tiburon police officer firedtiburon police officer fired

Really? Would dismantling Interstate 980 repair damage to Black neighborhoods? Khalif then told the officers that they are are exercising unnecessary caution because there are three Black people in the store, according to the video. Our community needs to come together and find real ways to train our police officers to police with empathy and love., Marin police face-off with Black merchant fuels, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Alameda County DAs new policy will reduce prison sentences through widespread elimination of sentencing enhancements, Tiburon police face-off with Black merchant fuels outrage, probe, Draymond Green explains his issue with Black History Month: Why do we get the shortest month?. Chanis said neither Cronin nor Blasi are able to comment due to the pending investigation. Offensive text messages exchanged between police officers in the Los Angeles suburb of Torrance, California, have hit the news and brought a spotlight on systemic discriminatory practices within the department.. A virtual Tiburon town meeting was held Thursday night to discuss an interaction that took place over the weekend between police officers and the only Black store owners in the town. I cannot lie and say Im OK. Im traumatized and my wife is traumatized.. Khalif begins speaking over the officer when Awash appears to say, OK baby? but Khalif tells her No, no and again asks the officer if theres a problem. - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more. During hours when the department is closed, visitors can be directly connected to our dispatch center via a phone outside our front entrance. While the interaction with the first officer at the scene, who has not been identified, was not recorded, Khalif said the officer walked up to the door and immediately demanded to know what they were doing in the store at night. Awash said she was shaking while recording the incident at the store because of the prior negative encounters with Tiburon police. Khalif recalled saying, you came here because you saw three Black people in the store.. Khalif said he was entitled to be in the store, had no obligation to identify himself and accused police of being suspicious because the store occupants were Black. In the footage, Madfes is seen walking through Fountain Plaza toward the store and can be heard reporting one BMA, one BFA one Black male adult and one Black female adult which he corrects to three people, two Black males, as he gets closer. Khalif said he, Awash and a friend were in the store doing inventory when he noticed a police vehicle circling the block. Blasi then can be heard asking Khalif why he is bringing race into the conversation. It was unclear why late Aug. 26 Tiburon released the extended video, in which the previously unidentified Tiburon patrol officer, Isaac Madfes, speaks his first name aloud. Both Khalif and Awash said they noticed a Tiburon police car driving slowly by their storefront while they were working inside with their friend about 1 a.m. Aug. 21. ", The community meeting comes after the city released body cam video showing the back and forth between both sides. Khalif said when it became clear the officer wasnt understanding him, he asked the officer to call his supervisor. Investigators said the incident occurred inside the Tiburon Police Department (TPD) locker room at approximately 12:45 p.m. on Dec. 12, The Ark reported. Michael Blasi, was posted by Khalif to social media later Aug. 21. Matthew Tom is a Homepage Editor at SFGATE. The nearly 11-minute recording includes about 5 previously unseen minutes of the incident, which occurred about 1 a.m. Aug. 21 at Yema, the action fashion wear boutique at 10 Main St. owned by Khalif and partner Hawi Awash, Tiburon residents who are also the designers and models for the brand. Then show me its your store, Blasi responds. In addition to normal police activities, the police station also houses the Emergency Operations Center, which is equipped to manage disaster response for Tiburon and Belvedere. The confrontation also spurred a protest in front of the Tiburon Police Department on Saturday. First published on September 8, 2020 / 7:45 PM. Tiburon Town Hall | 1505 Tiburon Boulevard, Tiburon, CA 94920 | Phone: 415-435-7373. Based on this belief, Sgt. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. A video showing three Tiburon Peninsula police officers repeatedly questioning the identity of a Black business owner working in his Fountain Plaza clothing store about 1 a.m. Aug. 21 has sparked widespread outrage within the community and prompted town officials to order an independent investigation into the conduct of two of the officers. