Jacaranda season in full bloom at City Hall, casting a lavender glow over the Main Street Mall between 9th and University. (Councilmember Philip Falcone)
Monday Gazette: June 2, 2025
Hello Riverside, and Happy Monday! June snuck in on a Sunday, which makes today feel like the real start of the month. Whether you're easing into summer plans or just trying to get back in the groove, we’re glad to be part of your inbox. Let’s make it a good week, together.
Community Police Review Commission Files RIPA Report Amid Concerns Over Racial Disparities
The latest traffic stop data reveals persistent disparities, with Black drivers stopped at more than double their population share. Commissioners called for further review, but formal discussion is still pending.
The Community Police Review Commission received a report revealing racial disparities in traffic stops made by Riverside police in 2022 and 2023.
Driving the news: Hispanic and Black individuals were stopped at rates higher than their population representation, while stops involving white individuals declined.
The data, collected under the Racial and Identity Profiling Act (RIPA), aims to prevent bias-based policing and promote transparency.
By the numbers: Hispanic or Latino individuals, comprising 55% of the population, accounted for 48% of stops in 2022 and 52% in 2023.
Black or African American individuals, representing 6% of the population, were stopped 14% of the time in 2022 and 13% in 2023.
What's next: The commission will examine the data further and make recommendations to address the concerning figures.
Commissioner Jeffery Ward suggested discussing the standout numbers, but no specific date was set for this conversation.
The bottom line: The report highlights ongoing disparities in law enforcement practices, raising questions about equitable policing in Riverside.
City Council does not meet this week. Board reviews of the City's Code of Ethics and Conduct and potential revisions to boards' and commissions’ structure and rules will be considered.
Welcome to our weekly digest on public meetings and agenda items worthy of your attention in the coming week. This guide is part of our mission to provide everyday Riversiders like you with the information needed to speak up on the issues you care about.
The Planning Commission meets Thursday, June 5, at 9 a.m. (agenda) to review a planned residential development that would transform 3.59 acres with two existing homes into a neighborhood of 22 single-family houses.
Opinion: Riverside County’s Mental Health Crisis Meets a Turning Point — Thanks to You
With voter-approved Proposition 1 funding, Riverside County is set to dramatically expand its mental health infrastructure—offering long-overdue care for children, teens, and adults, and marking a major shift in how the region addresses behavioral health.
For decades, lack of accessible mental health care has loomed over California like a slow-moving storm. Accelerated by the pandemic, the cracks in our behavioral health system widened into chasms, deepening a crisis that has spilled onto our streets, into our jails, and overwhelmed our emergency departments.
The result? A heartbreaking cycle of suffering. People in acute mental distress are too often left without options—languishing in places that were never designed to provide proper care. Jails, sidewalks and ERs have become de facto psychiatric wards. It’s a system that fails everyone: patients, families, first responders and the broader community.
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