Benicia Police Chief Erik Upson issued an apology on behalf of the Benicia Police Department for a poem detailing a recent arrest that was posted on the department’s Facebook page.
On Dec. 29, the Benicia Police Department posted a poem inspired by “A Visit from St. Nicholas” in response to the arrest of a man accused of attempting to pry open the pharmacy area of Rite Aid with a hammer.
“’Twas the night before Christmas in Benicia’s Solano Square,” the post read. “A burglar was prowling, and with reckless care.”
The suspect apprehended was 39-year-old resident Brian Dodson, who was accused of breaking into the pharmacy around 2:30 a.m. that morning, eating ice cream from behind the counter and attempting to go into the pharmacy. According to police, Dodson was taken into custody and admitted to entering the store. He was arrested for burglary and being in possession of burglary tools. As the poem described it, he received a “one way sleigh ride” to the Solano County Jail.
In its initial post, some found the poem humorous, including one who wrote “That was a cool poem, how long did it take to write it? Oh, never mind, I’ve gone ahead already and LIKED IT.” However, those who knew Dodson said he had been going through mental health struggles and found the tone of the post to be insensitive.
“Mental illness is NOT a joke,” one commenter wrote. “It’s not okay to laugh at a person who needs to be assisted/given medical treatment rather than being riduculed (sic).”
Others felt the department’s post was unprofessional and that it could be construed as public shaming. This sparked a debate on the ethics over publishing suspect’s first and last names in social media posts. At press time, the post had received 283 comments, 58 shares and 763 “reactions” of all varieties.
A change.org petition directed to Mayor Elizabeth Patterson and the Benicia City Council was started by Robin Horca, a friend of Dodson’s, to express the anger some community members felt about the post and stress possible social media guideline changes for the Benicia Police Department.
“The Benicia Police Department has adopted an embarrassing policy of cyberbullying Benicia residents via their Facebook page,” the petition read. “The posts on this page include the names of those who have been charged with crimes, and result in both the accused and their families being put through ‘trial by social media’ before anyone has even been convicted. This behavior needs to end. Innocent children in the Benicia community should not have their family troubles spewed all over social media by a police department that should be protecting them from such bullying.”
As of press time, the petition has received nearly 300 signatures.
The department initially responded to the negative comments by noting they never meant to post anything with ill intent and suggested they would refer Dodson to additional resources if he chose to do so. The post was rewritten to drop the poetic narrative and just state the facts. Upson issued an apology on Jan. 2, noting that the post was an attempt to “inject some seasonal levity into a serious situation” but acknowledged the community’s concerns.
“Our relationship with the community we serve is important to us and it was certainly not our intent to insult anyone,” he wrote. “We apologize to all who felt insulted or were offended.”
Upson noted the department would be more thoughtful about future posts.
“We are doing some great things on Facebook to help advance our efforts to open communication with our amazing community,” he wrote. “We acknowledge that we missed the mark in this case and commit to doing better in the future.”
According to the petition, some community members are planning to address the City Council at its upcoming meetings.
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I fully support our Benicia Police Dept. It seems to be OK for a councilmember without giving a name of talking about two prominent residents drinking on First Street during the cannabis discussions on Dec.19, 2017. I see no apology from Councilmember Schwartzman. Seems we have two standards. I fully except the apology from the Police Department and will continue my full support of the Chief and his wonderful staff.. Happy New Year. Still waiting for an apology from Councilmember Schwartzman.
If we did not have a pharmacy in town, this whole situation could have been avoided.
If he did not break in he would have not got caught
If it was not there, he would not have broken in.
It is important to note that Benicia is a very small town, and Mr. Dodson has children in Benicia schools who may be facing negative social consequences as the result of this poem. It is also important to note that Mr. Dodson has not been convicted in a court of law, and this poem undermines the justice system and has the capacity to bias a jury with a presumption of guilt.