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. TIBURON (KPIX/CBS SF) -- The police chief of the City of Tiburon is stepping down , according to a report in the Marin Independent Journal. A video of the incident that Awash recorded was widely shared on social media, and the town released police body-camera footage. Blasi will receive three months of salary from Tiburon as severance pay, Chanis said. When a police officer leaves their department because of misconduct, there's no easy public way for people to know if they're rehired elsewhere in law enforcement. That seemed to satisfy the officers, and they promptly left without the proof they had demanded for roughly 10 minutes. Please enter valid email address to continue. There's video of the interaction and an investigation underway. Tiburon Mayor Alice Fredericks called their behavior unacceptable and issued a public apology, and she and Belvederes mayor each apologized personally to Khalif and Awash. Comment at the meeting, or in advance by emailing comments@townoftiburon.org. The supervising officer, Tiburon Sgt. Video @sherlavars pic.twitter.com/WH5S9Sktxu. In an Aug. 24 interview, Awash had said the officers tone was aggressive and suspicious and that he didnt identify himself or ask if they were working late. The argument continued for a few more minutes, with both Blasi and Khalif raising their voices. Ste. The video, which has amassed nearly 64,000 views on YEMAs Instagram page, sparked public outrage prompting a protest in Tiburon attended by over 200 people in support of Khalif and the Black Lives Matter movement. Blasi offered, and the town has accepted, his voluntary resignation." He was among 17 applicants for the position. Put your key in the door and were out of here. Community members pointed out Cronin had only issued a warning for the protest in Marin City, which is 61 percent non-white, including 38 percent Black, and had issued no such warnings for similar peaceful protests in other nearby predominantly white communities, including Mill Valley. Thats all we want to know, Blasi says. Copyright 2023 KGO-TV. "Since becoming Police Chief in 2007, the impact of Mikes leadership has been significant for Tiburon," Chanis said. Is it your store? Cronin quickly apologized, saying he stood in support of peaceful protests in Marin City and condemned racism, social injustice and police brutality. About 2 minutes into the video, Khalif says that if Madfes has a problem, call your chief of police, call whoever you wanna call at which point Madfes acknowledges his supervisor, Blasi, is already on his way, consistent with Khalifs previous accounts of the incident. In the video, Khalif can be seen wearing a protective mask and engaging with the initially maskless police supervisor, identified as Michael Blasi, who repeatedly asked Khalif to prove his identity as the owner of the store. Belvedere City Manager Craig Middleton said one of the officers who was acting in a backup role is employed with Belvedere Police Department. They opened the athletic apparel boutique in February. Jupiter and Venus appear to 'kiss' in the sky, FL Gov. Critics also note the officers finally left without the proof they said was required for 11 minutes only when a white Main Street resident who overheard the confrontation shouted, Thats his store.. Three former Aurora, Colo., police officers have lost a bid to get their jobs back after being fired in connection to posed photos reenacting a chokehold near the site where . The county settled a lawsuit by Grimes family for nearly $1 million. Khalif insisted that if he acknowledged he was the owner, absent the officers explanation of a problem, evidence of a crime or reason to doubt him, he didnt need to explain why he was in his own store after hours. Im not going to answer your question. Town Manager Greg Chanis said Blasi has had several conversations with town officials since the incident. You sure? Just seconds later, the interaction ended abruptly when a neighbor who lives farther down Main Street yelled from his balcony to confirm Khalif was the owner. The video which has been viewed more than 30,000 times on the stores Instagram page and shared more than 750 times on its Facebook page triggered an overwhelming community response of concern and outrage, including hundreds of comments on online neighborhood forum Nextdoor.com. This isn't regular business hours, there's no customers in there. Critics of the officers handling of the incident note that Blasi did not de-escalate the encounter on his arrival. Khalif said Fredericks came by the shop on Aug. 24, two days after she had sent out her email statement extending her heartfelt apologies to the couple. Officers from both the Tiburon and Belvedere police departments arrived that August 2020 night around 1 a.m., when Khalif, Awash and a friend were stocking clothes at the upscale boutique on . The newly-released bodycam video can be seen here. Michael Blasi, was, 2022 The Ark, AMMI Publishing Co. Inc. | 1550 Tiburon Blvd. As the town of Tiburon deals with a controversy involving the Police Department and a Black-owned business, Police Chief Michael Cronin announced on Tuesday that he will retire, according to the Marin Independent Journal. