Berkeley's former police watchdog sues the city over his firing

(CN) — The former director of Berkeley’s police accountability office is suing the city and its mayor, claiming he was fired after trying to investigate officer misconduct and enforce the police department’s legal obligations.

Hansel Aguilar filed the complaint Friday in Alameda County Superior Court against the City of Berkeley and Mayor Adena Ishii, seeking damages for what he describes as a years-long campaign of obstruction that culminated in his termination earlier this year.

“This action arises from defendants, a municipality and its mayor, retaliating against plaintiff by improperly terminating his employment,” Aguilar says in the complaint.

Aguilar, a 38-year-old Afro-Honduran American, was hired following a national search in October 2022 to lead the Office of Police Accountability, a charter-established civilian oversight body independent of the city manager. He holds a doctorate in sociology and has more than a decade of police oversight experience.

He said in a written statement that his family immigrated from Honduras in search of accountable government and that those experiences shaped his commitment to civilian oversight work.

“Civilian oversight of police is one of the places where the rule of law meets the everyday lives of community members,” Aguilar said. “It is where the Constitution lives or dies in practice.”

Under his employment agreement, the city council was required to establish objective performance measures within his first three months on the job. Aguilar says no such measures were ever implemented.

For years, Aguilar requested evaluations. He says city officials repeatedly told him a consultant would eventually be retained to conduct them, but none ever was.

Tensions with the Berkeley Police Department surfaced early.

In April 2023, Aguilar sent a memorandum to a councilmember documenting what he described as the department’s failure to share records within charter-mandated timelines, identifying specific instances where delayed access was hampering active investigations.

Aguilar says then-acting Police Chief Jennifer Louis accused him in writing of “repeated fabrications and stretching of facts” and acting “intentionally to discredit the integrity of the department.”

A councilmember read those accusations aloud during a public council meeting the following month.

In June 2025, Aguilar’s office received a complaint concerning officers’ conduct during a sweep of an encampment of unhoused individuals, including claims officers violated department policy on public recording of law enforcement and infringed on a civilian’s constitutional rights.

After a July 2025 records request produced only partial compliance from the department, Aguilar issued an administrative subpoena the following month.

The subpoena triggered a legal dispute that remained unresolved when Aguilar was fired.

Aguilar says the city attorney’s office acknowledged a conflict existed between his office and the city over the subpoena and suggested outside counsel could be retained if funding allowed. Later court filings, however, took the position that Aguilar lacked authority to pursue enforcement without prior council approval, contradicting guidance he says he previously received.

“No city employee, officer, official or member of the Police Accountability Board shall attempt to interfere or undermine the work of the Director of Police Accountability,” Aguilar quoted from the city charter in the complaint.

Aguilar also accuses Ishii of limiting his public role.

When Aguilar tried to speak during public comment at council meetings on matters involving his office, Ishii told him it was inappropriate to do so, Aguilar says, even as Berkeley police officers were allowed to address the council on policing matters.

In October 2025, Aguilar placed council agenda items concerning his office’s investigative authority before the council in his capacity as a charter officer. He says councilmembers and the mayor responded with public criticism, characterizing him as being in constant opposition.

On Feb. 9, 2026, the city council voted in closed session to remove Aguilar without advance notice. His separation became final March 10.

Aguilar also says the city didn’t timely pay his accrued leave, and that his final check didn’t arrive until March 20.

He further claims a hiring freeze imposed on his office was applied in a discriminatory manner not used in other city departments, compromising the office’s ability to complete investigations within the 120-day deadline required under the city charter.

“This case is about more than my individual removal,” Aguilar said in a written statement. “It is also about whether independent oversight can function as intended when those charged with carrying it out raise difficult but necessary concerns.”

The lawsuit asserts five causes of action: whistleblower retaliation under California Labor Code section 1102.5, retaliation and discrimination under the Fair Employment and Housing Act, interference with California Family Rights Act protections, harassment and wrongful termination in violation of public policy. Aguilar also seeks punitive damages against Ishii individually.

Aguilar is represented by Richard L. Richardson of Siegal & Richardson LLP in Berkeley.

The City of Berkeley and Ishii’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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