Local NAACP and Murrieta Police Continue Valuable Partnership

Members of the Southwest Riverside County NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) Branch 1034 met with Murrieta Chief of Police Tony Conrad recently at the Murrieta Police Department as part of a long-standing commitment to work together. The regularly scheduled meetings follow a precedent established by former NAACP Branch President Darryl Smith in his outreach to former Murrieta Police Chief Sean Hadden in order to build a positive relationship in a time of national racial strife.

Over the past nine years, the local NAACP Branch and the Murrieta Police Department (MPD) have met regularly, coordinated town hall meetings, offered Black History Month events and have brought concerns of local individuals to a positive conclusion.

Chief Conrad says, “Murrieta PD’s relationship with the NAACP Branch 1034 has been nurtured for the last 9 years. I enjoy meeting regularly with Pastor Oliver and his staff and sharing thoughts and ideas on how to best police our community. Many cities in this country have experienced times of great stress and misunderstanding as it relates to what is expected from their police department. From my experience, opening this dialogue now and allowing Pastor Oliver’s team to work side by side with us not only keeps these issues from occurring, but also assists with communication when there is a concern about an incident. It’s all about partnering with our community.”

In the August 18th meeting, Branch 1034 Treasurer and Legal Redress Chairperson Mary Venerable facilitated on behalf of Branch President Pastor Willie J. Oliver, who was unable to attend. Along with Branch Community Advisor Ric Stallworth, Legal Redress Committee member Myles Ross and Communications Chairperson Jennifer Palo, Mrs. Venerable fielded a series of questions that are of concern to the African American Community -- the illegal Fentanyl drug trade in the area, local gang activity, police department use of force and racial bullying in Murrieta schools.

Addressing the Fentanyl epidemic, Chief Conrad highlighted that the MPD has a full time detective assigned to the District Attorney’s Task Force that focuses on Fentanyl dealers and users. To provide facts about the powerful and highly addictive opiate Fentanyl, a link to the Riverside District Attorney’s website is provided which outlines the dangers of the drug and the three-pronged approach to the Fentanyl crisis: prosecution, education and prevention.

According to Chief Conrad, deaths in Riverside County due to Fentanyl overdose have risen from two in 2016 to nearly 600 in 2021. Many of these deaths are accidental and affect high school age and college age young adults. These young adults are purchasing non prescribed pills off the street, and they are unaware that 40% of these pills are laced with Fentanyl. It is vital that the public be informed of the dangers of illegal Fentanyl. Visit this link to learn more: Dangers of Fentanyl (rivcoda.org)

Chief Conrad addressed the department’s gang task force which monitors gang activity coming into the community. There are pockets of gang activity from out of town gangs. Local gang enforcement recently has been focused on outlaw motorcycle gangs and gangs with white supremacist ties.

Chief Conrad also referenced use of force statistics which are tracked regularly and provided on the department website. All officers have body-worn cameras, and there is a robust process for investigating racial discrimination complaints. Mr. Ross shared his involvement in the District Attorney’s Citizens’ Use of Force Advisory Commission (CUFAC), another means to provide accountability and citizen input regarding use of force.

Chief Conrad and the Branch representatives agreed that law enforcement relationships with Communities of Color work best when there is an officer who comes from within those communities or when the department builds relationships with community leaders. The MPD is fairly diverse according to the community population percentages, but Chief Conrad would like to see more People of Color in law enforcement. He has had discussions with Branch President Pastor Oliver about how to attract Officers of Color to the MPD.

Regarding Murrieta schools, Chief Conrad outlined the six School Resource Officers (SROs) from the MPD assigned to each high school and middle school with shared responsibility for the elementary schools. Considering racial bullying in schools, the Murrieta School district is not seeing specific heightened racial bullying, but the department is aware of general bullying in schools.

Chief Conrad mentioned more than once, “We police Murrieta the way our citizens want us to police.” Murrieta continues to rank highly nationwide as a safe community because of this partnership mindset.

President Pastor Oliver shared, “Since assuming command from Chief Sean Hadden, Chief Tony Conrad has continued to foster and enhance the relationship between the Murrieta Police Department and the NAACP Branch 1034. This relationship has continued to be maintained and has served to benefit the community that both organizations serve.”

Toward further cooperation between the two groups, Mrs. Venerable invited Chief Conrad to an upcoming Branch 1034 general membership meeting to represent the MPD to its members. Chief Conrad invited the Branch to utilize community meeting room space at the police department for future events. He also encouraged members to be part of the Citizens Police Academy where community members receive an inside view of the MPD over a 12-week period. Mr. Stallworth has completed the academy course and recommended it to his NAACP colleagues.

The Murrieta Police Department recently celebrated 30 years of service to the community and continues to uphold the values that are emblazoned on the walls of the department: “In partnership with our Community.” For more information on the MPD, visit the website: https://www.murrietaca.gov/153/Police

The NAACP Branch 1034 has been in operation locally since 1977, originating in Lake Elsinore, and now represents the communities of Lake Elsinore, Murrieta, Temecula, Corona, Canyon Lake, Perris, Norco, Wildomar, Sun City and Menifee. The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is to ensure the political, educational, social and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race based discrimination.

For more information on Branch meetings, activities and membership, visit the Branch 1034 website: https://www.naacpbranch1034.org.