Supervisor Fielder requests inquiry after police chase crash into parklet injured six

Supervisor Jackie Fielder, speaking during new business at the Feb. 11 San Francisco Board of Supervisors meeting, said a vehicle involved in a police chase crashed into a parklet on Super Bowl Sunday and injured six people, including a mother and a child. Fielder said she had been notified by Fire Chief Crispin at 3:50 a.m. and that the injured were transported to San Francisco General Hospital under a red code; she later reported the victims were expected to be OK.

Fielder said the chase began in the area of Stone's Town and continued to 20 Fourth Street in the Mission District, where the vehicle struck a parklet adjacent to a sports bar. "It is an absolute miracle no one was killed," she said, and said she had spoken with witnesses and observed multiple impacts, including a vehicle that had activated airbags outside McDonald's.

Fielder said she was filing a letter of inquiry addressed to SFPD Chief Bill Scott to request a fuller explanation of the incident and SFPD decision‑making. She listed specific questions she will ask: 1) The circumstances of the case and the top speed of the police vehicle(s) involved. 2) The existing SFPD policy regarding police chases and how officers are trained. 3) How this incident complied with SFPD policy and how it rose to the level of a vehicle pursuit. 4) SFPD protocol after a chase that leads to injuries or fatalities. 5) Who made the judgment call and based on what factors. 6) Whether other options (drones or alternatives) were available. 7) Accountability mechanisms when officers’ decisions injure innocent bystanders.

Fielder noted Proposition E, recently passed by voters, "expanded the criteria for vehicle pursuits" and said she wanted to better understand how the department is applying that policy in practice. She said the letter is intended "out of concern for the safety of our community" and to ensure SFPD is taking steps to avoid such incidents in the future.

What the board recorded Fielder submitted the letter of inquiry; the transcript records the questions she plans to pose to SFPD Chief Scott. No formal board vote on the inquiry was recorded during the Feb. 11 meeting.

Context The item follows a wider public debate about vehicle‑pursuit policies in San Francisco; Fielder cited historical chase data (2018–2023) that was read into the record: 150 reported police chases with 38 ending in collisions, and reference to a chase in June 2023 that resulted in a death. She said San Francisco's current pursuit policy "loosens restrictions" relative to practices in other major U.S. cities and referenced Prop E's expansion of pursuit criteria.

Next steps Supervisor Fielder will deliver the written letter of inquiry to SFPD Chief Bill Scott and the board will await SFPD's response and materials outlining the department's decision‑making and post‑pursuit protocols.