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Tag: Seth Cimino

  • Residents near little-known park say dirt bikes are frequent disturbance

    A sign marks one of three entrances to Shadowcreek Park, which borders Citrus Heights and Carmichael. // M. Hazlip

    By Mike Hazlip—
    An undeveloped, 11-acre green space park on the border of Citrus Heights and Carmichael is drawing the ire of residents who say dirt bike riders are frequenting the area for recreation, despite a prohibition on motorized vehicles.

    A resident who lives nearby and did not want to be identified said he is a “frustrated citizen” after getting no answers from Citrus Heights police and the Sunrise Recreation and Park District. He told The Sentinel the typically quiet park “turns into Prairie City SVRA” on weekends.

    The park is located behind numerous homes along the southern fringes of Citrus Heights, with one entrance on Woodleigh Drive in Carmichael and other entrances on Parkcreek Circle and Parkoaks Drive in Citrus Heights. The park district posted a sign prohibiting motorized vehicles several years ago, but that hasn’t stopped the activity.

    Another resident, Thomas Spencer, said he’s seen several individuals using what he called the “undeveloped green belt” to enjoy motorized recreation.

    Shadowcreek Park

    “There seems to be others who for whatever reason think it’s okay to use the greenbelt area as a motor-cross track of some sort,” Spencer said. “These are ongoing and endemic problems and I don’t know what the solution is.”

    Sunrise Recreation and Park District Administrator Dave Mitchell told The Sentinel in an email response last month that it was his first time hearing about a problem with motorcycle riding in Shadowcreek Park. He referred related questions to the Citrus Heights Police Department.

    In an email reply, Citrus Heights Police Sgt. Seth Cimino said officers had responded to two recent reports of motorized dirt bikes. In the first incident, an officer found a juvenile sitting on a motorcycle on the Sacramento County side of the park’s boundary. The rider and his parents were “contacted, educated on the law, and counseled on safety concerns.”

    Officers also responded to another call, but were not able locate anyone riding dirt bikes.

    Cimino said Citrus Heights police “can and will investigate” incidents involving dirt bikes at the park, and enforce applicable sections of municipal and state vehicle code.

    The park district encourages community members to contact police to report motorcycle riding in any parks.

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  • Citrus Heights police chief discusses use of force, crime, budget issues

    Citrus Heights Police Chief Ron Lawrence, right, stands with Sgt. Seth Cimino following a community presentation on June 15. // M. Hazlip

    By Mike Hazlip—
    Citrus Heights Police Chief Ronald Lawrence in a neighborhood presentation on Tuesday addressed use of force, budget and crime questions.

    Speaking to the Citrus Heights Areas Seven Eight and Nine (CHASEN) neighborhood association, Lawrence addressed a question about use of force, saying the number of incidents nationally that result in force being used is “a lot less than you might be led to believe.” He said public perception of use of force issues have been influenced by broadcast media as well as social media.

    “What you see on TV, what you see on social media about some agency in Minnesota or Ferguson Missouri, or wherever the heck it is, is the latest story. It doesn’t mean that it’s happening in Citrus Heights, California.”

    Lawrence said Citrus Heights police have used force 12 times in over 30,000 calls for service so far this year. Numbers for prior years were similar, with officers using force in less than half a percent of all calls, according to Police Department statistics Lawrence presented.

    There were 68,449 calls for service with 47 uses of force recorded for 2019, and 68,884 calls in 2020 with officers using force in 40 of those calls, Lawrence said. He said training in de-escalation tactics have helped keep the numbers low.

    Lawrence also said he looks forward to more technological development to help decrease use of force incidents and help officers do their jobs more safely. He noted in his own career seeing the development of tasers replacing the former police batons, and said tech is now being tested that will allow law enforcement to shoot a rubber tracking device at a fleeing vehicle and allow authorities to break off a dangerous pursuit while still being able to track the vehicle.

    Crime
    In addressing local crime, Lawrence said the past three years have seen the lowest crime rates in the city’s history, although he said the department doesn’t take credit for the drop last year due to the pandemic’s impact on crime. He called 2020 “an anomaly,” noting a drop in residential crime due to more people being home during the pandemic, while also seeing an uptick in commercial burglaries due to more businesses being closed.

    The most significant local increase in crime was catalytic converter thefts, up 468% last year, accounting for the majority of parked vehicle accessory thefts. This type of theft also saw an increase over previous years.

    Lawrence noted a “dark figure of crime,” referring to crimes that go unreported. He stressed the importance of community involvement in reporting crimes and suspicious activity and said unreported crimes contribute to the public’s perception that crime statistics do not reflect actual crime rates.

    Budget
    Despite recent calls to defund police departments across the nation, Lawrence said he doesn’t think that movement represents the desires of Citrus Heights residents.

    Due to city budget deficits, Lawrence said the department began to prepare for a budget shortfall near the end of last year by leaving unfilled positions vacant. In total, the department had 28 unfilled positions, with 14 of those being sworn police officers.

    However, he said the federal American Rescue Plan will provide enough funds to fill 22 of those vacancies. The city’s finance committee has taken steps to direct those funds toward police, Lawrence said, but a vote by the City Council is still needed before the funds can be allocated. The item is scheduled come before the council on June 24.

    With these funds, Lawrence said he is confident “we’ll be able to rebuild our police department.”

    Related: COVID-19 funds will likely restore 22 positions to Citrus Heights Police Dept

    During his presentation, Lawrence also fielded questions from the community about mental health and homeless issues. He said he welcomes efforts to send social workers to address nonviolent mental health and homeless issues in the community rather than an officer.

    “If someone is having a mental health crisis, let’s say they are in despair, but they haven’t committed a crime, and they’re not committing any violence, there’s no reason a police officer should go to that.”

    The police chief’s presentation was part of the CHASEN neighborhood association’s monthly meeting, held at Antelope Road Christian Fellowship. The association recently merged with another nearby association, in an effort to boost participation and have the association’s boundaries line up with the newly created City Council District 2 boundaries.

    Related: Why these two Citrus Heights neighborhood associations decided to merge