Concerns are building about violence against the Chinese Community becoming the new norm. With decriminalization of laws, extreme leniency and little consequences for crime in San Francisco, will attacks on the Chinese Community go unnoticed in SF’s lenient Justice System?
Communities As One
Sasanna Yee, “Unfortunately, violence on the Chinese community is becoming the norm. It is occurring almost daily and increasing in brutality. Why is that? This is a serious problem that needs to be examined and stopped. How can we bring more peace and safety to communities living in fear of the next attack?”
SFDSA President
“I believe there is a cycle of crimes that relate to this starting with illegal drug use. Since Prop 47 when felony drug possession and felony property crimes were changed to misdemeanor crimes it had reduced the length of the prison sentence to, in some cases, a citation and probation. Couple that with extreme reformist district attorneys declining to prosecute crimes, dismissing criminal charges, and offering lenient plea bargains is another issue. Lack of consequences has emboldened criminals. The ease of illegal drug use with highly addictive drugs perpetuates car break-ins to fund the habit and in some cases it perpetuates violent acts because of the effects of the illegal drugs. And on top of that, there is organized crime taking advantage of San Francisco’s leniency on crime. All of this puts San Franciscans in danger,” says Ken Lomba President of the San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association.
On Wednesday, Jan 9th, an 88 year old elderly woman, Grandma Huang Popo Wong was clinging to life after she was brutally assaulted at a park near her home in San Francisco’s Visitacion Valley.
Explaining the photo Marlene Tran said, “Granddaughter, Sasanna Yee’s, capture of the TENDER moments between her Grandma Wong (on bed) and Grandma Yee (sadly, recently passed) makes all of us think of our elderly relatives and especially concerned because of the recent brutal crimes against our Chinese seniors!”
Leif Dautch candidate for District Attorney stated, ”We must send a clear message that violence against the elderly or targeted at a particular ethnic community will not be tolerated in San Francisco, and we must work to expand language access for 911 dispatchers, police officers, and prosecutors so that all victims of crime feel comfortable reporting. Prosecutors can and should explore a wide array of charges for the attackers, from robbery and aggravated assault to enhancements for great bodily injury and elder abuse. These attacks are examples of why I’ll create an Elder Justice Coordinator in the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office to oversee prosecutions involving elderly victims, to coordinate services, and to interface with community groups and leaders. The status quo simply cannot stand. ”
Sasanna Yee conducted a Visitacion Valley Public and Personal Safety Workshop to empower seniors to speak up. Many seniors shared their experiences of being robbed and bullied while living in fear in their own community.
The way to fix this is first to elect a stable and well balance district attorney like Leif Dautch. One that will be a working district attorney not a politician (she will jump at every political issue) and not a public defender (he will be focused on how to release the criminals). The next step is we have to tighten up some of the laws that were changed under Prop 47 and enhance penalties for violating ankle monitoring and for violating probation. There also needs to be an escalation in punishment for repeat offenders to deter future crimes to “slow down the revolving door.”
With a District Attorneys election coming in November, two out of four of the candidates being a Politician and a Public Defender it may get worse because their policies may encourage crime. The San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association vetted all the candidates and found the best one to be Leif Dautch for District Attorney.
“Paid for by the San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association PAC. Not authorized by a candidate or committee controlled by a candidate. Financial disclosures are available at sfethics.org.”