Part two of a two-part article.
For the last two weeks, I’ve reported about police officer Brandon Nail’s controversial reinstatement to the San Rafael Police Department. But there’s a story behind that story, equally important, that hasn’t been told.
In a nutshell, the City of San Rafael and the San Rafael Police Department continually refuse to share information that might place them in a bad light. Never mind that the public’s right to know trumps the local government’s desire to avoid embarrassment.
The California Public Records Act (CPRA), legislation enacted in 1968 and recodified in 2023, says it a bit more eloquently: “In enacting this division, the Legislature, mindful of the right of individuals to privacy, finds and declares that access to information concerning the conduct of the people’s business is a fundamental and necessary right of every person in this state.”
Granted, there are valid exceptions. A local government shouldn’t jeopardize public safety by revealing certain information. Nor should it share an employee’s personal medical info.
It’s essential, however, for the public to monitor the government.
The Incident
On July 27, 2022, then-police officer Daisy Mazariegos stopped three men for drinking in public on Windward Way in the Canal area of San Rafael. Nail served as backup.
According to videos from police body-worn cameras, Nail yelled at one of the men, Julio Jimenez Lopez, to “Sit the fuck down.” Nail then used a leg sweep maneuver to trip Jimenez Lopez and take him to the ground. As he fell, Nail punched him in the face. Jimenez Lopez suffered a broken nose, concussion and a shoulder injury requiring surgery, according to medical records reviewed by the Pacific Sun and court testimony.
Secrets Abound
When then-supervisor Corporal Oscar O’Con arrived at the bloody scene, he asked to speak with Nail and Mazariegos and then turned off his body-worn camera during the conversation. What did they discuss that O’Con didn’t want captured on video?
The evening ended with Jimenez Lopez’s arrest. Reports from Nail and Mazariegos indicated that Jimenez Lopez struck Nail in the head, which is not seen in the videos. Jimenez Lopez is 5 feet tall and 130 pounds, while Nail stands at 6 feet two inches and 250 pounds, according to an arrest report.
On Aug. 2, the Marin County District Attorney filed felony and misdemeanor charges against Jimenez Lopez before reviewing the police videos. Three weeks later, an assistant DA looked at the videos and dropped the charges.
Surprisingly, San Rafael never informed the public about a use of force incident involving two of its police officers. This is from a city that preaches transparency and a police department that routinely sends out press releases highlighting its arrests.
Revelation
Outraged by the incident, Charles Dresow, a criminal defense attorney representing Jimenez Lopez, gave the police body-worn camera videos to KGO-TV reporter Dan Noyes and later to other media. Noyes ran the first story on Sept. 1, 2022, weeks after the use of force, arrest and subsequent dismissal of charges against Jimenez Lopez.
If not for Dresow, it’s unlikely the public would have seen the videos. San Rafael officials were undoubtedly unprepared for the strong reaction to the violent incident.
During protests, marches and lengthy city council meetings, angry residents demanded the termination and criminal prosecution of Nail and Mazariegos. The public also wanted to know why the city didn’t come forward with information about the incident—commenting only after the videos came out in the media.
More Secrets
San Rafael soon hired an independent investigator to investigate the incident. City attorney Rob Epstein had committed in public meetings that San Rafael would release the report to the public after he received it. But he broke his promise and refused to divulge the information. Public outcry was swift and loud.
Three entities filed legal actions against San Rafael, citing violating the California Public Records Act. In September 2023, a Marin Superior Court judge ordered the city to disclose the documents.
In the meantime, San Rafael police chief David Spiller had terminated both Nail and Mazariegos from the department, again without any announcements to the public.
Mazariegos, still on probation, was let go in May 2023, followed by Nail’s firing in June 2023. I received tips about both terminations—and each time I called the San Rafael PD for confirmation, they asked how I knew. The point is not how I knew. Why didn’t they reveal relevant information that is clearly of public interest before the media calls?
The city and police department also kept it under wraps when Nail requested binding arbitration to overturn his termination. I found out in March 2024, just before the start of the process. When I talked to Chief Spiller about it, he said, “You’re not supposed to know about this.”
Most Recent Secret
Apparently, I also wasn’t supposed to know that Nail had been reinstated to his position of police officer with the San Rafael PD on Dec. 21. Given the public’s keen interest in the entire incident, it certainly begs the question of why San Rafael kept his reinstatement a secret for weeks.
In fact, the city only revealed the information after the Pacific Sun learned about Nail’s return and contacted the police department on Jan. 7 for comment.
“Your call expedited the city’s statement,” police Lt. Scott Eberle said. “But we’d been working on a press release for weeks.”
Chief Spiller addressed the delay at a meeting of San Rafael’s Police Advisory and Accountability Committee on Jan. 11. The arbitrator issued his ruling on Dec. 16; however, Spiller said he received it on Dec. 21 while on vacation.
With all due respect to Spiller and Eberle, it doesn’t take almost three weeks to write and distribute a press release. The San Rafael Police Department routinely emails press releases to the media on the same day an incident occurs—mostly to boast about arresting a criminal suspect.
When I asked Eberle why the chief didn’t delegate the task of informing the public, he responded that it was Christmas week. Even if that is an appropriate reason—and I’m not sure it is—what prevented the department from telling the public during the two weeks after Christmas?
Absolutely nothing, in my opinion, except that the City of San Rafael and the police department have a pattern of secrecy. I wonder about all the important information that we will never know.
San Rafael, it appears, failed the transparency test again.
Yet to Come
The city has not disseminated much information about the federal civil lawsuit filed by Jimenez Lopez against San Rafael, the police department, Nail and Mazariegos. Based on Judge Vince Chhabria’s comments during last month’s hearing, the city might want to consider a crisis management plan.
“Because I think anybody who watches that video who knows anything about excessive force would say this was so outrageous. There was no justification for the officer attacking this person. It was clear from the get-go that the officer was looking for a fight, and he got a fight—he started a fight, and he—he attacked the guy,” Judge Chhabria said in the hearing.
There’s also Nail’s criminal prosecution in Marin County for the incident, with felony charges of assault and lying in a police report. The next court date is scheduled for Jan. 22.
