Council proclaims June PTSD awareness month; public commenters demand action on alleged deputy misconduct

The Imperial Beach City Council unanimously adopted a proclamation Wednesday declaring June as Post‑Traumatic Stress Disorder Awareness Month and encouraging support for people living with PTSD.

Council member Jack Fisher read the proclamation and moved its adoption; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously.

The proclamation text, read into the record, described PTSD as a condition that can follow exposure to traumatic events and included statistics cited in the proclamation: it said PTSD affects “approximately 8,000,000 adults in The United States annually” and referenced the National Center for PTSD’s estimate that “about 6 out of every 100 people” will have PTSD at some point in their lives.

Several members of the public used the council’s public‑comment period to connect the proclamation to local concerns and to describe personal and community experiences with trauma. Danielle Richardson, a physician, told the council she found research linking law enforcement encounters to increases in self‑harm and suicidal ideation among youth and said local policing incidents can be a source of lasting trauma. She urged the council and local leaders to “help us prevent PTSD caused by city employees” and to take visible steps to support healing.

Former law‑enforcement officer Ronald Schwab addressed first‑responder mental health and suicide risk, saying suicides among first responders are elevated and arguing the stigma around PTSD should be removed.

Other public commenters made specific allegations about conduct by a sheriff’s sergeant. Lauren Gahl described an incident she said occurred on May 13 in which she said Sergeant Marcus Collins entered a resident’s property, detained a woman on her porch and “slammed her to the ground,” then arrested the couple; Gahl said the incident was captured on a doorbell camera and that the charges were false. Gahl also referred to an earlier civil case she said involved Collins and the death of a man named Lucky Fonci; she urged the council to “demand the immediate removal of Sergeant Marcus Collins from the Imperial Beach substation,” to condemn the conduct and to request release of body‑worn camera footage and arrest reports. Those are allegations from a member of the public; the council did not take any formal action on personnel or law‑enforcement oversight during the meeting.

Ismena Mejia, speaking for South Bay Community Services (SBCS), thanked the council for recognizing PTSD Awareness Month and summarized SBCS’s work providing mental‑health and trauma supports in the South Bay.

The proclamation was presented and the council invited SBCS representatives to receive the document and a photograph with council members. No council motion concerning the allegations discussed in public comment was recorded during the meeting.