Tag: CC4J

Young and old brave cold to protest police killings

Reform leader sees ‘little or no progress’ changing Chico PD’s culture
by Dave Waddell | Posted February 24, 2023

photo by george gold
Jeremiah Lozada, 5, nephew of Gabe Sanchez, and Emily Alma on right.

Sign-carrying demonstrators who braved Wednesday evening’s freezing winds near City Hall to protest Chico police violence came in a wide range of ages.

They included Jeremiah Lozada, age 5, whose sign demanded justice for his uncle, Eddie “Gabe” Sanchez, who was killed before Jeremiah was born. Chico police Detective Mark Bass , now a sergeant, shot the fleeing Sanchez in 2015.

Standing near Jeremiah in a line of about 15 protesters at the corner of Fourth and Main streets was 81-year-old Emily Alma, a leader of Chico’s Concerned Community for Justice (CC4J), which organized the protest along with the group 40 Grandmothers. read more

Citizen group unveils Chico PD reform steps

Calls for police culture in which ‘all Chicoans feel safe’
by Dave Waddell | Posted September 28, 2020

photo by Karen Laslo
CC4J Coordinator Emily Alma explains an eight-step police reform proposal.

Akin to this year’s killing of George Floyd nationally, the gunning down of Desmond Phillips by Chico police in 2017 outraged and galvanized a community. That local movement came together last week to unveil what is called a plan for transforming policing in Chico.

The eight-step proposal for reform of the Chico Police Department includes calls for greater community oversight of the police and better use of de-escalation strategies in mental health and other crises, among other priorities. Emily Alma, coordinator of Concerned Citizens for Justice (CC4J), spoke Thursday (Sept. 24) of the group’s aims, standing in front of the sculpture of hands outside City Hall and while flanked by a couple dozen supporters. read more

Picking Chico’s police chief slowed by Covid-19

Reformist citizens group says it represents broad spectrum
by Dave Waddell | Posted June 25, 2020

photo by Karen Laslo
Emily Alma, coordinator of a police reform group that was wrongly accused of political disruption and now has support from a host of mainstream groups.

Two years ago, the Chico Enterprise-Record’s conservative editorial writers – without a shred of cited evidence – suggested in an editorial that members of the police reform group Concerned Citizens for Justice (CC4J) were involved in political disruption and vandalism.

Leaders of CC4J fired back in letters that questioned the responsibility of the E-R’s brand of journalism.

The E-R’s portrayal of CC4J as an extremist group was as short-lived as it was baseless. In fact, today CC4J’s push for Chico to pick a reformer as police chief to succeed Mike O’Brien is attracting support from numerous organizations lodged securely in Chico’s mainstream. read more

Girl, 11, says she was tackled by Chico cops

Her exposed breasts fueled police vs. kids confrontation
by Dave Waddell | Posted July 28, 2019

photo by Dave Waddell
An 11-year-old girl says she was tackled by officers.

An 11-year-old girl, whose guardian grandparents had asked police to conduct a “welfare check,” says she was tackled by two Chico police officers, leading to an ugly confrontation recently between cops and kids in Bidwell Park.

Teenagers who were at the scene say they were outraged because, as the officers kneed the prone 11-year-old to the dirt, her small top came up to her neck and her breasts were left exposed. In videos of the July 5 incident, the teens can be seen becoming animated over their insistence that her breasts be covered.

“If anybody fights with (the 11-year-old) here, we got her back,” one boy later told ChicoSol. read more