Crime is getting worse in San Francisco which is really hard to believe. This Northern California city welcomes around 25 million visitors annually. Who would imagine thefts in this beautiful city are spreading like an epidemic.
The reported numbers of car break ins doubled over the years from 10,000 in 2006 to 25,000 in 2015. It is a big area of concern for everyone living in this city. According to the published report for burglaries, there is a massive loss of over $13 million dollars to the car owners. Moreover, car owners have to bear a huge repair cost of approximately $350 for replacing broken car windows.
In some areas city leaders are able to address burglaries and other crimes. There is a decreasing trend in those cases based on the reported crime data. But in the case of Property Thefts and Car Break-Ins incidents, the number of reported crimes is still very high. So what do you do? Are there any preventive steps to protect yourself?
Over the next couple days, we will be posting some preventive tips to protect yourself from becoming a victim of property theft in San Francisco. Although the police and deputy sheriffs are taking necessary actions, there are some preventive measurers that can protect you from being a victim. It is better to tackle the problem jointly and reduce crime in the city.
Tip #1 Elect a District Attorney that will hold these criminals accountable. We need a District Attorney that will turn San Francisco around from currently being known as lenient on crime with no consequences to a City that will hold criminals accountable by giving first time offenders rehabilitation options but repeat offenders, organized criminal rings will be held accountable in the justice system.
It’s time for someone that will fix our broken criminal justice system. It’s time for someone new and independent, it’s time for a prosecutor who is the real deal. It’s time for 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.”
In 2019 there has been an exponentially high rate of reported car break-ins for the San Francisco Area and beyond. San Francisco auto break-ins have reached epidemic levels and it’s totally out of control. San Francisco’s population is nearly one-fourth of New York City’s, yet car break-ins within the City & County of San Francisco are roughly three times as high as those reported in NYC. SF Residents and tourists alike are beyond frustrated about these smash and grab car break ins. Minimally, it leaves victims feeling violated. And to add insult to injury, many San Franciscans have been the victim of multiple auto break-ins.
To literally illustrate how bad the crime of car break-ins has become within San Francisco the local newspaper, San Francisco Chronicle, created the:
S.F Car Break-In Tracker (projects.sfchronicle.com) This online tracker allows the user to track both the number and locations of car break-ins occurring across the city.
And a Twitter Account was created in September 2015: @SFCarBreakins dedicated solely to “documenting the constant car break-ins in San Francisco.”
Are S.F. Tourist Locations, landmarks or parking lots any more safe from auto break-ins?
The answer, of course, is a resounding NO and furthermore no location, sadly, is exempt from this crime. On the contrary, the data shows that reported car break-ins are at increased levels in known tourist areas. The organized criminal rings that are known to commit these crimes naturally are going to target those areas where they believe unsuspecting tourists and visitors will most likely be. There are many posted videos online with footage capturing the smash & grab crimes in progress. The quickness and coordination of these criminals make this a “low risk” of apprehension with the potential for “high reward” on their haul, thus appealing to even the least sophisticated opportunistic criminal.
What steps are authorities taking to address Auto Break-Ins?
San Francisco Leadership to include S.F. Law Enforcement are highly concerned about this never ending cycle of car break-ins. There have been public awareness campaigns, community meetings, countless news stories largely all to no avail. The most significant reason is that criminals are well aware that thanks to Prop 47 (2014). This warmly titled proposition:
“Californians For Safe Neighborhoods & Schools” has been proven to have a direct corollary to increased levels of crime. Often the consequence for many of these repeat offenders has been nothing more than an inconvenience if they are actually arrested for their offense. I say inconvenience because the changes in the law, courtesy of Prop 47, coupled with less than stringent penalties from the courts, many times, results in the criminal being released from custody shortly after their appearance before a judge.
The middle part of the criminal justice system, I did not mention, between arrest and appearance before a a judge is the District Attorney’s Office. In San Francisco the DA’s Office has to review those cases brought before them and then determine if charges will be filed. S.F. has had very mixed results with their criminal cases over the past several years. Fortunately, there is a SF District Attorney race in November and it is absolutely critical that the voters of S.F. get it right. We as law enforcement and you as members of the public can realistically only do so much together. But all of us united behind a District Attorney that we elect into office-That is a very powerful position to be in. While the heading of this section is:
What steps are authorities taking to address Auto Break-Ins?
