Police Commission reviews new protocol requiring review of personnel records for Brady material

Commander Daniel Mahoney, the department's office of chief of staff, presented a bureau order designed to systematize how the San Francisco Police Department identifies and reports personnel‑file material that may be exculpatory under Brady v. Maryland and California evidence rules. Mahoney said the order resulted from four months of stakeholder negotiations with the city attorney, the district attorney, police legal staff and labor organizations and that the department solicited and received union input in multiple meet‑and‑confers.

The bureau order establishes a Brady Committee — described by Mahoney as composed of the assistant chief of the chief's office, the head of police legal, personnel and risk management directors, the attorney presenting the summary, and a retired jurist for additional legal perspective — to review summaries prepared by department attorneys. Mahoney said the department provides an affected member a written notice and a 15‑calendar‑day opportunity to submit materials before any name or dates are forwarded to the district attorney. He added the order was rolled out in mid‑August and that the department planned a one‑year pilot and a lessons‑learned review at the end of that period.

Commissione…