Alameda County public defender accuses Berkeley police of violating minors' Miranda rights

BERKELEY, Calif. - Alameda County Public Defender Brendon Woods has come forward with new allegations that Berkeley police officers are violating a state law when dealing with arrested minors, the latest claim of misconduct that has caused the appointment of a new police chief to be postponed.

Speaking at the Berkeley City Council meeting on Tuesday, Woods explained that Berkeley police officers have been violating state law by not allowing attorneys to be on the phone with arrested minors to have their Miranda rights read, or officers are hanging up the phone on public defenders. He said he emailed Interim Police Chief Jennifer Louis over the summer asking her to fix the issue.

"To be honest, I don’t have faith in the chief," Woods said at the city council meeting. "The officers we spoke to were hostile. They were rude and they would often hang up on our attorneys."

KTVU obtained one of three emails Woods sent to Louis over the summer, in which she allegedly did not respond. A spokesperson for Woods’ office told KTVU Wednesday that Louis has since reached out to apologize for failing to respond and has offered to meet with Woods. The office is hopeful Berkeley police will listen to their concerns and make changes on how they treat the children they arrest.

It's the latest claim of misconduct in the police department following text messages that allege racial profiling and arrest quotas for unhoused people. The officer accused of sending those texts, Sgt. Darren Kacalek, has stepped down as president of the Berkeley Police Association.

"We are disturbed by the alleged texts by BPA president Darren Kacalek," Sgt. Scott Castle, Vice President of the Berkeley Police Association, said. "As police officers, public servants, and union members we condemn in the strongest terms any negative comments concerning the housing status or ethnicity of those we police and serve."

City spokesman Matthai Chakko said Kacalek was also placed on administrative leave.

Civil rights attorney Jim Chanin said it’s not just the language used by officers, but actual behavior that is concerning. He points to BPD stop data in the past few years that shows officers have disproportionately pulled over Black people.

"They’re seven times more likely to be stopped in Berkeley than Caucasians," Chanin said. "More significantly, when they are stopped, they’re 25% more likely to be let go because there was no reason to be stopped in the first place."

Chanin, who sat the Berkeley Mayor’s Committee for Fair and Impartial Policing, said in 2021 BPD failed to adopt an early warning system to identify potentially problematic officers. He said the committee recommended the change, and it was approved by the city council, but the department did nothing about it. Chanin believes the department needs new leadership.

Berkeley’s independent police accountability board is conducting its own investigation. PAB board member Nathan Mizell said he hopes the investigation ultimately brings change to the department where needed.

"I think we as a city should make a very careful decision about who should be leading our department going forward, especially given these new allegations," Mizell said.

Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguin released the following statement to KTVU:

"I am glad that the City Manager pulled the appointment of Jen Louis as Chief last night. Earlier in the evening we heard of alarming allegations from the County Public Defender Brendon Woods that BPD officials violated the Miranda rights of juvenile suspects.

This is in addition to the outrageous text messages which surfaced recently showing racist, anti-homeless, anti-Black and discriminatory comments and actions by Berkeley Police officers, including the President of the Police Union.

The email also alleged that Interim Chief Louis had knowledge of and did not address this troubling behavior. Given these concerning revelations, it was only fair to wait to appoint a Chief of Police until a full investigation can be completed and upon a finding clearing Interim Chief Louis of these allegations.

We must let the external investigation and Police Accountability Board's investigations commence, and get to the bottom of these allegations and whether they are also part of a pattern or practice by officers in the Berkeley Police Department.

Trust has been eroded and the only way to rebuild trust is to take a pause and get the facts, to listen and to seek justice.

Racism, classism, anti-Black racism, and any form of discrimination has no place in our Police Department or in policing.We take these allegations very seriously and we will hold those responsible accountable."