rumor, or gossip. there was a rush to judgment before the new sheriff was even sworn in. sometimes it is difficult to peel back the layers. i follow and view everything in this case every day. the most salient fact here is that in the out of lopez is not an abused spouse. i know her as a strong, independent woman0zv who speaksr own mind. she travels regularly to venezuela for extended stays. she attended acting class is in l.a. she has a weekly san francisco radio show. she taught movement glasses for babies. i also know that since march, 2011 -- [tone] she has wanted to return to her family and career in venezuela. she stated repeatedly that the video was made because of a

potential custody fight, not because she fears her husband. theo means the world to his parents. how many of us have argued over the care of our children? how many of guys have done and said things in an emotional moment for which we are deeply sorry? the mayor's charges are billed on an erroneous -- [no audio] >> thank you, ma'am. next, please. >> thank you. my name is espinoza jackson. i have been a career activists for 50 years or better. n surprised that you have had this commission for just 18 years. you have a hard decision. i'm hopingñi that you do the rit

thing. as the previous speaker said, the family knows best. and the innuendoes about brutality -- she was bruised because a lot of us are easy tubers, and we all know that. i want you to takece- the facts are, and not what people or the press gave up. please, do the right thing. so that you can sleep at night and people can look up to you in years to come. you are very young and you will continue to run for office. i'm quite sure they will do the right thing. -- that you will do the right thing. >> good afternoon. my name is barbara. ms. lopez, i supported your husband's position since day one.

volunteered and another office. i respected the human side of him. he allowed a poppy belonging to their receptionist to work every day. if it was ok with him, it was ok with us. he was suspended with no pay. i immediately aired my on issues before the board of supervisors and sent a strong message to mayor edwin lee, that no one is free of domestic issues. mayor lee, have you looked at your own dirty linen? it is my sincere hope that you give him his job back as jarett, back pay, and his benefits be restored. made a piece of the lord be with you both, and of course, especially theo. thank you to everyone. >> commissioners, my name is francisco de costa.

in all of your deliberations, some of those deliberations you have not heard. you have read about them, but you have not heard. we have a sunshine taskforce that after deliberation, sent hundreds of cases before this ethics commission. you have to ask yourself how many of those cases you have drawn into the wastepaper basket. -- thrown into the wastepaper basket. you have to ask ourselves whether we, the people, wanted an ethics commission like this that adjudicates in the manner in which you have thrown out so many cases sent to you by the sunshine task force. let me bring it to your attention. we have four supervisors who have been charged for official

misconduct by you, commissioners. but in this process that one of your commissioners alluded to that may be a dog and pony show, in this process, you are going to give some adjudication and send the same process before the board of supervisors, of which four supervisors commissioners have been charged with official misconduct. we, the people, are puzzled. we are bewildered. we are confounded. i feel personally in this case, we should not have taken this route. a waste of millions of dollars and a waste of the people's time. thank you. ñfc>> good morning, commissione. i am president of the san

francisco commission on the status of women. however, i speak as a -- an individual today. the city has reduced domestic violence by over 80% as a concerted effort through the policies of the city working through every branch of law enforcement and every representative of social services and the court. that also includes work by the sheriff's department. when you have a link that you cannot work with, that undermines the policy for the city. i also work as a -- an attorney as a regulatory enforcement attorney for the city. that also includes license fees. every employee has a code of conduct. the specific conflicts of interest may be specific to department, but in terms of licenses, we do remove for dui's

and for domestic violence. the department of insurance and other agencies do not have that specificity. we all know what the common- sense definition of decency is. we hold the public trust. your decisions will impinge on whether or not an elected official has special treatment and does not have to conduct himself or herself -- [tone] with the related charges if that person is above rank-and-file. >> good afternoon. i am maureen? id. -- maureen daggett. my son and his wife are friends of russ.

and i am also a longtime san franciscan. one thing that catches my attention is when the mayor testified. he said that he based his suspension on the declaration by madison commissioner -- by madison. commissioner renne, when that first came up, he said he thought it would poison the well and we should throw it out. madison was never called to testify. so that contradicts the idea that9jñ russ is being tried here

again for what he pled guilty for. there have been several of you saying here today -- [tone] that they wished that he had said this or done that since that time that this had taken place that -- taken place. that would have made things go away. those are not the things he's being tried for. he comes from a good family. he is a good man. he has been voted three times by the electorate of san francisco. [tone] he served and then he was reelected -- [no audio] >> thank you, ma'am. thank you for your comment.