I think the more pertinent question we should all be asking ourselves & neighbors is:
What steps are you taking to be sure that you cast a ballot and vote this November in the SF District Attorney Race?
The SFDSA wishes to remind all of you reading this article that SF vote-by-mail ballots can be mailed in starting next week. To learn more about how to register and be sure to vote visit: sfelections.sfgov.org Thank you.
It’s time for someone that will fix our broken criminal justice system. It’s time for someone new, it’s time for a prosecutor who is the real deal. It’s time for 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.”
The San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association went through a rigorous process to arrive at its endorsements. The SFDSA political action committee thoroughly researches candidates and invites candidates to participate in a questionnaire addressing important public safety and district issues. After completing the questionnaire candidates are selected to take part in a PAC interview.
The following candidates have been vetted by our Political Action Committee and their endorsements were ratified by our Board of Directors. These are the best choices for the November 5th election.
Please vote by mail or on November 5th for the San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association Endorsed Candidates!
The San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association is the labor union representing deputy sheriffs and senior deputy sheriffs in the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department.
“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.”
Crime seems to be out of control in San Francisco. Yet in some cases the SF Crime Data states crime is decreasing. The question then becomes is that accurate, if not why isn’t it accurate.
We all have been watching and reading the news and on top of that we have been talking to the people in the communities. All we hear is how much crime there is. The main topics have been violence, illegal drug use and sales, thefts and car break ins.
“I had a discussion with my team on this topic and what we believe is happening is that the people of San Francisco are increasingly not reporting crime since San Francisco has become extremely lenient on criminals with little to no consequences. An increasing percentage of people in SF figure what’s the use of reporting it when nothing will be done,” said Ken Lomba San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association President.
We conducted a poll on our Facebook Fanpage (please like our page) asking our visitors “When your car is broken into do you report it to the police?” We had 223 people participate in the poll. 119 people marked “Yes, I report it.” 104 people marked “No, waste of time.”
223 Car Break In Victims Polled
Out of 223 Car Break Ins, 104 Did not report it to the police
What this tells us is that all the reported data given to the public stating that there is a decrease in Car Break Ins is missing something and may not be very accurate since there is no data on victims increasing or decreasing in reporting crime. This is an omission to the data presented to the public.
So what we are telling you is the crime rate in San Francisco may be worse than what is reported. For example the Car Break In number of 63 reported Car Break Ins a day is not the actual amount of Car Break Ins in San Francisco per day. It could be twice that amount, possibly 126 a day.
When SF is more lenient then the surrounding counties, it’s a no brainer that the Criminals Come to SF.
So what is the solution, the solution is to fix San Francisco’s broken criminal justice system starting this year by voting in a working district attorney. A district attorney that is not controlled by other politicians, a district attorney that is an experienced prosecutor not a public defender.
It’s time for someone that will fix our broken criminal justice system. It’s time for someone new, it’s time for a prosecutor who is the real deal. It’s time for 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.”
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?
Sasanna Yee 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?”
Ken Lomba 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.
Grandma Huang Popo photo by her Granddaughter Sasanna Yee
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. ”
Visitacion Valley Public and Personal Safety Workshop
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.”
Approximately 8 violent crimes this year that targeted seniors in the Chinese community. We have listed some of the violent attacks that occurred this year.
The World Journal Newspaper, Singtao Newspaper and Skylink TV reported that on Monday, July 15th in the afternoon two Chinese community leaders were violently attacked and robbed in Chinatown by four men.
They were attacked and thrown to the ground suffering from serious injuries. Both men were taken to the San Francisco General Hospital emergency room.
In May, a 74-year old woman was kidnapped and raped in Excelsior on her way to a park for exercise. The brutal crime has alarmed senior residents of the neighborhood, who are still reeling from January’s attack on an 88-year-old grandmother near a Visitacion Valley Playground. Reported by Ashley McBride SF Chronicle.
