Jordan Cunningham bill would reveal police misconduct. It’s closer to becoming law
A law enforcement transparency bill inspired by the unresolved case of a Central Coast police sergeant who was accused of rape is heading to the state Senate after an overwhelming vote saw it pass in the state Assembly on Monday.
The bill, AB 1599, was authored by Central Coast Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham (R-Templeton) and easily passed through the state Assembly in its regular session Monday. It will now head to the state Senate, where committees are scheduled to hear it this summer.
The legislation passed with a vote of 56-2.
Cunningham, a former deputy district attorney who currently works as a defense and civil attorney, was one of only four Republican lawmakers in the Assembly to vote for it.
Cunningham’s office says the bill will increase transparency around sexual assault investigations involving police officers. That would involve closing a “loophole” that prevented The Tribune and KSBY from obtaining records related to a Paso Robles city internal investigation of one of its former officers, Christopher McGuire, who resigned in 2018 amid allegations of rape and other sexual misconduct made by three women.
Although the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office concluded that McGuire should face charges of forcible rape, among others, the city of Paso Robles said McGuire’s voluntary resignation prevented them from determining whether he violated city policy, a finding that would have supposedly opened confidential records to public scrutiny.
“We passed a landmark police transparency measure in 2018, but a glaring loophole lets bad actors who commit sexual assault under color of law keep records hidden,” Cunningham said in a written statement. “The public deserves access to investigative records into sexual assault under color of law under tight parameters. (The bill) will bring transparency to government and help restore the public trust.”
Under another bill passed in late 2018, SB 1421, records of verified police dishonesty, criminal conduct, and certain use-of-force incidents must be released to the public.
But Cunningham argues that, in cases like McGuire’s, many California police departments do not complete internal investigations if the officer resigns in the middle of them — effectively keeping records of the misconduct in the dark.
If ultimately signed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Cunningham says his bill would close the loophole by making incomplete sexual assault investigation records due to an officer resignation eligible for release to the public.
The bill is supported by the ACLU, the California News Publishers Association, the California Public Defenders Association and the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights.
The Tribune and the other California McClatchy newspapers have also published strong editorialized in support of the bill.
Cunningham, a second-term assemblyman first elected in 2016, represents all of San Luis Obispo County and northern Santa Barbara County.
This story was originally published January 27, 2020 at 4:28 PM.