>> i moved from here on 33 years ago with my family because i found my country of my dreams, the united states of america, a country where everything is based on justice, a country of relationships of kissing someone in the right place and relationships like that do not exist. everything is based on fact, on hard work. they do not bring somebody down because they do not like him. i came to the united states because i believe in america. and i am a u.s. citizen. this whole thing is distressing me and my family because it is an example for all of the new generation in this country that you work hard and in the heat of the moment of the family dispute over your child, you pull your wife or your husband's hand and

get bruised and you get treated like a criminal. i hear all these words like wrong for conduct, unlawful conduct. if i were not in this room, i would think she was a criminal who beat his wife appeared that she calls 911 all the to -- every day. yes, he lost his temper for a second, in my opinion, and he grabbed his wife. i tell my husband of 20 years sometimes that i do not like him. i even say bad things to him. but it does not mean that i mean that. you make up later. [tone] we have to judge a person by their hard work and their progressive ideas. he does a lot of good things in life and in his career. just because of something like that we make him look like a criminal, while real criminals are working in the streets? i'm sorry, i get emotional.

it is not fair. we all sleep at night. we will all die one day [tone] [no audio] >> thank you for your comment, ma'am. >> my name is patrick connors. i live in district 5 up the street from here. i voted for sheriff mirkarimi three times. i have lived in this neighborhood for 10 years. i also wanted to let you know that today also happens to be my wedding anniversary. four years ago, my husband and i were married, one of the 18,000 special edition, limited edition same-sex couples in california. i mention that because i've understand what it is like to be subjected to speeches public ridicule, as well as political

scorn, pretty much for my entire adult life. and in terms of understanding that, i ask that you keep in mind that this commission did not appoint the sheriff. the board of supervisors did not appoint the sheriff. the mayor of san francisco did not appoint the sheriff. neither did gavin newsom, willie brown, rose pak. this man was elected to office. there is a method emplace for a recall to occur. it and the people who elected them should have the opportunity to recall him. that should not be taken away by anyone, any board or commission. [tone] or mayor. i asked you to please keep that in mind when you give your recommendation to the board.

fair process may take time, as the city attorney pointed out today. but this procedure has taken a long time, too. nearly nine months. and signatures can be gathered, and could have been gathered in the last two months to have a recall began. [tone] please, let us -- [no audio] >> thank you, sir. >> good morning, hon. commissioners. how are you today? you all look very serious. a little humor here. my name is pedro. i'm a former san francisco policeman. eight years with the hon. san francisco police department. my wife is an investigator. i have no chairs mirkarimi for about 12 years now. -- i have known sheriff mirkarimi for about 12 years now. mr. keith and his office never

proved sheriff mirkarimi used his power to dissuade witnesses. they have accused witnesses of perjury, of lying under oath. i do not drink she would do that if she is an honorable woman. i'm old enough to remember george christopher, the mayor, george kelly -- john shelley. k]khe boxed before the mayor dug his tenure. the integrity of the mayor has been brought into scrutiny. there was an alleged bomb threats phoned in. the mayor was hustled out of the room. don't your lives matter? why weren't you hustled out of the room? by weren't the citizens house about of the room? why was it just the mayor? [tone]

if it was a legitimate bomb threat, why weren't you guys removed from the room? lastly, i know the chief has been hit over the head with a glass bottle a couple of occasions. mayor]#ññ newsom said it was a family issue, that the family should discuss it. he would let it go at that. i think mayor ed lee has overstepped his boundaries. [tone] thank you for your time. >> good morning, ladies and gentleman. my name is paul. some of you recognize me as the candidate for mayor in 2011. i was not well thought of on the campaign trail because i called

ed lee in organized criminal at that time. mayor lee now faces charges before the state bar for violations of the state bar act. chapter 1, royals 1-100 permit it the use of public funds for perjury or corruption. -- prohibit use of public funds for perjury or corruption. mayor lee's and election fraud, collusion, graft, fraud, and ms. prison of felony, these are criminal acts. the mayor's use of this whole ethics process is transparent. the ethics commission has wrongfully postponed sunshine case number 11-048, where four

supervisors now face criminal charges for their acts that have empowered civil-rights violations and numerous violations. [tone] this has damaged many people. we must hold the mayor accountable. it is time for the money machine in san francisco to be held to account. i have call on you to organize around one issue, and that is the recall machine. throw all the bums out. this is the first time since june 14th that we had public comment and the last person to make a habit -- public comment is now evicted. her name is lynn gavin. she is now running for office. but i would like to submit my -- [tone] comment for the record. thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners. i may be a familiar face. my name is tracy lemon. i am an employment attorney and

i have been a friend of ross and work on his campaigns for the last eight years. i knew him as a good, honest, hard-working man and very capable as a political officer. i am outraged at the mayor's abuse of discretion and abuse of power to attempt to remove a democratically elected official without pay, pending a five- month investigation and hearing. who knew it was going to be five months? baker have been five months, eight months, but it is -- it could have been five months, eight months, but it is very undemocratic. to start an elected official and deny him of the ability to ñ while he is still presumed innocent. it is outrageous for the mayor to have unfettered discretion to remove an official based on the

standards that you have identified and discussed today. i think that gives him too much credit and it does not show a good history to that. and the question is -- who is next? the mayor-ap himself cannot be removed for official misconduct under the city charter. which is quite interesting, because if we actually committed perjury here -- [tone] before the ethics commission, it would be suitable to bring this up against him. i think this is a waste of resources and time and money. i cannot believe you created 15 in. of documents. i applaud you in your duty, but i think things have gone too far. i ask you to hold the mayor accountable and consider whether he abused his discretion in started this whole process. [tone] give him careful thought and consider whether -- [no audio]