Grandma Huang Popo photo by her Granddaughter Sasanna Yee
On Wednesday, Jan 9th, an 88 year old elderly woman, Grandma Huang Popo was clinging to life after she was brutally assaulted at a park near her home in San Francisco’s Visitacion Valley.
On Wednesday, January 2 in the afternoon, a man entered the apartment of a 99 year old women and sexually assaulted her. This occurred in Chinatown at the Ping Yuen housing projects.
President of the Chinese American Democratic Club Josephine Zhao stated, “SFPD has done a tremendous job on solving these violent crimes targeting the seniors in the Chinese community. SFPD has sent Chinese-speaking officers to work with the community and spent nonstop hours in every one of these cases. SFPD has apprehended most of the perpetrators of these heinous crimes so far. While we need more police to patrol the community, we also need to understand why there are so many similar incidences. We are asking help from all communities get to the root of these senseless attacks. “
“Josephine brings up a good point, why are there so many similar incidents? It might be because the pendulum has swung to far on leniency on crime,” said Ken Lomba the President of the San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association. He said, “There is a District Attorney election coming up. The District Attorney is the prosecutor of crime if the wrong person is elected for the job their policies can encourage crime. We don’t need a politician nor a public defender as a district attorney. We need someone that will do the job of a district attorney. That is why we endorsed Leif Dautch.”
Leif Dautch candidate SF District Attorney
Leif Dautch candidate for District Attorney stated, ” The recent violent attacks on members of the Asian American community are tragic and senseless, and they demand a swift and strong response from city leadership and the criminal justice system. 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. 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. ”
If you compare two justice systems, San Francisco’s compared to our neighbor Daly City in San Mateo County you will find a big difference. Neighborhood Scout database rates San Francisco a low 2 out of 100 (100 being safest) on it’s crime index. San Francisco is safer than 2% of all US cities. The chance of becoming a violent victim in SF is 1 in 138 people.
Neighborhood Scout database rates our next door neighbor Daly City a 39 out of 100 (100 being safest) on it’s crime index. Daly City is safer than 39% of all US cities. The chance of becoming a violent victim in Daly City is 1 in 397 people. A very big difference between neighboring cities.
Fuming Zhang, President of the Chinese American Association of Commerce
Fuming Zhang, President of the Chinese American Association of Commerce, expressed: “We urge the Mayor, Supervisors and City Officials to work with our community and take actions to stop these spreading crimes. We implore the City to provide more funding for the law enforcement and the District Attorney, in order to strengthen the public safety and bring justice to the victims. “
San Francisco is at the extreme on leniency of crime, we need to swing the pendulum back to the middle with a fair and just system to protect San Francisco. Maybe it’s time San Francisco fixes its justice system with techniques/ideas that are working in San Mateo County.
“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.”
The San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association is pleased to announce its endorsement for San Francisco District Attorney. “Leif Dautch represents the strongest candidate for District Attorney in San Francisco,” says SFDSA President Ken Lomba.
“Leif was spectacular in all areas of our process. He was very articulate and well versed on the duties and responsibilities of a District Attorney. What we liked most of all about Leif Dautch was his experience as a prosecutor and that he will be a working District Attorney focused on results to better the public safety for San Francisco. We found that he has the best plan to attack the car break in problem, he has a plan against environmental law violators, and a goal to build an effective and efficient District Attorney Office that San Francisco will be proud of. We are proud to endorse Leif Dautch for District Attorney,” he says.
Take a close look at Leif Dautch! It’s Time for Change. It’s Time for Leif Dautch! Leif Dautch will be a working District Attorney. He is compassionate to first time offenders yet he will hold repeat criminal offenders and organized crime accountable. Endorse and Vote for Leif Dautch for District Attorney!
It’s Time for Change. It’s Time for Leif Dautch!
The San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association went through a rigorous process to arrive at its endorsements. The SFDSA Political Action Committee thoroughly researched candidates and invited each candidate for district attorney to participate in a questionnaire addressing important public safety issues. Our Board of Directors considered the recommendations of the committee and voted to endorse Leif Dautch for San Francisco 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.”
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