Additionally, as of the time of this post, the Benicia Police Department has only issued an apology to its Facebook followers who were “offended or insulted”. No apology has been made to the family directly.
If you would like to view and sign the petition that has been started, it is available here:
https://www.change.org/p/elizabeth-patterson-benicia-police-department-stop-bullying-benicia-families-on-facebook?recruiter=37735758&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink&utm_campaign=share_petition
Robin I do understand your position. I also believe the very fine police department will act and correct any issues. But at the same time we must also understand that bullying goes on at the highest level of our city council. I was bullied by the mayor and some local commenters on the Benicia Herald on-line. All made incorrect statements about me and my time allotment on speaking. All said I went over the time and were not very nice. The big issue was I did not go over my time and was cut off by the mayor. It went viral on Benicia Happenings and the mayor was very heavily criticized. I requested on-line an apology from the two folks that made incorrect comments about me. I did get one and thanked and excepted that apology. ,The other commenter ignored my request. The Mayor did send me a very minor statement saying that I did not go over my time. So as you see I was publicly criticized for something I did not do. I have family in this town also. It appears no one cared about them. No one stood up for me when the two went on line and made public false statements. The mayor has only made a comment to me. No public comment on her behavior. Councilmember Schwartzman made a comment at the December 19,2017 council meeting. It was about a very prominent couple who are out and about and are seen on First Street indulging in adult beverages. Yes he did not name them. But his comment was way over the top with no apology. Also he and mayor had a chuckle about a comment that I made early that same evening. No apology from either. The mayor sent out her thirty day civility calendar for December. Did she follow it? If we are going to go after one group we must go after all groups. The City Council and the Mayor are not immune. No one in this city cared about my family when I was publicly attacked. Robin I think you would. Thank you.
Talk about confused. Bob, this is not about you. You are drowning in conceit and vanity. LOL!!!
It is about being responsible and fare. The mayor and council are not exempt. I speak the facts and that is very confusing to you Thomas.
You have taken it completely off the the topic of the column and made it about you and your petty vendettas. Not really surprised that you don’t recognize that.
I consider your comment an attempt at bullying. You do it all the time.
You are the primary bully on this site. It is all you do.
Thomas,
Yes, thank you; and, bullying of those who don’t share his views makes useful dialogue impossible in this format.
Thomas is wrong. Just follow his comments about me. This goes back a long ways. He attacks me many times. Sorry Jane Thomas is the bully.
Sorry, Bob. I’m not wrong. I wondered how long it would take for you to dredge up your highly distorted view of the past. It is what you do when you have nothing.
Yes it was about me. But I had to use a comparison to be sure folks understood this whole issue. It is not about me it is about civility and respect for others. It happens in this city all the time. Many are guilty.
Bob, as Kris Kristofferson said to Sinead O’Conner; “Don’t let the bastards get you down”.
What you are dealing with is both a classic example of projection and victimization.
Truth is there is a large segment of people who seek to stifle the opinions of others. These people usually call themselves ‘open-minded’ and they do not see in themselves exactly that which they are guilty of themselves. If they do see it, they simply do not care and apply the usual double standard.
Thank you Dennis.
Dennis Lund, Bob says posters who hide behind initials and partial names are cowards. Did you know that?
Since you know who I am, I am not really hiding, am I?
Quite the social justice warrior. Nobody needs you to explain things to them, Bob. I think the vast reading public would agree. In the meantime, keep on playing the victim. Poor guy.
I don’t want to have to lock this comment section since this is a much-discussed issue in the community, so I would just kindly suggest that everyone please return to the topic at hand. If you have nothing else to say about the post, please move on. Thank you. -Ed
Well said. I will follow your guidance. Thank you.
BPD has been playing their social media game for a while now, and it’s pretty embarrassing to have the department flaunt unprofessionalism. A clever attorney could likely use their public postings of arrests, alongside their opinions they leave in the comments, to dismiss juries of Benicians (biased juries) discredit reports (technical inconsistencies) and generally be a disruption to the legal system.