Police Commission backs charter change to require OCC investigations of officer-involved shootings

The San Francisco Police Commission on Feb. 17 voted unanimously to support a proposed charter amendment that would require the Office of Citizen Complaints (OCC) to conduct an independent investigation into every officer-involved shooting that results in death or serious bodily injury.

Supervisor Malia Cohen, who introduced the measure, told the commission the amendment aims to "educate [voters] about the work that we're doing" and to ensure the OCC "perform an impartial and independent investigation anytime an officer discharges their weapon, and this is, whether it results in death or an injury of an individual." Cohen said the proposal aligns with recommendations from President Obama's Task Force on 21st Century Policing and is scheduled for the Board of Supervisors' rules committee before a full-board vote and, if approved, to voters in June.

Concerns at the meeting centered on the OCC's capacity. Commissioner Jane Wong asked whether the OCC had the staff and budget to meet the additional workload; Director Joyce Hicks said she will seek increased funding and noted that the OCC currently had not received complaints for many reported officer-involved shootings. "In the last five years, there were 35 reported SFPD officer-involved shootings, and yet the OCC only received eight complaints in those 35," Director Hicks said, citing her office's review of recent cases. Hicks and Cohen said they would press for budget increases as part of the measure's implementation.

Some public commenters asked for more detail about transparency, including whether officer names and investigative files would be released; Michael Petrellis also raised concerns about agenda posting and the Sunshine Ordinance. Commissioners acknowledged procedural questions about posting a written resolution during the meeting and temporarily voted on a verbal resolution. After callers and commissioners raised procedural objections, the commission rescinded the earlier voice vote and took a recorded roll call on a drafted motion to support the amendment and direct staff to draft and post a formal resolution. The final recorded vote was unanimous in favor.

The commission directed staff to draft the formal resolution reflecting support for Supervisor Cohen's proposed charter amendment, to post it publicly and to return for formal adoption at a subsequent meeting. The resolution would state that the OCC's current jurisdiction to investigate officer-involved shootings is contingent on a complaint and that the charter amendment would enable the OCC to begin investigations immediately in all SFPD shootings resulting in death or serious bodily injury.

Next steps: staff will draft and post the formal resolution for public review, and the Board of Supervisors will consider the city-sponsored charter amendment in its rules committee and on the board calendar prior to a potential June ballot placement.