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BART General Manager Bob Powers has announced the hiring of Kevin Franklin as Chief of Police and tasked him with marshaling every available resource to bolster the BART Police Department’s visible safety presence in the system and maximizing recruiting efforts to fill vacant officer positions. The selection of Chief Franklin is the result of a thorough, nationwide search process involving a collaboration between BART, the Police Citizen Review Board, and BART’s Independent Police Auditor.  Watch the Chief's introductory news conference.

Franklin was appointed interim BPD Chief in May and quickly established his commitment to ensuring BART is the safest way to travel around the Bay Area. 

“Chief Franklin is a life-long BART rider with an intimate knowledge of the system and its police department,” said General Manager Bob Powers. “Kevin was instrumental in BPD’s new deployment strategy that has significantly increased the presence of uniformed police personnel on trains and in stations. He is not only detail-oriented, but a creative thinker with a deep commitment to our community. I am confident his leadership will help BART continue to improve the safety of our riders.”

Recent BPD accomplishments for rider safety spearheaded by Franklin include:

• 349 felony arrests through July, the highest year-to-date total since the pandemic.
• Average response times to Priority 1 calls at approximately 4 minutes, among the fastest in the Bay Area.
• Working with the BART Board to ensure BPD is offering competitive salaries to attract qualified officer candidates.
• Earned advanced certification from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), ensuring BPD is meeting and exceeding the industry’s highest standards.

Chief Franklin will join General Manager Powers during an upcoming Safe and Clean Plan Listening Tour at BART stations to meet with riders and get feedback about BART’s efforts to regain ridership and provide the best service yet. 

“A clean, safe, rider-focused BART is critical to the Bay Area economy and to the hundreds of thousands in our community who rely on our service every day,” said Franklin. “Ensuring all our riders feel secure will be my first and last priority as Chief. I’m proud of the community-oriented policing strategies we are deploying, and I know we can do even better. The crises of addiction and mental health are bigger than any single agency, but BART PD is already implementing innovative alternative strategies to address these tremendous challenges. I’m going to keep rolling up my sleeves to make sure we are leading the way forward in support of a healthier, safer Bay Area.”

Chief Franklin is a 27-year veteran of the BPD, an Oakland native, and an East Bay resident. He began his law enforcement career at the Oakland Police Department where he served as a Police Cadet and Police Officer before transferring to the BART Police Department in 1996.

Chief Franklin’s BPD career includes serving as interim Chief since May, Deputy Chief of both the Operations and Support Services bureaus, leading BPD’s Internal Affairs division, serving as Manager of Security Programs as well as extensive patrol experience as he worked his way up the chain of command after starting as a Police Officer.

A University of California, Berkeley graduate, Chief Franklin also holds a Master of Science degree in Criminal Justice from California Coast University and has graduated from the FBI National Academy and the Police Executive Research Forum Senior Management Institute for Police. 

Chief Franklin has had a connection to BART from its very first day of service. As a three-year-old toddler, he and his family attended the opening day of the regional transit system on Sept. 11, 1972, taking the train from Lake Merritt Station to Fremont Station and back.

Updated May 23, 2024

On Thursday, May 23, 2024, the BART Board of Directors appointed Melissa Hernandez to the seat representing District 5.

Hernandez is the first Latina to serve on the BART Board of Directors. District 5 lies in Alameda County and its boundaries currently include the cities/regions of Castro Valley, Cherryland, Dublin, Fairview, Hayward, Livermore, Pleasanton, and Sunol.

For the last eight years, Hernandez has served as a Dublin councilmember and is currently the city’s mayor. She has chaired three regional transit boards: the Livermore-Amador Valley Transit Authority (LAVTA), Tri Valley/San Joaquin Valley Regional Transportation Authority (Valley Link) and the Finance committee of the Alameda County Transportation Commission. 

“My vision is to keep public transportation working for everyone – and to keep BART reliable, affordable, and safe for everyone who rides,” said Hernandez, “By fostering dialogue with my colleagues, partnerships with state and Federal agencies and leaders, and championing equitable policies, I will strive to create a more inclusive and accessible transportation system that benefits everyone.”

“Melissa Hernandez is going to be able to walk into many of the rooms that we need to have leadership and representation, whether that’s in Sacramento or with the San Jose Extension,” said BART Board President Bevan Dufty. “Melissa has a tremendous set of experiences and is well known. Former Director John McPartland has been supportive of Melissa’s candidacy and that heartens me as well." 

The BART Board of Directors is comprised of nine elected officials from the nine BART districts. The District 5 seat became vacant on March 28, 2024, when John McPartland announced his immediate resignation from the BART Board. McPartland cited family matters as his reason for needing to step down. His current term was through December 6, 2024. 

