A fledgling group of retired law enforcement officers are questioning the validity of an assertion by the Manteca Peace Officers Association that they are no current or retired MPD officers in Manteca backing Lei Ann Larson for mayor.

In a press release this week the Retired Peace officers Association of Manteca (RPOA) stated, “MPOA made a press release that stated, ‘No current or retired Manteca police officer backs Larson for mayor’ as printed in the Manteca Bulletin on September 23, 2022. “

The retired officers release went on to say the RPOA found “it difficult to believe there is not a single active or retired MPD officer that would not support a third candidate Larson.”

The MPOA — that represents frontline police officers working for the Manteca Police Department — endorsed Gary Singh for mayor. The retired group formed by those who worked for other departments and reside in Manteca have backed Larson for mayor.

Incumbent Ben Cantu is the third candidate for mayor in the Nov. 8 election.

In their release, the retired group indicated their endorsement of Larson, among other reasons, stems from:

*Both Cantu and Singh were on the council when then City Manager Miranda Lutzow fired  Police Chief Jodie Estarziau without cause, which resulted in the City of Manteca paying her $750,000 in a settlement.
*Manteca has not added a single sworn officer to their head count of 76 since June 2020, leaving the Manteca Police Department  13 officers short of having a one officer per 1,000 residents staffing ratio.

*On June 3, 2020 Singh and Cantu “walked shoulder to shoulder” at a Manteca Black Lives Matter event three days after the national organizers were calling to “Defund the Police”.

*The policies and direction of the city led to the Grand Jury Report calling Manteca a “city in turmoil” with an “overall lack of leadership from the council” and “growing concern for the city finance”.

*Larson has demonstrated her abilities as a community activist with Mantecans4Change.

*Larson has sent countless correspondences to the city, council, city attorney, and mayor, and organized attendances of the community at city council meetings in hope of creating a positive change for Manteca.

*Larson has been involved with exposing numerous areas of concern within the community, such as Manteca having the lowest police staffing levels of any nearby city, her belief there is an under-reporting of crime,  and most recently the discovery that the existing temporary homeless shelter doesn’t have insurance coverage for overnight stays.

The press release also stated, that “unlike the MPOA, which has a financial interest representing active officers, the RPOA has no financial interest in this election. The only interest RPOA has is what is best for the community where we all are raising our families and the future generations of Mantecans.”

The RPOA can be contacted by Website: https://retiredpeaceoffice.wixsite.com/retired-peace-office or through email retiredpoliceofficersassociation@gmail.co