Since issuing our news release on the Chief’s Advisory Group yesterday, we have had a few inquiries on the composition of the group. We understand the public’s interest in knowing who is a part of this group that will be meeting regularly with Chief Robert Jonsen, so we took the time last night to let all of them know in advance that we would be releasing their names to the community today.
The members of the Chief’s Advisory Group are residents and business owners in Palo Alto. They provide Chief Jonsen with feedback from the community at meetings every other month, and learn about ongoing police initiatives, policies, and procedures. It is up to each individual member to decide how they are going to reach out to the neighbors and businesses in their respective area of town to solicit that feedback. The Chief’s Advisory Group is not a formal City-run board or commission, but rather a group of community members who responded to our call to volunteer to participate last summer. See our original news release announcing the opportunity by clicking https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civica/press/display.asp?layout=1&Entry=1628.
The opportunity to be a part of the Chief’s Advisory Group was open to those living and working in Palo Alto. The Chief originally planned to have a group of no more than 16 members, but the idea generated such interest in the community that he wound up accepting all 32 people who applied. After learning last night that we would be sharing their names publicly, two members chose to resign for personal reasons. The names of the 30 current members appear below in alphabetical order:
Alan Bennett, Ardan Michael Blum, Yvonne Boxerman, Carl Darling, Albert Dorsky, Cathie Foster, Vycelka Gatto, David E. Gobuty, John Guislin, Hamilton Hitchings Jr., Susannah Hursh, Kathleen Jason-Moreau, Jonathan Keeling, Paul Koo, Joe Landers, Andrew Davidson Mackenzie, Pat Markevitch, Eric Newman, Jake L. Olsen, Ann Pianetta, Laura Porter, Evan G. Reade, George Richard, Peter Shambora, Sophie Tsang, Carol Turner, David Wills, Dana Wong, and Jennifer Zimmerman.
If community members would like to provide input to the Chief or suggest an item for discussion for the Chief’s Advisory Group and do not happen to know any of the members above, they are welcome to send an e-mail message to [email protected] and we will ensure that message is shared with the whole group and the Chief himself.
