The Police Accountability Board is the primary go-between for students and the University of California Police Department. The board meets monthly and holds additional meetings when they have complaints to review, with at least one of those meetings being a public town hall.

Policing in the local community involves multiple police groups with different jurisdictions. UCPD has primary authority and exclusively patrols UCSB’s campus. Nexus file photo

In 2020, issues of police accountability and reform were forefronted during Black Lives Matter protests following the murders of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin and Breonna Taylor by Louisville police. Nationwide, police departments were pressured to respond and reform while simultaneously, a gap between police and the communities they served grew. At UC Santa Barbara, the Police Accountability Board was created to improve campus policing while also bridging the gap between the student body and campus police. The board is currently composed of eight board members and two ex-officio members in UC Police Department (UCPD) Chief of Police Alex Yao and Vice Chancellor Garry MacPherson. 

Chancellor Henry T. Yang formed a Police Advisory Board in 2019 following recommendations by the University of California (UC) Presidential Task Force on Universitywide Policing, but transitioned to the Police Accountability Board (PAB) in 2021. The creation of the PAB responded to national and local protests over underlying racial disparities and injustices brought to light. 

PAB Chair and UCSB professor of sociology Geoffrey Raymond said that the switch to an accountability board gave them more authority in two ways: by making it the primary campus organization that hears policing related complaints and by requiring UC Police Department (UCPD) Chief of Police Alex Yao to respond to their recommendations.

“[The UCPD Chief of Police] has to publicly say, ‘Do I agree with this? Is this something I will do?’ Or he or she could say, ‘you know, I’ve decided not to do it,’ but then [they] have to give a reason why,” Raymond said. “That requirement to be public about how the department is addressing complaints was an important innovation for the [Police] Accountability Board and followed national trends on civilian accountability.”

PAB member and Associate Vice Chancellor of Student Life and Belonging Katya Armistead said she felt the change to an accountability board has made the board more strictly focused on complaints.

“When we were an advisory board, there was more opportunity to … have more casual conversations about how we think policing is, or what’s been happening,” Armistead said. “It was a lot more fluid, whereas when it’s now [an] accountability board, it’s so specific, it’s all built around the complaints.”

Policing in Isla Vista and the UCSB campus involves multiple police groups with different jurisdictions. The UCPD has primary authority and exclusively patrols UCSB’s campus, while Isla Vista falls under the jurisdiction of the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office (SBSO). According to a statement by UCPD, UCSB shares resources with SBSO through the Isla Vista Foot Patrol (IVFP). UCPD also helps staff IVFP and provides support during events like Halloween and Deltopia.

The PAB’s primary job is receiving and addressing complaints from the public related to policing and giving recommendations to UCPD based on the complaints. Armistead explained that some of the complaints the PAB receives aren’t within their jurisdiction because of misconceptions around different police organizations.

“One of the biggest things around policing, and especially for our campus, is distinguishing between UCPD and the Sheriff’s Department,” Armistead said. “When we have had people interested in the work that we do, maybe show up to a town hall … it’s often times because something that’s happened in Isla Vista, and that’s where it’s hard, because we don’t have jurisdiction of Isla Vista.”

According to the PAB’s website, people can submit a complaint to UCPD through an online form, in person, by fax or email. These complaints are then sent to the Campus Compliance Investigator, Darrel Paskett, who determines if there is “sufficient information and cause to investigate” any alleged misconduct or violation of rules, policy or law. If the complaint is found to be a violation, it is sent to the UC Davis Office of Compliance for further investigation.

According to Raymond, the UC Davis Office of Compliance was created following the pepper-spraying of student protestors in 2011, which put UC Davis at the forefront of UC police reform. He also explained that it is more economical to have a central investigative body rather than one for each of the nine UC campuses.

The UC Davis Office of Compliance then sends an anonymous investigation report with one of four findings on the complaint back to the PAB: “Unfounded” — the complaint is found to have not occurred or not involved UCPD personnel. “Exonerated” — the complaint is found to have occurred but was justified, lawful or proper. “Not Sustained” — insufficient evidence to conclude that the complaint occurred or violated UCPD policy. “Sustained” — the complaint is found to have occured and violated UCPD policy.

In closed sessions, the PAB reviews the investigation report and votes to either adopt, amend or reject its findings. Lastly, the PAB then makes a set of recommendations to the Campus Chief of Police on how the department should respond to the allegations.

Raymond noted how the California Police Officer Bill of Rights constrains civilian accountability boards like the PAB. Individuals involved with the complaints are kept anonymous in the reports, so the PAB can’t make recommendations about specific officers or disciplinary actions. 

“The way the board works is really constrained by the Police Officers Bill of Rights in California, and that legislation passed by the California Legislature significantly delimits the authority that any civilian accountability board can have over police conduct,” Raymond said. “We’re really dealing with the allegations and findings and what they suggest about patterns of policing generally, not the conduct of specific officers.”

According to Raymond, an important issue the PAB deals with is making people more comfortable with the presence of police officers. 

“A big part of the PAB has been to — and Chief Yao has been really open to this — to think about the ways in which policing and even the presence of police officers can make some people feel uncomfortable on campus, to make them feel as if they don’t belong,” Raymond said. “Policing is one part of a much broader campus system for helping students feel like they’re supported, belong and can be helped when they really need it.”

Armistead feels she has a good relationship with UCPD but hopes that the “gap” that has been growing between police officers and students can be bridged.

“Moving forward, we should work on creating better relationships with UCPD and students. I think from the George Floyd [incident], there’s been a huge gap and separation,” Armistead said. “I think [UCPD is] doing a good job. I think they get frustrated because of the reputation of policing period. So where can we now dial that back and make them more accessible?”

Armistead stressed the importance of transparent police accountability led by the community.

“We need to hold our policing accountable, and it needs to be not just behind closed doors,” Armistead said. “I think it’s important to have representation for staff, faculty and students, and so the police accountability board allows for the diversity of perspectives.”

Raymond agreed that police accountability is important and explained how a civilian oversight board adds legitimacy to policing. He also feels the PAB brings UCPD and students together in a space where they can work towards improving campus policing.

“A police accountability board composed of ordinary people, the community members that are being policed, has a different validity in its response to complaints from civilians and other community members about how they’re being policed,” Raymond said. “The police department benefits from a civilian oversight board that hears complaints, responds to them and makes recommendations because the community can know that the way the police department is dealing with complaints is transparent.”

Chief Yao said in a statement to the Nexus that UCPD is “always looking for ways to make enhancements to campus safety in support of our community.”

PAB town halls often have little to no community member participation. Despite this, Raymond expressed the importance of community members actively participating in discussions around policing.  

“It’s really important for community members to participate in how campus safety is approached,” Raymond said. “It’s good for the community; I think it’s good for the way campus safety is done and I think it helps avoid the kinds of problems that led to the campus police accountability board at Davis.”

A version of this article appeared on p. 4 of the May 29, 2025 print edition of the Daily Nexus.