Sup. Jackie Fielder is asking the Police Department to explain how the high-speech chase that lead to a crash injuring six in the Mission took place—and whether the officers followed the rules.
In a Feb. 11 letter of inquiry, Fielder asked Chief Bill Scott to tell the supes:
What were the circumstances surrounding this case? a. Please share the top speed of the police car or cars that were involved in the accident. 2. What is the existing SFPD policy regarding police chases and how have officers been trained on it? 3. How did this incident comply with current SFPD policy, and how did it rise to the level of vehicle pursuit that ultimately put many lives in danger?
What is the SFPD protocol after a car chase that leads to injuries or fatalities? a. What data is collected and reported after a police chase occurs, when someone is killed during a police chase, or when someone is injured? 5. Who made the judgement call to engage in a police chase, and based on what factors? 6. Were there other options, such as drones, or other measures that could have been deployed to avoid a vehicle pursuit that puts lives in danger? 7. And lastly, what accountability mechanisms are in place for officers whose decisions injure innocent bystanders and extensively damage local businesses?
The crash, and her letter, raise the issue of how the cops are using their new authority, granted by a ballot measure sponsored by former Mayor London Breed, to engage in vehicle pursuits like this one.
In the past, the city limited high-speed chases through residential areas unless the occupants of the vehicle were armed and considered an immediate threat to the public.
So far, the SFPD has not released any information suggesting that was the case here. MissionLocal reports that the suspects were involved in organized retail theft.
Prior to Prop. E, which passed last March, that would not have allowed officers to race through the streets, in this case leading so serious injuries and the destruction of a parklet owned by a local small business.
But Breed, in a desperate attempt to seem even more pro-cop than her opponents, put a measure on the ballot that undermined her own Police Commission. The Bay Guardian noted:
Specifically, the measure would allow more high-speed chases (yes, on the narrow streets of SF, where they frequently lead to injuries and sometimes deaths); give the cops far more authority to spy on San Franciscans without oversight (including with drones); and reduce the reporting requirements for use of force incidents (which provides the data showing the radical racial disparities in use of force).
We are now seeing the results.
