What does Modesto’s new police chief have to say about reform, systemic racism?
Brandon Gillespie says in his 20-year career as a Modesto police officer, he’s not seen a sustained national conversation about how police do their jobs and how communities want to be policed as has occurred since the May 2020 death of George Floyd.
That conversation is taking place locally, too.
And as Modesto’s newest police chief, he has a voice in that discussion. Gillespie, 45, grew up in Modesto and has spent his career in law enforcement here. He rose through the ranks, starting as an officer and eventually becoming assistant police chief.
He took over as interim chief Christmas Day upon the retirement of Galen Carroll, who served as chief for nearly eight years. Gillespie was named chief after the city conducted a nationwide recruitment that garnered 14 applicants, which was narrowed to four candidates and then two finalists.
Gillespie was sworn in as chief Sept. 2.
He spoke with The Bee about issues including police reform, systemic racism, building relationships, his department’s staffing and budget constraints and his hopes for making Modesto a better place.
Police reform
Modesto has launched an initiative to look at potential reforms of its Police Department, called Forward Together. The effort has a committee with members from law enforcement and business and community groups, including the NAACP and the ACLU.
Those reforms could include hiring an independent auditor and forming a civilian review board to provide additional oversight of the Police Department. Supporters say these reforms give officers another perspective and help them be better at their jobs.
Gillespie is a strong supporter of Forward Together but deferred when asked whether he supports an independent auditor and civilian review board.
“I support our city being policed how the community wants to be policed,” he said. “This is a great opportunity to decide what our community wants through the Forward Together initiative, to see what the recommendations are ... and ultimately what the City Council adopts.”
Systemic racism
Gillespie said it is critical to recognize that racism and systemic racism are not the same thing. During his career, he has not seen racism among police officers, sheriff’s deputies, prosecutors and others within Stanislaus County’s criminal justice system, he said.
The chief said the MPD would not and does not tolerate racism among its employees. “There is no room for racism in our department, and I would separate anyone who couldn’t treat all people equally.”
But unfortunately, Gillespie said, minorities are arrested and prosecuted at higher rates nationwide than their share of the population. That points to systemic racism, which includes laws, policies and practices resulting in disparate outcomes, the chief said. The problem is true locally, he added.
“When you look at the statistics,” Gillepsie said, “there are minorities ... overrepresented in our criminal justice system. ... Nationally, we’ve known that. Locally, we’ve seen that.
“And I think that is why we constantly have those conversations of why? That’s the million-dollar question. Is it because of social issues? Is it because of unfair laws?” It’s vital to keep the conversations going, he said, to reach a point where everyone is treated equitably.
Building relationships
Gillespie repeatedly has said that one thing he’s learned about policing is that it is about forming relationships. He said one of his goals as chief is to build on the connections he’s made with the Police Clergy Council, the Latino Community Roundtable, the NAACP, MoPride and other community groups.
The time to work on relationships is not just “when bad things happen,” he said. Issues come up all the time, he added, and “I want those stakeholders, those organizations, to reach out to me with any questions they may have so we can talk through those issues.”
Gillespie said relationships are key to building trust and dissolving faulty perceptions that officers and community members may have of one another, especially members of Modesto’s minority communities.
He pointed to the recently concluded Race and Cultural Relations Coaching Series, which brought together about three dozen police officers and Black community members over 19 weeks. Participants engaged in honest and at times painful conversations to break down “us versus them” barriers.
The series was led by community advocate and paralegal Michael Baldwin, and Gillespie wants it to be the first of many classes.
But he said the classes will not attract all of the community. That is why the chief said he’s looking for more ways to erase barriers between officers and residents. For instance, he wants to do pop-up sports, in which officers dressed in jerseys and shorts find kids playing games and join them.
“It’s relationship building at all levels,” Gillespie said. “It’s not one approach. It’s officers out in the community talking and listening, and it’s me talking and listening.”
While reform can help, it is not enough without strong relationships, he said. “Where we can change and reform and continue to keep our officers safe and continue to listen to the community, that is the sweet spot.”
