POST panel recommends decertification for Oroville officer after division says he left a vulnerable person on a desolate road; victim later suffered life‑alteri

The Police Officer Standards Accountability Advisory Board voted 6-0 Thursday to recommend that the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training revoke the POST certificate of former Oroville Police Department officer Robert Sasek after the division said it found clear and convincing evidence of abuse of power for leaving a vulnerable person in a remote area.

Scott Balen, a law enforcement consultant with the division’s Northern Bureau, told the board that on Sept. 1, 2022, officers repeatedly encountered a woman who had earlier been arrested for trespass and who the division says was under the influence of methamphetamine and suffering medical issues. Balen said the woman was not admitted for booking because jail nursing staff required medical clearance, was transported to the Oroville Medical Center, then left in Sasek’s patrol vehicle. Balen said Sasek drove the woman approximately 15.5 miles toward Chico and, after the woman demanded to get out, stopped near a desolate location on Neil (Veil) Road and left her there without shoes, a purse or means to call for help.

Why it matters: The division told the board the decision left the woman in a worse condition; she was later struck by a vehicle, hospitalized, developed sepsis, required multiple surgeries including removal of part of her small intestine and colon and later had two toes amputated. The city of Oroville later settled a federal civil‑rights suit related to the incident for $3,000,000, Balen said.

Division summary and investigative findings

Balen summarized the timeline: the complainant was arrested by the Butte County Sheriff for trespass at about 1:30 p.m. and released from jail about 4:17 p.m.; at about 8:52 p.m. she was reported hiding in a Dollar General storeroom and was arrested by Sasek at 9:21 p.m.; jail nursing staff refused booking at about 9:43 p.m. for medical clearance; Sasek took her to the emergency room at 9:48 p.m. but left her in his patrol vehicle and later left the hospital at about 10:01 p.m.; the security guard called police back and Sasek returned about 10:13 p.m.; after clearing the complainant from under an MRI trailer he placed her in the rear of his caged patrol vehicle and began transporting her toward Chico; Balen said Sasek then stopped near a former "worm farm" and left the complainant on Neil (Veil) Road in darkness.

Balen told the board that neither Sasek’s body‑worn camera nor the department’s RIMS (records information management system) application was activated for the transport, that Sasek did not notify dispatch or his sergeant at the moment he left the complainant, and that he did not prepare an incident report documenting the hospital encounter and subsequent transport. The division concluded Sasek’s conduct was an intentional dereliction of duty that placed the complainant at serious risk.

Respondent’s statement and board questioning

Sasek addressed the board and said he took responsibility, describing the episode as “a mistake” and saying he did not act with malice. Asked why he left the complainant at a desolate location, Sasek said the complainant insisted on getting out of the patrol vehicle and he believed he lacked authority to detain her further. He also told the board he thought dropping the woman in an area off the highway was safer than leaving her on SR‑99.

Board members repeatedly questioned Sasek about failing to activate his body‑worn camera, failing to contact dispatch or his supervisor while transporting the complainant, and about the absence of immediate medical attention. Members and the division highlighted the complainant’s later severe injuries: a ruptured small intestine (more than 1 foot of bowel removed), removal of 30–40% of her colon, a seven‑day intensive‑care stay, sepsis and amputation of two toes.

Vote and next steps

A motion to recommend decertification passed by roll call: Clavo (aye), Dudley (aye), Glaser (aye), Johnson (aye), Lara (aye) and Pena (aye). Member Crawford had left the meeting earlier and did not vote. The board’s recommendation will be forwarded to the POST commission for its review; any final revocation would require the commission’s process.

Clarifying details and evidence

- Timeline: Sept. 1, 2022 — initial trespass arrest (~1:30 p.m.); Dollar General encounter and arrest (~9:21 p.m.); hospital transport started (~9:43–9:48 p.m.); respondent left hospital (~10:01 p.m.), was recalled (~10:11 p.m.), returned (~10:13 p.m.), then transported and later dropped complainant on Neil (Veil) Road; complainant found injured the next morning and taken to Enloe Medical Center (~9:34 a.m.). - Location: Division mapped the drop‑off near the old “worm farm”/Neil Road area; division’s materials show a straight‑line distance of roughly 0.6–1.1 miles from SR‑99 to the drop site depending on the exact point cited. - Injuries and outcome: ruptured small intestine (over 1 foot removed), 30–40% of colon removed, colostomy, seven days in intensive care, later amputation of two toes; city settled a federal civil‑rights lawsuit for $3,000,000, per the division. - Communications and documentation: Division says body‑worn camera was not activated, RIMS app was not used at critical times and no hospital/transport incident report was prepared by the respondent.

