SFPD’s 2024 AB 481 report details inventory of tactical equipment and proposed purchases; committee forwards report to full board

The San Francisco Police Department presented its 2024 AB 481 annual equipment report to the Government Audit and Oversight Committee on July 17, detailing the department’s inventory, deployments and planned acquisitions for items governed by state law requiring public reporting.

Captain James Ahearn, who supervises SFPD’s Tactical Unit, and Commander McGuire briefed the committee on the department’s holdings, past-year use and planned purchases. The presentation covered remotely piloted ground vehicles, an armored “Bearcat” command vehicle, breaching tools, “flashbang” diversionary devices, long‑range acoustic devices (LRADs), projectile launchers and an expanded drone fleet.

Key details from the report and testimony - Unmanned remotely piloted ground vehicles: SFPD reported 17 ground robots, with “throw bots” deployed 40 times in 2024 for high‑risk tactical operations and search-warrant service. Maintenance for the robots was reported at a minimal line-item cost in the slides. (Captain Ahearn) - Armored vehicle / Bearcat: SFPD reported a single Lenco Bearcat currently used for high‑risk tactical operations; the unit said it was deployed 42 times in 2024 and is at the end of its service life. The department said a replacement Bearcat could cost about $350,000 and would be purchased only if “fiscally possible.” (Captain Ahearn) - Flashbangs and PepperBall: SFPD reported it holds about 150 flashbangs and over 2,500 PepperBall rounds. Flashbangs were used 38 times in 2024; PepperBall systems six times. The department reported non‑life‑threatening injuries to suspects in some deployments and said all uses were reviewed and found consistent with department policy. - Projectile launchers and munitions: SFPD reported 90 40mm launchers used 58 times in 2024 for critical incidents, tactical operations and warrant services. The total cost identified for that category in 2024 was about $74,095. (Captain Ahearn) - Drones (unmanned aerial vehicles): The department said it maintains 63 drones and leases seven more. Drones were flown roughly 350 times in 2024 for criminal investigations, critical incidents, planned operations and training. Flight logs are publicly available, the department said, and SFPD told supervisors it does not deploy drones to monitor peaceful First Amendment activity. The department seeks to acquire 24 additional drones in 2025; 2024 maintenance/purchase costs were reported at $428,997.08. (Captain Ahearn, Commander McGuire) - LRAD/long‑range acoustic devices (loudspeaker systems): SFPD said it deployed LRADs 37 times in 2024 (primarily for public-address or crowd‑management announcements during tactical operations) and plans to acquire one more unit at a reported cost of about $18,098.

Supervisors’ questions and concerns Supervisors pressed SFPD on frequency and justification for certain equipment: why replace an aging Bearcat when it is used about once per week; whether LRADs are necessary for demonstrations; whether drones were deployed for traffic enforcement or sideshow events and how that decisions intersect with First Amendment activities.

Commander McGuire said drones are not deployed for routine peaceful protests and are launched only when criminal activity is in progress and the drone could help address the crime. For “sideshow” or large traffic demonstrations, McGuire said drones can be used if criminal acts are occurring.

Supervisor Steven Sherrill asked whether the department records “drawn, exhibited or pointed” events for semiautomatic rifles; SFPD answered that the published count tracks and reports actual firing and deployment of munitions, while drawn/exhibited incidents are not systematically tracked for some weapon categories.

Public comment and oversight Members of the public criticized SFPD’s recordkeeping and urged better transparency on when weapons are drawn or exhibited and on uses in crowd-control settings. Commenters asked the committee to seek records and more explicit policies about the safety and oversight of nonlethal munitions and drone deployments.

Committee action After public comment the committee voted 3–0 to forward the 2024 AB 481 report to the full Board of Supervisors with a positive recommendation.

What to watch next Supervisors asked the department to provide further detail on logs and after-action reviews and to clarify the department’s thresholds for deploying drones near protests. The committee signaled it may pursue additional follow‑up or targeted oversight based on those records.