>> thank you, ma'am. >> my name is vivian. i am a city workers speaking as a private individual on my own time. the mayor invalidated the will of the voters, who embraced ross and his vision for a better tomorrow. ross has always invigorated the electorate. his brilliance and integrity inspire us and make us better citizens. city hall inflicted unprecedented punishment for a misdemeanor. there was no official misconduct. a false imprisonment was merely turning around his band to go home, rather than take the argument to a public place. havret we all done that at least once? your recommendation to reinstate ross will instill morales and

morals of san francisco. each supporters here represents thousands more who could not be here today. we are here to convey the magnitude of our support for ross, and the depth of our months of scrutiny, humiliation, and forced separation from his family, all while having no income. ross faced these circumstances with admirable grace come optimism, and fortitude kamal attributes we want in our sheriff. [tone] as sheriff, he will create a model system of promise and possibility that will do this city proud. how fitting that a star is the symbol of the sheriff's office, surrounded by a galaxy of supporters. ross is our star. let him shine.

÷kñ>> my name is merrily. i am the president of the filipino woman is network. we have members nationwide. we started the campaign when a young filipino woman was murdered by her boyfriend in front of her two young children. it took eight years to get her justice. we have worked so hard to help victims seek help and relief from abusive relationships. the san francisco police department received over 4000 cases of domestic violence annually. each case could potentially end up as a homicide and last year,

at least 35,000 sought help for domestic violence. t(studies also show that domestc violence victims do not call police and 87% recant their official statements. i know because i was a domestic violence victim. i denied being a victim for many years. i came to the u.s. to leave an abusive marriage, to hide and not tell people. i, and i'm smart. why am i in a domestic violence relationship? relationship? $igh bad why. this mess -- this will send a message to perpetrators of domestic violence and will have an impact > this case. i urge you to do what is right. -- had an impact that is greater than this case. i urge you to do what is right. [tone] thank you.

>> good morning. i'm also from the filipino women's network. i am speaking for myself. i believe a person in public office should be an example to the public. mr. mirkarimi's actions undermine domestic violence programs in san francisco. it is one of the programs that people can get information on the anti-domestic ren is platform the share of overseas one of the country's most innovative and tied-domestic violence programs, and to have a convicted abusers in charge of these programs undermines credibility. as a citizen -- as a born resident, i would ask that the

commission please set the standard for the public, and also for myself and my friends and family. we have experienced these unfortunate situations. thank you. >> good morning, and thank you for this time. i will be reading from a petition that has been sent to you will receive another copy with signatures. i and two other friends will be reading from the same petition. we voters from the city of san francisco, and those who seek fairness and justice for this is -- its citizens are sending this letter on behalf of all san francisco's resident and families. our concerns are the following. we believe all elected officials should have the right to hold office and represent the people within the law without depending threat of expulsion by other members of office.

we believe all citizens should be given a fair opportunity to make changes for the betterment of their lives, family, and community without their careers being jeopardized as a result. we are writing this letter in support of sheriff mirkarimi, san francisco's duly elected sheriff, who has enjoyed a long public record service -- long public service record. while in office he has overseen violence and gun law reform as well as advocacy for those underrepresented in the community. sheriff mirkarimi has been a visionary for innovative change both in and out of san francisco. recent allegations and a misdemeanor conviction involving the sheriff and his family have over shattered his new position and cast doubts in the eyes of some on the propriety of his ability to serve as sheriff. ñilp[tone]

the allegations are, indeed, serious in light of his being an elected official and by no means are to be overlooked. however, we believe the circumstances under which he has been suspended do not rise to the extreme level of some of -- of expulsion from elected office. it is up to the citizens of san francisco to decide whether or not the share of deserves their trust and confidence. -- the share of deserves their trust and confidence. [tone] >> i am just reading the rest of the letter. ms. lopez has spoken on the record and in support of her husband, acknowledging the fight with her husband that led to this recent conviction. she has clearly stated, "i have in the presence of by has been, or for the safety of my son." hur statements were made without coercion by having no contact

with her husband for over three months. we believe is not the responsibility of the general public, or those in office to second-guess the statement of ms. lopez, or to decide the best remedy for her family. it the criminal-justice system is appropriately running its course and there has been professional intervention nothing more is needed. sheriff mirkarimi took office by the public vote of the people, not by appointment. that means any consideration of his removal would have to meet a higher standard if it were to reverse the will of the san francisco voters to the elected into office. under the circumstances, we do not believe the sheriff