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Tiburon Town Manager Greg Chanis announced the resignation in a newsletter saying [Sgt. Blasi was hired last year by the department after more than 15 years at the Marin County Sheriffs Office as a SWAT team leader, investigator and gang task-force officer. The footage does not appear to contain an audio record of Madfes calling for backup Blasi, as well as the on-duty patrol officer for Belvedere who overheard the call and responded as standard operating procedure, according to Belvedere Police Chief Jason Wu, were already on their way to the scene suggesting the backup request took place before the body camera was switched on. Simpson, who is familiar with Khalif, said he was concerned by the way the three officers were surrounding him, so he yelled down to confirm Khalif was the owner. Our store alarm did not go off, no one called the police, everything was peaceful. Should you desire additional information that doesnt appear on the site, please contact us directly at 415-789-2801 or by using the department directory. Sgt. "There's three Black people in the store, what's the problem?" 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Cronin said he wasnt aware of Blasis involvement in the Grime case when the department hired him last year. Matthew Tom has been working as a homepage editor at SFGATE since 2006. Cronin declined to declined to identify the other two officers other than to say one works for Tiburon and the other for Belvedere. Khalif and Awash say, however, that they shouldnt be required to repeatedly identify themselves to police to prove who they are and that they belong in town. At the 10-minute mark, Madfes chimes in again: Prove to us you have keys or , There you go, thats the perfect thing, Blasi says as Khalif removes something from his pocket. In the incident, which was recorded on video, two Tiburon officers and a Belvedere officer pressed Yema Khalif and Hawai Awash to identify themselves after seeing them in their clothing shop at 1 a.m. Khalif claimed racial profiling, which the officers denied. A percentage of all sales are donated to Road to Freedom Scholarships for the education of orphaned children in Ethiopia and Kenya, a program that was started by Danish actress and part-time Tiburon resident Connie Nielsen. The Aug. 21 incident is the second time in recent months the Tiburon Police Department has come under public scrutiny for its response to racial issues in the wake of the Memorial Day killing of George Floyd and ensuing Black Lives Matter protests across the country, including several in Tiburon. Would dismantling Interstate 980 repair damage to Black neighborhoods? Is it your store? Do you want us to look out for the community or do you want us to let anybody walk in here at 2 oclock in the morning and steal all your stuff? Blasi is heard saying on the video. Fredericks said Cronin is planning a department-wide racial-bias training for late next month, which has been in the works since the George Floyd killing in Minneapolis in May, which led to widespread protests and mounting calls to end racial injustice and police brutality. The next time I come here and there are three totally different people in here I dont care what color they are three people in your store at 3 oclock in the morning, do you want us to walk by and not do anything? Blasi said. Reach her at 415-944-4627. The nearly 11-minute recording includes about 5 previously unseen minutes of the incident, which occurred about 1 a.m. Aug. 21 at Yema, the "action . In a later interview, Simpson said he was concerned by the way the three officers were surrounding Khalif. Required fields are marked *. Khalif and Awash said Chanis, the town manager, reached out to them after the incident, and the three met on Aug. 23. Can you prove that its your store?, Khalif: I do not have to prove anything to you, its my store., Blasi: Oh my god, yes you do have to prove who you are., Khalif: I do not have to prove my existence to you.. Again, Khalif says hell speak to the supervisor, but Madfes insists Khalif is required to give me a lawful reason why youre here.. IRS delays tax deadline for Bay Area, but California hasn't followed: What should you do? Tiburon Town Manager Greg Chanis announced the resignation in a newsletter saying " [Sgt. She said that included conversations about how police officers can re-examine their implicit biases and eliminate their own fear on the job. His accomplishment was widely covered in the TV and print media, including in The Ark. It just felt like it was going to progress into something ugly., Khalif called