Peering through the Blue Wall: Police Realignment through California’s Peace Officer Transparency Law

• In Event: Critical Perspectives on Policing

Abstract

In 2018, the Peace Officers Release of Records Senate Bill (SB 1421) was signed into law. After 40 years of officer personnel files being cloaked in secrecy, SB 1421 unlocked greater transparency by ordering law enforcement agencies to disclose records involving use of force, sexual misconduct, and dishonesty. Yet implementation of SB 1421 has been uneven and contested often pitting law enforcement agencies aiming to conceal records in legal opposition to media coalitions and police reformers demanding the transparency established by the law. Drawing on findings from legal filings, press releases from news coalitions, analysis of SB 1421 documents, and recent police data from agencies in the state, this paper argues that despite its uneven implementation SB 1421 signals a realignment of key actors and agencies shaping law enforcement in California. Building on Stuart Hall’s concept of ideological closure which posits that the interests of political elites, law enforcement, and the media are aligned and entrenched, this work examines changes to the bureaucratic field that have created new arrangements between these and other emergent actors. This reveals a realignment between state actors, law enforcement, media, and social movements that have enabled new avenues of expanded police transparency and accountability.

Author

• Carlos Felipe Bustamante, The George Washington University