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Community groups press Police Commission over JTTF ties, nondisclosure and suspicious-activity reporting
Summary
Community organizations told the San Francisco Police Commission the SFPD's 2015 Joint Terrorism Task Force report omits critical details, and they urged the city to enforce local law, allow OCC access to interviews and disclose suspicious-activity reporting to avoid racial or religious profiling.
Lieutenant Daryl Fong presented the San Francisco Police Department's 2015 annual report on its participation with the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force, saying the department assigned one full-time SFPD member to the JTTF in 2015, that the officer's activities complied with Department General Order 8.1 and related bureau orders, and that the department found no violations of the local ordinance in calendar year 2015.
That presentation prompted sustained public comment from civil-rights advocates who said the report fails to address substantial community concerns. "The FBI MOU is inconsistent with San Francisco law and it's preventing the OCC from doing its job," said Nasreena Baragzi of Advancing Justice, urging the commission to ensure OCC investigators can interview officers before statute-of-limitations deadlines. "We filed our complaint in March. That's just two months from now," she said.
The report described the JTTF officer's duty as liaison and information-sharing, detailed security and event-planning assistance, and said the FBI conducts quarterly case reviews; Fong stated that the FBI had declined an invitation to attend the evening's presentation. He told commissioners the department stands by the accuracy of prior reports and that it is cooperating with the Office of Citizens' Complaints (OCC) on an open complaint. "There were no violations or possible violations of the ordinance in 2015," he said.
Advocacy groups including the Asian Law Caucus, Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Arab Resource and Organizing Center told the commission they have repeatedly sought transparency about SFPD'generated suspicious-activity reports (SARs) and about whether those reports are forwarded to the Northern California Regional Intelligence Center (NCRIC). "Suspicious activity reporting is currently the subject of a lawsuit," said Reem Sudeiman of the Asian Law Caucus, arguing that SARs rely on a vague standard and risk racial profiling. Lara Kiswani of AROC said the community 'which the ordinance was designed to protect 'experiences intimidation and surveillance tied to the JTTF relationship.
Commissioners pressed department staff to clarify the internal review process for alleged deviations from the Department General Order and asked whether the commission receives sufficient documentary detail when staff sign off on monthly reports. Commissioner De Jesus said the quarterly/summary reports can be "too conclusionary" and requested more substantive evidence. Department speakers said some details are limited by non-disclosure agreements tied to the FBI relationship; commissioners asked the City Attorney's office to advise on whether and how OCC and the commission can obtain more complete information without breaching federal agreements.
The commission committed to follow up with OCC leadership and to examine whether the JTTF report should be restructured to use the language of the local Department General Order when answering the commission's compliance questions. Several community speakers urged the board to consider withdrawing SFPD from the JTTF if the department cannot ensure full compliance with San Francisco's ordinance.
The commission did not take a formal vote on the JTTF relationship at this meeting; commissioners instead pledged follow-up and consultation with OCC staff and the City Attorney to address pending complaints and looming deadlines.
