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Police Commission approves chief search process amid dispute over mayor’s role
Summary
The San Francisco Police Commission voted 5–1 on March 4 to approve an executive search process for the next chief of police, allowing periodic briefings and input from the mayor’s office. Commissioner Petra de Jesus voted no, saying the public and commissioners lacked a written process and that mayoral involvement risks the appearance of favoritism.
The San Francisco Police Commission on March 4 approved a process to find candidates for the city’s next police chief, endorsing a contract with Murray and Associates (with PERF as a subcontractor) to conduct an executive search and to vet applicants. The commission voted 5–1 to proceed after several weeks of stakeholder meetings and public outreach.
Commission President Teresa Sparks laid out the timeline: stakeholder meetings to shape a candidate profile, a nationwide ad campaign (the search firm placed an ad in Western Cities Magazine), a period for applicants to apply through the firm, sorting applicants into categories, vetting of finalists, interviews and forwarding up to three finalists to the mayor for appointment consideration. The search firm will perform background checks and compile masked candidate abstracts for commission review.
The vote followed sharp debate over how much access the mayor’s office should have to candidates before finalists are forwarded. Commissioner Petra de Jesus said she opposed the motion because commissioners and the public had not seen the process in writing and because she believed involving the mayor’s office in early review could create the appearance of favoritism. "I vote no," she said on the record.
Supporters said limited mayoral briefings were part of a pragmatic compromise to avoid the mayor rejecting a full slate of nominees after the commission spent months interviewing candidates. Vice President Joe Marshall and other commissioners said briefing the mayor at milestones would not cede final authority: the commission retains sole responsibility to select the finalists it forwards.
The measure passed, and President Sparks asked the city attorney to prepare a written version of the process for distribution in the commissioners’ packets later in the week. Sparks said the commission would finalize candidate abstracts and move as quickly as possible so the hiring process proceeds before the current chief’s planned departure.
Next steps: the search firm will collect applications through the published closing date (advertised through the contractor) and prepare masked abstracts for commission review. The commission directed staff to produce a formal written process and to report back with the materials used to advertise salary and contract provisions.
