The weekend assault on a Santa Monica police officer has prompted a groundswell of support for the injured officer and reinvigorated Public Safety debate going into the final weeks of the election.
A Santa Monica police officer shot and killed a man on October 5 after the suspect attacked the officer with a knife. While the officer was initially hospitalized for his wounds, he was subsequently released and is currently recuperating at home.
In a letter to the community after the attack, Police Chief Ramon Batista thanked everyone for their support.
"The overwhelming kindness, compassion, and solidarity we’ve received from residents and business owners remind us how fortunate we are to serve a city that stands united in the face of adversity. Your gestures — whether through kind words, messages, or actions — have made an immense difference to the officer, their family, and the entire department," he said. "This unfortunate event reinforces the importance of community support and law enforcement collaboration. We will continue to work tirelessly to protect and serve you, knowing that we have a community behind us that values safety, security, and collaboration. Together, we will overcome challenges and build a future rooted in mutual respect and support."
In a video posted over the weekend, Mayor Phil Brock said the incident is evidence that that city needs to prioritize public safety. Brock is running for reelection this year and has made public safety a theme for his campaign.
"This tragic incident demonstrates the repeated calls by the residents of Santa Monica for an urgent commitment by all city leaders to prioritize the safety of all our residents and visitors, no matter their age. From our children to our seniors, ALL of us deserve safe streets in Santa Monica. We cannot continue to tolerate the lack of lawlessness caused by mental illness, drug abuse, and the lack of penalties in our county that continue to raise justifiable fear among the good residents of our city," he said. "This has to STOP, NOW!"
The union representing local officers also linked the attack to their ongoing efforts to increase the size of the department.
Cody Green, representing the Santa Monica Police Officers’ Association, said the incident was a sad culmination of many factors and said local officers respond to some calls without second officers to assist them.
He called that deployment pattern "unsafe."
"I have heard rumblings in the community that the POA asking for more police officers is a power or money grab. I'm here to tell you these calls have nothing to do with political power or money. It has to do with community and officer safety. You have hired us to do a job and we have been desperately telling the public that we don't have the number of officers do to that job, keeping you as safe as you should be," he said.
"One thing every Santa Monica police officer did over the weekend when they heard one of our own was attacked, knowing it would quickly hit the news, was to text our loved ones- our husbands, our wives, our children and parents to let them know we were not the officer who was stabbed. Unfortunately, one officer, one wife, one set of parents got the other call- that it was their husband, father, son."
Green said local officers are proud to serve in Santa Monica and are grateful for the support of the community.
"The Santa Monica Police Officers Association has a charity fund for those who would like to offer support, it can be found at SantaMonicaPOA.com," he said. "We can not say thank you enough for the broad support in the community you have given us."
matt@smdp.com
