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Residents press police commission on auto burglaries, tasers and homelessness
Summary
During public comment, residents and advocates linked rising theft and robberies in tourist corridors to poverty and homelessness and debated the department’s proposed use of CEDs/tasers; speakers offered both personal accounts and policy arguments, and commissioners pledged follow‑up.
An extended public‑comment segment of the Police Commission meeting brought sharply divergent views on electroshock devices (CEDs, commonly called Tasers), rising auto burglaries and the role of poverty and homelessness in local crime.
"My people in this area are starving," said Ashley Bell of the Young Women’s Freedom Center, describing economic precarity in SoMa and the Tenderloin as a root cause of some robberies and thefts. Residents from the Crooked/Lombard Street area and longtime neighborhood witnesses described brazen daytime auto burglaries and asked what happens to suspects after arrest.
Several commenters urged caution or outright rejection of CEDs. Tony Robles said, "these tasers are very dangerous," and raised concerns about risks to seniors and people with disabilities and disproportionate impacts on people of color. Others spoke for limited use: Bridal Sandberg said she supports CEDs because they can be a safer alternative in encounters with people experiencing mental‑health crises.
Richard Heckler, a former assistant district attorney, urged faster, more compassionate responses to property crime victims and suggested operational changes to improve victim services. Multiple speakers asked the commission and the department to explain post‑arrest prosecution outcomes, arguing that visible reoffending suggests system gaps between arrest and punishment.
Commissioners acknowledged the comments and asked Captain Paul Yip and Chief Scott to provide more information about case follow‑through with the District Attorney’s office. The commission also heard disagreements about meeting procedure and the timing of public comment; a speaker raised a potential Sunshine Ordinance concern about combining comment times.
The public comment portion concluded with requests for greater outreach into neighborhoods most affected by policing decisions and for transparent data on outcomes after arrest.