Speakers (as identified in transcript)

- Scott Balen — Law enforcement consultant, Professional Conduct Northern Bureau (government) - Brian Hoffman — Attorney, Legal Affairs Bureau (government) - Robert Sasek — Respondent; former officer, Oroville Police Department (citizen/government employee) - Sergeant Khan — Supervisor who responded to the hospital scene (government) - Officer Isaac Herrera — Oakland/Oroville officer present at hospital (government) - Security guard (Oroville Medical Center) — witness (citizen) - Chair Dudley and board members Clavo, Glaser, Johnson, Lara, Pena — advisory board (government)

Authorities (sources cited in presentation)

- penal code section 13510.8 — statutory standard referenced by the division for serious misconduct (referenced_by:["post-2318309-robert-sasek"]) - RIMS (records information management system) — cited as the CAD/application that was not used when expected (referenced_by:["post-2318309-robert-sasek"]) - Enloe Medical Center — treating facility for complainant (referenced_by:["post-2318309-robert-sasek"])

Actions

- kind: motion motion: "Recommend decertification (revocation of POST certification) of respondent Robert Sasek based on the division's report" mover: "not specified" second: "not specified" vote_record: [{"member":"Clavo","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Dudley","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Glaser","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Johnson","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Lara","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Pena","vote":"yes"}] tally: {"yes":6,"no":0,"abstain":0} outcome: "approved" notes: "Board recommended decertification; member Crawford absent for vote"

Discussion vs. decision

Discussion points: whether the respondent left a person needing medical attention in a desolate area; failure to use body‑worn camera and department reporting systems; injuries the complainant later suffered and the city’s $3 million settlement. Directions: none recorded. Decisions: board voted to recommend decertification and will forward the matter to the POST commission for potential evidentiary review.

Clarifying details

- {"category":"timeline","detail":"Sept. 1, 2022: sequence included initial trespass arrest, jail refusal for booking for medical clearance, ER visit left in patrol car, transport and dropoff on Neil/Veil Road; complainant found injured next morning (9/2/2022) and taken to Enloe Medical Center","approximate":false} - {"category":"distance","detail":"Division materials show drop site between about 0.6 and 1.1 straight‑line miles from SR‑99 depending on exact point cited","approximate":true} - {"category":"injuries","detail":"Ruptured small intestine (>1 foot removed), 30–40% of colon removed, colostomy bag, seven days in ICU, sepsis and eventual amputation of two toes; city settled federal suit for $3,000,000","approximate":false} - {"category":"communications","detail":"Body‑worn camera and RIMS app were not activated for transport; no hospital transport incident report was prepared by respondent","approximate":false}

Proper names

- {"name":"Oroville Police Department","type":"agency"} - {"name":"Butte County Sheriff’s Office","type":"agency"} - {"name":"Oroville Medical Center","type":"facility"} - {"name":"Enloe Medical Center","type":"facility"} - {"name":"Franklin Construction","type":"business"} - {"name":"Neil Road Waste Facility","type":"facility"} - {"name":"Robert Sasek","type":"person"}

Community relevance

- geographies: ["Oroville, CA","Neil (Veil) Road area","SR‑99 corridor","Chico, CA"] - impact_groups: ["people experiencing homelessness and substance use disorders","residents reliant on local policing and emergency services"]

searchable_tags: ["police-abuse-of-power","Oroville","decertification","hospital-transport","enloe-medical-center"]

salience: {"overall":0.80,"overall_justification":"Allegation of deliberate misconduct that allegedly led to life‑altering injuries and a multi‑million dollar settlement","impact_scope":"local","impact_scope_justification":"Directly affects Oroville policing and public trust","attention_level":"high","attention_level_justification":"Serious injuries and large civil settlement increase public interest","legal_significance":0.85,"legal_significance_justification":"Potential for decertification and civil liability implications"},

meeting_context: {"engagement_level":{"speakers_count":10,"duration_minutes":150,"items_count":2},"implementation_risk":"high","history":[{"date":"2022-09-01","note":"Incident date"},{"date":"post-incident","note":"City settled federal lawsuit for $3,000,000"}]}

provenance:{},

engagement_forecast:{"newsworthiness":{"national":0.05,"regional":0.45,"local":0.95,"justification":"High local and regional interest due to severe injuries and large settlement"},"notify_recommendation":{"audience":"city","reason":"Significant local public-safety implications and civil settlement","audience_regions":["US-CA-BUTTE","US-CA-OROVILLE"],"justification":"Local civic leaders, legal reporters and victim‑advocacy groups should be notified"},"notify_thresholds":{"local_min":0.6,"regional_min":0.8,"national_min":0.95},"predicted_interest":{"national":0.06,"regional":0.5,"local":0.95,"justification":"Large settlement and alleged abuse elevate regional interest"},"predicted_click_through":0.22,"predicted_click_through_justification":"High local relevance and strong emotional salience","predicted_read_time_minutes":5.5,"predicted_read_time_minutes_justification":"Longer article due to detailed timeline and injuries","predicted_shares":120,"predicted_shares_justification":"Likely to be shared widely in local/regional circles"},

graph_signals:{"jurisdictions":["US-CA-BUTTE","US-CA-OROVILLE"],"jurisdictions_justification":"Oroville and surrounding area","ontology_topics":["abuse_of_power","police_accountability","medical_transport"],"ontology_topics_justification":"Directly matches case facts","entities":[{"id":"person:robert_sasek","name":"Robert Sasek","type":"person"},{"id":"agency:oroville_pd","name":"Oroville Police Department","type":"agency"}],"events":[{"id":"event:2022-09-01_neilrd_dropoff","name":"Neil Road dropoff","date":"2022-09-01"}]}