Supervisors probe staffing, policies and survivor support in SFPD Special Victims Unit

The Public Safety and Neighborhood Services Committee held a hearing May 8 on staffing levels and policies for the San Francisco Police Department’s Special Victims Unit (SVU), convened at the request of Supervisor Melgar and chaired by Supervisor Matt Dorsey. The hearing brought SFPD leadership, the mayor’s Office for Victim and Witness Rights, UCSF clinicians, legal services groups and survivors to the committee to describe how staffing and policy choices affect survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, elder abuse and related crimes.

Supervisor Melgar, who requested the hearing, told the committee that SVU staffing has fallen sharply: “Four years ago, there were 70 investigators in this unit. Today, there are 29,” she said, and framed the hearing as an effort to understand workload, policies and how to support investigators so they can prioritize cases and center survivors.

Ivy Lee, director of the mayor’s Office for Victim and Witness Rights, described the new office’s role as an ombuds and collaborator with direct‑service providers, and said the Family Violence Council’s multi‑year work identified SVU staffing and support as top priorities. Lee and advocates said the system responding to gender‑based violence and child abuse is an ecosystem of service providers, law enforcement and prosecutors; gaps in any part of that system can leave survivors without timely help.

Acting Deputy Chief Rachel Moran of SFPD’s Investigations Bureau and Acting Captain Dan Silver of SVU described SVU operations and the staffing pressures…