Disclosure of Police Personnel Records SB 1421

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Senate Bill 1421 effective January 1, 2019, amended by Senate Bill 16 effective January 1 , 2022, requires certain peace officer or custodial officer personnel records and records relating to specific incidents, complaints, and investigations to be made available for public inspection pursuant to the California Public Records Act. The records subject to disclosure are limited to certain specified records as listed in Penal Code 832.7 of A record relating to the report, investigation, or findings of any of the following:

1) An incident involving the discharge of a firearm at a person by a peace officer or custodial officer.

2) An incident involving the use of force against a person by a peace officer or custodial officer that resulted in death or in great bodily injury.

3) A sustained finding involving a complaint that alleges unreasonable or excessive force.

4) A sustained finding that an officer failed to intervene against another officer using force that is clearly unreasonable or excessive.

5) Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made by any law enforcement agency or oversight agency that a peace officer or custodial officer engaged in sexual assault involving a member of the public.

6) Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made by any law enforcement agency or oversight agency involving dishonesty by a peace officer or custodial officer directly relating to the reporting, investigation, or prosecution of a crime, or directly relating to the reporting of, or investigation of misconduct by, another peace officer or custodial officer, including, but not limited to, any false statements, filing false reports, destruction, falsifying, or concealing of evidence, or perjury.

7) Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made by any law enforcement agency or oversight agency that a peace officer or custodial officer engaged in conduct including, but not limited to, verbal statements, writings, online posts, recordings, and gestures, involving prejudice or discrimination against a person on the basis of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or military and veteran status.

8) Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made by any law enforcement agency or oversight agency that the peace officer made an unlawful arrest or conducted an unlawful search.

SB 1421 contains definitions and parameters for the types of records subject to disclosure and the information to be redacted from records prior to disclosure.

It is important to note that the City complies with State law for disclosure of police personnel records. The City does not set the rules regarding what records can or cannot be disclosed - the State does. SB 1421, which the City is fully complying with, amended State law to allow more records to be released, thus the information on this page.

The City of Fullerton has received a number of public records requests for records disclosable under the provisions of SB 1421 and has been identifying, reviewing, and appropriately redacting responsive records. These responsive records will be posted to this webpage as they are ready for disclosure. Records will remain on this page for a minimum of six months after being fully produced; after the six-month period, they will be subject to the city’s records retention schedule and may be purged (most commonly five years after the occurrence).