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Community and officers press for transparency, accountability in San Francisco police chief search
Summary
Commissioners reported five citywide outreach meetings and more than 700 survey responses but many community members said they missed notices and asked that the commission make the final three finalists public. Commissioners agreed to keep soliciting input and to provide a supplemental survey report.
President Loftus and the recruiting firm Ralph Anderson & Associates on Sept. 7 summarized a months-long public process to populate a national search for San Franciscos next police chief.
The firm said 776 community respondents and 365 department respondents completed surveys and that 61 people formally applied, including 17 current or former chiefs and 11 current or former SFPD staff. President Loftus said the commission expanded outreach to five community sessions and offered translated materials and an online survey to reach residents who could not attend.
The report distilled repeated priorities from both the public and officers: integrity, transparency and accountability; experience leading reform in a large, diverse department; strong community engagement; and training and mental-health expertise. Ralph Andersons executive summary and raw comment data were posted online and distributed to the commission.
But several speakers during public comment said the outreach had been insufficiently publicized and urged larger, well-advertised town halls in civic venues. Multiple community groups asked the commission to ask finalists for permission to release their names before the mayors appointment so voters could evaluate finalistsqualifications and judge legitimacy.
Commissioners said they would accept additional survey responses and directed staff to keep the survey open and deliver a supplemental report for any late submissions. They reiterated that the next steps are confidential resume review and that the commission will meet in closed session to determine which candidates to interview and ultimately forward three names to the mayor.
The recruiting firm reported the pool includes candidates from across the country and two international applicants. Commission members said they would consider additional anonymized demographic breakdowns of the applicant pool to show the range of experience represented without breaching confidentiality.
The commission scheduled resume review and candidate vetting in closed session next week; public comment and the body of community input will remain part of the public record as the commission proceeds.