Hernandez and two other individuals who submitted applications were interviewed by the Board at their May 9, 2024 regular meeting.

Hernandez will serve as the District 5 representative through the unexpired portion of the current term. If Hernandez wishes to continue serving on the Board of Directors after the current term expires, she will need to run for election to the seat in the general election to be held in November 2024. 

 Updated May 9, 2024.

The application period for the seat representing District 5 on the BART Board of Directors is now closed. The Board of Directors conducted interviews of the applicants on Thursday, May 9, 2024, at 9:00am at their board meeting. Watch the meeting.

The Board of Directors are expected to make an appointment at the May 23, 2024 Board meeting.

The following individuals submitted timely applications for the Board of Directors’ consideration:

1. Bruce Delevaux - View the submitted application. 
2. Melissa Hernandez - View the submitted application. 
3. Gabriel Rodrigues - View the submitted application.

Please contact the District Secretary with any questions via phone at (510) 464-6080 or email at [email protected]. 

Updated April 12, 2024

At the April 11, 2024 board meeting the BART Board of Directors approved a motion to move forward with filling the District 5 vacant seat using an appointment process. 

All interested applicants must complete and submit an application form and packet as outlined below. Application packets are due by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 25, 2024. The application materials outlined below must be submitted to the Office of the District Secretary via email at [email protected] or in person/via courier at BART Headquarters, 2150 Webster Street, Oakland, CA 94612. 

Failure to complete all parts of the application form or to submit all required application materials may result in rejection of the application. All finalists are subject to a background check prior to appointment.

The Application Packet Includes:

1. Application Form (download and fill it out)
2. Background Check Form (download and fill it out)
3. Cover Letter
4. Resume
5. Two (2) References

Please contact the District Secretary with any questions via phone at (510) 464-6080 or email at [email protected]. We encourage all applicants to monitor the District’s Board Agenda and Minutes webpage to view agendas for upcoming Board Meetings.

Visit the District 5 Vacancy page for information and updates.

Applicants must be a registered voter and resident of the geographical boundaries of District 5. Eligibility can be verified by contacting the Alameda County Registrar of Voters located at 1225 Fallon Street, Rm. G-1, Oakland, CA 94612 (phone: 510-272-6973). You may review district boundaries on the District Boundaries webpage.

The successful applicant will serve as the representative for District 5 through the unexpired portion of the current term, which expires on December 6, 2024. If the appointed applicant wishes to continue serving on the Board of Directors after the current term for the seat representing District 5 expires, they must run for election to the seat in the general election to be held on November 5, 2024. The term of service for all newly elected Board Members is four years. Information about elections is posted on the Director Elections webpage.

Regular meetings of the Board of Directors are generally held on the second and fourth Thursday of each month beginning at 9:00 a.m. Additionally, duties include service on Board Committees, representing BART on various external Boards and Committees, and attendance at special meetings and other meetings as required. Board members that meet attendance requirements receive a monthly stipend of approximately $2,026.91. Board Members are also eligible to receive medical, dental, vision, and other benefits. We've posted other helpful links and resources below. 

On March 28, 2024, John McPartland announced he is resigning from the BART Board effective immediately. McPartland cited family matters as his reason for needing to step down from his elected position. McPartland’s current term was through December 6, 2024.

McPartland has served on the Board since he was elected in November 2008. Before joining the Board, McPartland was a BART Safety Specialist and a retired Oakland Fire Department Battalion Fire Chief. 

BART Board President Bevan Dufty announced the resignation at today’s Board meeting and noted he will put an item on the agenda of the next Board meeting on April 11, 2024, to discuss next steps. 

Due to the vacancy, the Board may appoint a Director to the District 5 seat by majority vote by May 27, 2024. If the Board does not make an appointment by May 27, 2024, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors may make an appointment by June 27, 2024.

Typically, when there is a vacancy, the Board may also opt to call for a special election to fill the seat, however due to the timing of the November 2024 election, this is not a practical option.

If there is an appointed District 5 Director they will serve until the expiration of the current term, which is December 6, 2024. If the District 5 Director wishes to continue serving in the seat through the next four-year term, they will be required to run for election to the seat on November 5, 2024.

The person appointed to the seat must be a resident of District 5 which includes Dublin, Livermore, Pleasanton, and parts of Hayward and Unincorporated Alameda County. The BART stations include Castro Valley, Dublin/Pleasanton, Hayward, West Dublin/Pleasanton.

Questions related to next steps should be directed to BART Board President Bevan Dufty at [email protected].

This article was originally published March 28, 2024.