the fact that the situation was diffused by a white neighbor yelling down to vouch for him the icing on the cake., A Black man cannot be in this space in this particular hour and say, Im OK, no need to be talking to you, move along. A Black man can not say that, but a white man can.. Miss Manners: I shouldn't call because the phone scares people? How they dont know Yema is beyond me, he said. To the right in the video, a mannequin frequently is in view, just feet from Khalif, who has approached the door dressed in identical clothing distinctive, African-inspired athletic-leisurewear. Two Tiburon police officials, Sergeant Michael Blasi and Police Chief Michael Cronin resigned September 1 and 13 following allegations of officers racially profiling a Black store owner in Tiburon. Is it your store that's all we want to know? Use tab to navigate through the menu items. Really? Sgt. Michael Blasi was the supervising officer on Aug.. Maybe this happened to us because we can bring this out and make sure we have these conversations in our homes and with our families and loved ones and members of community and create something positive thats going to make Tiburon better for all of us, she said. In another post, Blasi is asked what kind of behavior can get someone in trouble with the police, to which he responded, resisting a detention or arrest and failing to identify yourself or providing ID when directed by an officer., He also says he wouldnt recommend anyone become a police officer in todays environment, citing media and social-media scrutiny, internet armchair quarterbacks evaluating every real-time decision (and) unqualified and incompetent civilian-oversight committees that are usually someones bulls political agenda.. Blasi and two other officers then leave. Khalif, who has lived in Tiburon for nearly 10 years, and Awash are well-known in the Tiburon business community. Tiburon police sergeant resigns amid racial, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Alameda County DAs new policy will reduce prison sentences through widespread elimination of sentencing enhancements, Tiburon police sergeant resigns amid racial profiling claims, Letters: Plethora of problems | Creating AL | Provenance of woke | Teen girls | Public bank. As the town of Tiburon deals with a controversy involving the Police Department and a Black-owned business, Police Chief Michael Cronin announced on Tuesday that he will retire, according to. Mayor Alice Fredericks issued an apology on Saturday and went in person to talk to the store owners on Monday. TAKE ACTION: Find resources to help with equality, justice and race issues. The newly released body-cam footage appears to highlight this further, with clearer audio than the cellphone footage that also shows a stark contrast between Blasis demeanor and that of Madfes, who speaks calmly throughout the first half of the video while Blasi then frequently shouts over Khalif and tells him he should be grateful. Other business owners have come forward to say that on the rare occasions they work late into the night, they've never been stopped and questioned at all, while Khalif was not only interrogated, Madfes had already called for backup before he first knocked on the door. Scott Adams faces consequence culture as U.S. newspapers drop Dilbert, Rapid demise of Dilbert no surprise to some who were watching, Elon Musk tweets support for Dilbert creator Scott Adams after racist tirade. Michael Blasi resigned after the release of police body-cam video showed Blasi and other officers questioning whether Yema Khalif and his wife Hawi Awash had a right to be in their own downtown store after hours. He previously worked at The San Francisco Chronicle as a Bay Area news editor and the Oakland Tribune as a senior news editor. The off-camera speaker presumably makes reference to the June 2020 fatal police shooting of 27-year-old Rayshard Brooks, who was shot after allegedly grabbing a police officer's Taser, following a . The investigation needs to go further than just this incident at Yema, said Adjani, a friend of the store owners. Blasi joined the Tiburon Police Department in June 2019. Michael Blasi was the supervising officer on Aug. 21 during the incident at Yema, a clothing store on Main Street. Awash said other business owners work late at night and pointed to portraits of the couple that are clearly visible through the storefront window. 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Cronin declined to directly comment on the Aug. 21 incident until the investigation has concluded, but he confirmed Blasi and the other officers involved would continue coming to work through the investigation. I opened our balcony door to Main Street, and I heard one of the officers saying, If this is your store, put your key in the door and prove it.. 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