Paul Parker, who worked for years to expand oversight of the Sheriff’s Department as head of its review board, was chosen to lead the San Diego police oversight group.
City council members unanimously appointed Parker as executive director of the Commission on Police Practices, which oversees the San Diego Police Department, at their council meeting Tuesday.
The 53-year-old is a former police officer who migrated to medical examiners’ offices in Arizona and Nevada before coming to San Diego County in 2017 to lead the Citizens’ Law Enforcement Review Board, or CLERB. He left the following year when he was named chief deputy director of the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiners, but returned as executive director of CLERB in 2020.
Parker worked to expand the board’s role and authority, particularly regarding oversight of deaths in county jails. However, he resigned from his position in March, citing frustration that county leaders were unwilling to make the type of changes that would have led to “real oversight.”
That didn’t dampen his enthusiasm for the work ahead Tuesday.
“I look forward to the opportunity to help this commission, to help this council, to hold law enforcement accountable to the community, to increase the community’s trust in law enforcement , but also to increase the safety of law enforcement and community members – I’m I’m excited to do that,” Parker said during the meeting. “Thank you for your trust and confidence in me.”
The appointment marked a pivotal moment for the commission, created in November 2020, when voters overwhelmingly passed Measure B. The ballot measure sought to replace the city’s former Community Review Committee on Policing Practices with a group independent watchdog with professional staff and authority to investigate police shootings, deaths in custody and certain incidents of alleged misconduct.
For years after the vote, an interim version of the commission suffered from lengthy negotiations with the city and the police union, a wave of member resignations and a backlog that reached about 150 cases.
The board is now full of members, but it will take a few more months to submit procedures that will govern how they conduct investigations and issue disciplinary recommendations — procedures that must be approved by the City Council.
Several council members emphasized the importance of the commission during Tuesday’s meeting and applauded Parker’s experience. Board member Marni von Wilpert, who helped lead the national search for the commission’s executive director, said the oversight board would play a “crucial role” in building trust between communities and the police department from the city.
“Public safety is truly a partnership,” she said. “Public safety is stronger when the relationship between SDPD and the public is stronger.”
Parker, who lives in Little Italy, will receive an annual salary of $203,700 along with other benefits.
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