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San Francisco Police Commission hears public complaints, postpones rulings and sets follow-up on contested patrol-special sale
Summary
At its Oct. 6, 2010 meeting the San Francisco Police Commission introduced a new commissioner, approved a small consent gift, heard extensive public comment, received the chief's report on crime reductions amid staffing cuts, and deferred action on a contested patrol-special beat sale pending investigation and a conference call with the city attorney.
The San Francisco Police Commission met Oct. 6, 2010, and handled procedural business, extended public comment and set follow-ups on several matters including a contested sale of a patrol-special beat.
Vice President and acting chair opened the meeting, confirmed a quorum and moved to continue two agenda items related to General Orders 6.16 and 8.1 to a later date. The commission voted to remove those matters from the current calendar and tentatively rescheduled General Order 6.16 for Nov. 10.
The panel introduced new commissioner Jamie Slaughter, who said he was an attorney with municipal commission experience and pledged to take an active role in civilian oversight.
On the consent calendar the commission approved a request to accept seven handmade rosary beads presented for Officer William Schulteis. The motion to accept the gift passed by voice vote.
Public comment ran for more than an hour. Speakers raised a range of concerns, including alleged historical failures to investigate clergy abuse, unresolved murder inquiries and requests for greater transparency in police handling of recent shootings. Ray Hartz of San Francisco Open Government said he had filed complaints under the Sunshine Ordinance and said complainants should be able to expect transparent handling of their filings. Other speakers urged more openness about officer-involved shootings and discipline processes.
Chief of Police William Gascon reported the department is down roughly 9% in overall reported crime year-to-date, with declines in both violent and property crime in the longer view but a short-term uptick in violent incidents in the most recent four-week cycle. The chief said the department is planning a reduction of about 78 officers and a cut in general-fund overtime from over $20 million previously to roughly $5 million this fiscal year, a change he said will force redeployment of existing officers and affect foot beats in some neighborhoods.
Office of Citizen Complaints Director Hicks told commissioners complaint filings were down 15% year-over-year and that the OCC facilitated 43 mediations so far this year; she said sustained cases and other statistics would be discussed in more detail at the Oct. 20 meeting.
Item 5 drew sustained attention: Sergeant Robert Yick, the department's patrol-special liaison, described concerns about the reported $20 sale of patrol-special beat #72 by former patrol special Hanley Chan to Ray Castillo and said department records and multiple negotiations raised inconsistencies. Chan testified he gave the beat to Castillo as a gift because he trusted him. Commissioners asked the parties to submit sworn declarations on key facts and agreed to a conference call Friday with the city attorney for guidance. The commission set the matter for a follow-up hearing in two weeks and directed Castillo to cease working the beat until the conference call.
The commission voted to enter closed session under personnel- and discipline-related codes to consider several disciplinary matters and other closed items.
The meeting was adjourned with follow-up items scheduled; the commission will revisit the contested beat sale, the continued General Orders and will receive the OCC's third-quarter statistics on Oct. 20.
