Multi‑agency Hearing: SFPD and DA Say Auto Burglaries Drove 2015 Increase; Supervisors Call for Continued Oversight

The Government and Oversight Committee on Jan. 21 held a multi‑agency hearing on rising property crime and auto burglaries in San Francisco, hearing presentations from the San Francisco Police Department, the District Attorney’s Office, adult and juvenile probation, the Superior Court and community groups.

Supervisor Scott Wiener framed the hearing, saying residents across neighborhoods report repeated auto break‑ins, burglaries and thefts and urging a broader approach that includes enforcement, prosecution, supervision and prevention. Commander Tony Chaplin of the San Francisco Police Department said CompStat‑style data (2011–2015) show a steady increase in total property crime with a pronounced spike in thefts from vehicles; he referred to a large jump in incidents in 2015 compared with prior years and said the department identified District 6 (the downtown/tourist hub) as a frequent hotspot.

Chaplin described targeted responses: activation of a specialized task force (Lieutenant Luke Martin’s team) staffed with sergeants and officers, bimonthly district operations, plainclothes saturation in hot spots, tactical analysis by the crime analysis unit, and multi‑unit collaboration. He said one serial offender was tied to 19 break‑ins and pleaded guilty to a six‑year sentence; he also explained that many prolific offenders use counter‑surveillance and cross‑jurisdictional travel, complicating enforcement.

Christine DeBury, speaking for District Attorney George Gascón, said DA staff saw a rise in incidents but a smaller number of cases presented for charging; she reported that of 487 auto‑burglary cases presented to the DA in a cited slide, 390 were charged (an ~80% charging rate for presented cases). DeBury said charging depends on evidence and described the DA’s Crime Strategies Unit, which bundles serial criminal activity to pursue stronger prosecutions and to identify individuals responsible for multiple incidents.

Karen Fletcher, Chief Adult Probation Officer, said the department supervises roughly 4,300 clients, 23% of whom are on probation for property crimes; she noted a marked increase in grants of probation for property crimes from 76 (2014) to 185 (2015) and described efforts to improve victim restitution tracking and to expand restorative justice programming in partnership with local providers. Alan Nance (Juvenile Probation) said juvenile bookings for property crimes declined substantially over the longer term, though 2014–2015 saw an uptick; he also noted a higher share of juvenile arrestees live outside San Francisco (about 31% in 2015).

Panelists and supervisors agreed on two recurring themes: auto burglaries are the largest single driver of recent property‑crime figures, and understaffing limits preventive deployment such as consistent foot beats and traffic enforcement. Community organization SF SAFE urged better reporting to police (rather than social platforms) and neighborhood prevention measures (lighting, cameras and neighborhood watches).

After the presentations the committee voted to continue the hearing to the call of the chair for further oversight and additional data and recommended that agencies continue cross‑jurisdictional coordination, data sharing and targeted enforcement in hotspots.

Notable figures cited in the hearing included a raise in reported total property crimes from roughly 33,000 in 2011 to about 53,000 in 2015 (SFPD slides) and a 34% year‑over‑year increase in thefts from vehicles cited in SFPD material. The DA reported charging 390 of 487 presented auto burglary cases in the period shown on its slide, about an 80% charging rate for those presented cases.

What’s next: The committee continued Items 3 and 4 to the call of the chair for follow‑up, with supervisors expecting additional data on staffing, foot‑beat deployment and cross‑jurisdiction arrests.