claims said after the verdict that there was no need to fix anything because nothing was broken. But the jury verdict and the separate allegations that prompted the advisory committee hearing demonstrate that Anaheim police need to pay attention to reinforcing community confidence.