But he acknowledges it will not always be easy to find the time for officers to do this community building, in part because of the Police Department’s budget and staffing.
Police budget
City officials consistently have said over the years that Modesto’s revenues don’t keep pace with its expenses. That means the city keeps cutting services to balance its annual budget.
For instance, the Police Department had a budget of about $50 million a decade ago, according to information on the city’s website, and the department was allocated 319 employees, including 238 police officers. That was during the Great Recession.
The current police budget is $72 million, and the department is allocated 298 employees, including 210 sworn officers. And Gillespie said four of those sworn positions — a captain, a sergeant and two officers — are vacant and have not been filled as part of balancing the city budget. The Police Department also has six open civilian positions.
Councilman Tony Madrigal has said that with a new police chief, it may be time for the city to start talking with residents about the kind of community they want and whether they might pay more in taxes for public safety.
Modesto put sales tax increases on the 2013 and 2015 ballots to raise more money for public safety. Both failed.
Asked if he supports asking voters to pay more in sales taxes, Gillespie said: “It’s a decision for our community to make. I live here in the city, and I think that we have got to find in this city a way to bring in more revenue. I know that (with) economic development, we’re trying very hard to bring in new business and generate revenue that way.
“But I do have a concern of, ‘Is that going to be enough to sustain everything?’” he said. “As a community, we have to realize there aren’t many more services the Police Department can provide. What I am doing to try to stretch the budget as far as I can is looking at civilianizing positions where I can.”
He said that includes the Police Department’s recent hiring of four homeless outreach workers who respond to calls officers once handled. (The city is using federal funding to pay for the outreach workers.) And Gillespie said he is looking at how the department can hire more community service officers who would handle routine calls that don’t require a sworn officer.
Officer morale
Gillespie said the well-being of his officers, including their workload, is among his top three priorities. The others are community relationships and managing his department’s budget.
He is serving as chief during a time when the national narrative about police officers can be harsh and critical, and communities are demanding police reduce racial disparities and re-examine how they use force.
Gillespie also has been leading the department during two officer-involved shootings.
One was Dec. 29, and it resulted in Officer Joseph Lamantia being fired and charged in March with voluntary manslaughter in the death of Trevor Seever. The other was Aug. 14 when Officer Michael Rokaitis was shot and wounded while serving a search warrant. Rokaitis had part of his right leg amputated as a result of his injuries.
Gillespie could not recall another time when a Modesto officer was fired and charged in a shooting, and it has been more than 20 years since the last time a Modesto officer was shot by a suspect. Gillespie said the two incidents make real to his officers the difficulties and risks of their work.
He also said his officers are concerned about the national conversation regarding policing.
Gillespie said it’s incumbent on him to keep talking to his officers to let them know he “absolutely supports” what they are doing and understands they have a very difficult job. “But at the same time,” he said, “we’ve got to look where we can” about how to do the job better.
New vision for Modesto
Gillespie said his priorities include making Modesto a better place, and that includes helping the city change its image.
“Growing up here, I believe the city has often had an identity crisis. I remember growing up and hearing people complain about Modesto. ... But I found it interesting that people in Turlock didn’t complain about how bad Turlock was or (people in) Ripon or (people in) Ceres. But for some reason, Modesto always seemed to have a bad reputation. So especially coming back as a police officer and then coming up through the ranks and deciding to live here, I want to make the city better.
“It’s multifaceted. It’s reducing crime. From a law enforcement perspective, as chief of police, I want people to feel safe in this community, which is going to bring more business in, which is going to bring more money in, which is going to improve us. I’d love to see Modesto as a tourist destination. We’re central to so many darn things. This could be a hub. This could be even a more vibrant place than it is.”
Gillespie said his department plays a role in this by helping the city’s other departments when it can. He said a small example of that is that the police cadets help the Parks, Recreation and Neighborhoods Department by closing park bathrooms at night.
This story was originally published September 23, 2021 at 6:00 AM.
