Controller-funded review urges San Francisco to end city oversight of Patrol Specials, recommends interim controls

The San Francisco Police Commission on Sept. 1 heard a controller‑commissioned review that concluded the city should divest itself of formal oversight of the Patrol Specials program and treat those officers as private security, while immediately imposing interim accountability measures.

Kim Craven, who led the Public Safety Strategies Group study for the Controller’s Office, told commissioners the consultants found Patrol Specials perform services for private clients but operate outside the department’s direction and control. "Because they are paid for privately, you cannot direct their day‑to‑day activities," Craven said, and the city therefore remains exposed to liability while lacking the authority to manage those activities. The study recommended divestiture of city oversight and a transition that would move Patrol Specials into ordinary private‑security regulation while preserving their businesses.

The report also listed interim steps the commission and SFPD should take immediately if oversight remains: require distinct, non‑SFPD‑style uniforms and insignia; cease Patrol Special access to SFPD police‑channel radios and sensitive products such as the "hot sheet"; require timely proof of liability and firearms insurance and ammunition records; enforce…