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Brentwood police report shows crime declines; public commenters demand accountability in Ramirez death
Summary
Interim Chief O'Gradnik reported a 20% overall crime reduction in 2025 and highlighted staffing and proactive policing gains. At public comment more than a dozen speakers demanded an inquest and accountability for Yolanda Ramirez’s September death, alleging delays and cover‑up.
Interim Police Chief O'Gradnik presented the Brentwood Police Department’s 2025 performance report, saying the department recorded a 20% decrease in overall crime with a 26.5% reduction in violent and property crimes and improved priority‑one response times.
The presentation covered response and dispatch times, a reported 17.7% increase in proactive policing activity in 2025, changes in reporting systems that affect clearance‑rate calculations, and current staffing levels: the department reported 10 sworn vacancies with laterals and trainees in the background or academy pipeline.
O'Gradnik also briefed Council on community engagement events and grants that support traffic safety and wellness programs, and noted that, following a change in local processing, concealed‑carry permit applications were processed by the department in 2025 (41 applications to December 2025; one approved, one denied).
The department’s report was followed by an extended public‑comment period dominated by calls for police accountability. Family members, activists and residents sharply criticized the department’s handling of the September death of Yolanda Ramirez, saying an independent autopsy concluded homicide by blunt force trauma and asphyxiation and urging the city attorney to seek a coroner’s inquest. Commenters alleged delays in releasing records and body‑camera footage and demanded that officers identified in the incident be removed from duty and prosecuted; some called for immediate officer suspension pending investigation.
Council did not take action on the allegations during the meeting. City staff acknowledged receipt of comments and reiterated that investigations and legal processes are underway.
The account of crime‑rate changes and the public's demands for transparency are separate items in the same meeting record: the department reported statistical improvements while community members pressed for specific accountability steps linked to a separate investigation.
