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CITY COUNCIL 12 AUGUST 19, 2025 <br />Mayor Amezcua requested clarification regarding incidents where equipment was <br />deployed and categorized as a force option in the report, whether the department <br />had received any community complaints or noted any loss of life related to the use <br />of equipment, and under what circumstances an armored vehic le could be <br />deployed. She echoed Councilmember Lopez’s comments regarding accessibility <br />for future community meetings and requested translators be available in Spanish <br />and Vietnamese. She spoke in support of the item and thanked the Santa Ana <br />Police Department for their service. <br /> <br />Commander Sorenson clarified the data is based on deployment versus <br />employment, such as incidents where rifles were removed from vehicles or <br />deployed during a SWAT call but not used as a force option. He confirmed the <br />department had not received any community complaints and there had been no <br />loss of life due to the equipment. He provided an example of using a high -speed <br /> <br />pursuit intervention to block an individual and safely end ing the pursuit without <br />endangering the community. <br /> <br />Councilmember Lopez requested clarification regarding the most recent report <br />covering May 2024 to April 2025 and not including data from the month of May, <br />while previous reports (May 2023–May 2023 and May 2023–May 2024) did. She <br />asked why the reported cost of military equipment has remained the same each <br />year in the data. <br /> <br />Commander Sorenson stated there was a misprint in the report and clarified the <br />data covers the periods of May 1, 2022 – May 1, 2023; May 1, 2023 – April 30, <br />2024; and May 1, 2024 – April 30, 2025. He explained when the report was printed, <br />“April” was listed instead of “May,” and confirmed the data reflects the full month of <br />April, not May. He noted that future reports should display the periods as May 1 – <br />April 30, explained annual costs, and stated the department has not ordered any <br />new military equipment. <br /> <br />Mayor Pro Tem Vazquez stated the City should prioritize investing in youth <br />programs and community sports rather than the police department and its <br />equipment. <br /> <br />MOTION: Councilmember Phan moved to approve the recommended action <br />for Item No. 10, seconded by Councilmember Bacerra. <br /> <br />The motion carried, 4-3, by the following roll call vote: <br /> <br /> <br />AYES: <br /> <br />NOES: <br /> <br />ABSTAIN: <br />ABSENT: <br />COUNCILMEMBER BACERRA, COUNCILMEMBER <br />PENALOZA, COUNCILMEMBER PHAN, MAYOR AMEZCUA <br />COUNCILMEMBER HERNANDEZ, COUNCILMEMBER <br />LOPEZ, MAYOR PRO TEM VAZQUEZ <br />NONE <br />NONE   <br />  <br />City Council 5 – 12 9/16/2025