Consistent with the California Emergency Services Act (Govt. Code 8550 et seq.), section 6.08.070(A)(1) of the Garden Grove Municipal Code empowers the City Manager acting as the Director of Emergency Services to proclaim a local emergency if the City Council is not in session, and requires that the City Council shall take action to ratify the proclamation within seven days thereafter.

On May 25, 2020, George Floyd tragically died in Minneapolis, Minnesota, shortly following his arrest in which an officer of the Minneapolis Police Department kneeled on his neck to detain him during the arrest, and then did not respond to Mr. Floyd's requests for help when he stated that he could not breathe.  The death of Mr. Floyd gave rise to protests that unfortunately have turned to violence in many cases, including looting, and property damage in various metropolitan areas across the United States.  Protests in Los Angeles, its suburbs, and the City of Santa Ana have turned violent.  

Los Angeles County and the City of Los Angeles requested State assistance including the activation of the California National Guard due to the civil unrest, including arson, vandalism, looting, and destruction of public and private property the City and County of Los Angeles.  On May 30, 2020, Governor Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency in Los Angeles County and the City of Los Angeles and deployed the California National Guard to support response efforts in Los Angeles County and the City of Los Angeles.

On May 30, 2020, Garden Grove Police Officers were deployed in response to the request of the City of Santa Ana for mutual aid after several hundred protestors gathered in Santa Ana with some throwing rocks, bottles and mortars and igniting fireworks in the direction of police officers, and thereafter vandalized and looted public and private properties during the civil unrest.  The Cities of Long Beach and Santa Monica experienced similar civil unrest on May 31, 2020.

A protest was announced for Garden Grove City Hall on June 3, 2020, and if the conditions of civil unrest are manifested in the City, they could spin beyond the control of the City's personnel, equipment and facilities.  Consequently, the City Manager/Director of Emergency Services proclaimed the local emergency and established a curfew from 6:00 p.m. on June 2 to 5:00 a.m. on June 3; and from 6:00 p.m. on June 3 to 5:00 a.m. on June 4.  The curfew prohibited all persons from any public street, sidewalk, avenue, boulevard, place, alley, or park in the City.  Public safety employees, members of the media, and individuals traveling to and from work, seeking or providing emergency medical care, fleeing dangerous circumstances or homeless were exempt from the curfew.

The curfew was intended to protect the constitutional rights of the community to peaceably assemble and protest, while ensuring the safety of the public, public safety personnel, and public and private property.  It is important to note that City Hall is bounded mostly by residential neighborhoods and public schools.

It is recommended that the City Council:

• Adopt the attached Resolution ratifying the City Manager/Director of Emergency Services' proclamation declaring the existence of a local emergency and curfew.