Tag: violence

OPEN LETTER TO SFPD CHIEF SCOTT – CURRENT STATE OF SFPD

Dear Chief Scott,

I am writing to express my concern about the current state of the San Francisco Police Department and to offer a potential solution to improve efficiency and increase police staffing.

As you are aware, the police department is facing mass retirements and is currently understaffed. This is a major issue, as it leaves our city vulnerable to increased crime and puts an undue burden on the remaining officers who are trying to do their best to serve and protect the community.

In order to address this issue, I believe it would be beneficial to reduce the size of the police department and turn over some functions, such as the SFO, to the San Francisco Sheriff. By reassessing the roles and responsibilities of the department, we can redirect resources towards increasing the number of police officers in San Francisco, particularly in high-need areas like the Tenderloin district.

I understand that such a change would require careful consideration and planning, but I believe it is a common sense solution that would ultimately improve public safety for San Franciscans. By streamlining the department and focusing on core functions, we can ensure that your SFPD officers are able to do their jobs more effectively and efficiently.

I also believe that turning over auxiliary functions, such as the SFO, marine unit, and port patrols, to the Sheriff’s Department makes sense. The Sheriff’s Department is equipped to handle these types of tasks, and it would free up additional resources for the SFPD to focus on crime reduction and public safety in the city.

Given the current state of public safety in San Francisco, we have concerns for the well-being of our union members who reside in the city.  I hope that you will seriously consider this proposal and take any necessary steps to make it a reality. As the leader of the SFPD, it is your responsibility to ensure that the department is functioning at its best and that our city is as safe as possible. I believe that implementing these changes would be a step in the right direction towards achieving that goal.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Ken Lomba
SFDSA President
415-696-2428

Concerns build about Violence on the Chinese Community

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, representative from Communities As One
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
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 Sasanna Yee
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 for District Attorney
Leif Dautch candidate for District Attorney

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 Communities As One
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.”