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Civil grand jury says officer-involved shooting probes are 'too long' and 'not transparent'; SFPD and DA pledge fixes
Summary
The 2015–16 civil grand jury concluded San Francisco’s fatal officer-involved shooting (OIS) investigations are slow and inadequately transparent. SFPD, the district attorney and the Office of Citizen Complaints agreed with many recommendations and pledged web updates, new procedures, an MOU and funding to speed investigations.
Eric S. Vanderpool, speaking for the 2015–16 civil grand jury, told the Government Audit and Oversight Committee that the jury reached two stark conclusions after reviewing fatal officer-involved-shooting investigations: they "take too long" and are "nowhere near transparent." Vanderpool urged prompt, written policy changes rather than waiting for outside reviews.
The mayor’s office, SFPD, the district attorney’s office and the Office of Citizen Complaints each addressed the committee. Diana Oliva Arroche, senior adviser to Mayor Ed Lee, said the mayor asked the U.S. Department of Justice to undertake a collaborative review and that the city is committed to working with public-safety partners to implement reforms.
Commander Greg McEachern of the SFPD said the department "agrees with a majority of the recommendations," listed planned changes (web redesign, improved data collection and an incident-notification protocol), and said the department is updating general orders including use-of-force and body-worn-camera policies. McEachern said SFPD will aim to release officer names within 10 days of an OIS unless there is a credible threat.
The district attorney's representative, Miss Sotto DeBerry, said the DA's office agreed timeliness is a resource issue and reported the mayor's office had agreed to release $1.8 million annually to hire 14 staff to expedite OIS-related criminal investigations. She also said the DA and SFPD are negotiating an MOU to clarify investigative roles and that the DA hopes to complete that negotiation quickly.
Joyce Hicks, director of the Office of Citizen Complaints, said OCC obtained funding for transcription services and will hire an information-systems analyst (expected by mid-October) to make OCC materials easier to find online. Hick's office emphasized it provides maximum disclosure allowed under state law but will improve site navigation and accessibility.
The grand jury pressed agencies not to wait for the DOJ report before implementing practical changes; Vanderpool urged immediate posting of accessible data and codifying current town-hall and notification practices into written policy so they survive leadership changes.
Committee action and next steps: Chair Peskin proposed — and the committee agreed without objection — to continue the hearing portion of Items 3 and 4 to October 20 so the DA, mayor’s office and SFPD could report back on an MOU, released funds and any DOJ findings.
