BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: acr 146
SENATOR ALAN LOWENTHAL, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: hayashi
VERSION: 3/16/10
Analysis by: Jennifer Gress FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: June 22, 2010
SUBJECT:
Sergeant Mark Dunakin, Sergeant Ervin Romans, and Officer John
Hege Memorial Bridge
DESCRIPTION:
This resolution designates the Keller Avenue Bridge in the City
of Oakland as the "Sergeant Mark Dunakin, Sergeant Ervin Romans,
and Officer John Hege Memorial Bridge."
ANALYSIS:
The committee has adopted a policy regarding the naming of state
highways or structures. Under the policy, the committee will
consider only those resolutions that meet all of the following
criteria:
The person being honored must have provided extraordinary
public service or some exemplary contribution to the public
good and have a connection to the community where the highway
is located.
The person being honored must be deceased.
The naming must be done without cost to the state. Costs for
signs and plaques must be paid by local or private sources.
The author or co-author of the resolution must represent the
district in which the facility is located and the resolution
must identify the specific highway segment or structure being
named.
The segment of highway being named must not exceed five miles
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in length.
The proposed designation must reflect a community consensus
and be without local opposition.
The proposed designation may not supersede an existing
designation unless the sponsor can document that a good faith
effort has uncovered no opposition to rescinding the prior
designation.
This resolution :
Designates the Keller Avenue Bridge that cross State Highway
Route 580 in the City of Oakland as the "Sergeant Mark
Dunakin, Sergeant Ervin Romans, and Officer John Hege Memorial
Bridge."
Requests the California Department of Transportation
(Caltrans) to determine the cost of erecting appropriate
signs, consistent with the signing requirements for the state
highway system, and, upon receiving donations from nonstate
sources sufficient to cover that cost, to erect those signs.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The purpose of this resolution is to honor the
memory of Sergeant Mark Dunakin, Sergeant Ervin Romans, and
Officer John Hege, officers with the Oakland Police Department
who were killed in the line of duty on March 21, 2009.
2.Background on the officers . Sergeant Mark Dunakin, Sergeant
Ervin Romans, and Officer John Hege proudly served the Oakland
Police Department for 18 years, 13 years, and 10 years,
respectively.
Sergeant Dunakin began his career with the Oakland Police
Department in May 1991. During his career, he was assigned to
several units, including the Patrol Division, the Crime
Prevention Unit, the Robbery Section, and the Homicide Unit.
In 1999, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant of Police.
While serving in the Homicide Unit, Sergeant Dunakin acted as
one of the lead investigators of the "Nut Cases" gang, a group
that terrorized Oakland in a 10-week crime wave in 2002 and
2003. His tireless work paid off when the gang was
successfully arrested.
ACR 146 (HAYASHI) Page 3
Sergeant Dunakin lived in Tracy with his wife, Angela, and
three children.
Sergeant Ervin Romans started his career with the Oakland
Police Department in 1996. In 1999, he received the Medal of
Valor, the department's highest honor, for evacuating
endangered residents from a fire in West Oakland. Sergeant
Romans' expertise and attention to detail served the City of
Oakland well when he become a Departmental Range Master, a
position in which he trained hundreds of officers in the
ethical and proper use of firearms and less lethal weapons.
In 2005, Sergeant Romans was promoted to the rank of Sergeant
of Police. As a sergeant, he supervised one of Oakland's
crime reduction teams and served as the entry team leader on
the department's Tactical Operations Team.
Sergeant Romans was a father of six. He lived with his wife
and two of his children in Danville.
Officer John Hege started his career with the Oakland Police
Department as a volunteer reserve police officer in 1993. He
was hired as a full-time police officer in 1999. Upon
graduating from the Oakland Police Academy, he was assigned to
the Bureau of Field Operations. After patrolling the streets
of Oakland for 10 years, Officer Hege fulfilled a lifelong
dream when he was transferred to the Traffic Operations
Section and assigned as a motorcycle officer. Officer Hege
gave his heart, soul, and a seemingly limitless amount of time
to the Oakland Police Department, yet he always made time for
his family and friends.
On March 21, 2009, Sergeant Dunakin was shot and killed and
Officer Hege was mortally wounded during a traffic stop.
Efforts to apprehend the suspect resulted in the death of
Sergeant Romans.
3.Consistent with committee policy . This resolution is
consistent with all of the provisions of the committee's
policy on highway designations.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 71-0
Appr: 16-0
Trans: 13-0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
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Wednesday,
June 16, 2010)
SUPPORT: None received.
OPPOSED: None received.