tv [untitled] September 29, 2011 6:30pm-7:00pm PDT
6:30 pm
enough, it was very alarming to everyone, including me, but particularly the residents of the district. i would like to point out, and these are statistics that were provided to me today at the meeting. the extraction period for the current comstat was august 28 through september 24 of this year. that period includes the three homicides that occurred. they occur during this time. during this time, a four-weeks, robberies in the district were down 45%. aggravated assaults were down 39%. and although boosts were down 39%.
6:31 pm
i attribute that to the fact that provided me with all of the resources that i felt i needed to ensure the safety of everyone in the mission district. he supplied me those resources and and told me he was holding me accountable. what we did with those resources, we saturated the district with uniformed officers, plainclothed officers. yet outside units, such as the gang task force, the technical company, violence reduction task force, and the traffic company saturating the district, as well as other mission district officers whose assignments and hours or changed so that they could be out on the street during the prime time, in the places and during the times
6:32 pm
where our statistics indicated that there had been violence. and you saw the results earlier. crime went down. we had our monthly community meeting last night, and i was asked -- well, how long are all those other units going to be in the district? you know, i had to be candid. i said, well, they cannot be there forever. but i did assure them that the mission district, if you saw the staffing that we showed earlier, mission district is completely staffed. we have great staffing levels. and when these units go off to fight another fire, we have enough officers in the mission station to ensure the safety of the residents and visitors of the mission district. again, that is my mandate. if we do not do it, the next meeting you have here, some other captain will be talking to
6:33 pm
you. the chief made that clear. besides saturating the area, we conducted a lot of adult probation searches, a juvenile probation searches, and they led to numerous arrests for narcotics, weapons violations, violations of parole and probation. the civil gang injection has been a tremendous tool. since its inception, there has been a huge decrease in gang- related crimes by certified gang members. now, if you'll bear with me, at this time i want to call sgt mario molina, my plainclothed the sergeant, and my two gang officers, dr. cafe and officer stanza forward.
6:34 pm
sgt molina was a critical expert witness in the recent federal trial in against the gang members in which six of them were convicted. i think it was his expert testimony that was critical in the conviction of those six officers. additionally, something wanted to mention and i do not know how many of you have heard this news, but the department had a press release put out today. i would like to read it. san francisco police homicide inspectors, with the assistance of mission station plain clothes team, arrested a 15-year-old juvenile in connection with the murder and of the 22-year-old victim who was shot to death early monday morning, august the
6:35 pm
30, 2011, while taking a break from his place of employment at 19th and san carlos. inspectors, after a month-long investigation, drawing upon the cooperation of community members and merchants, charged the juvenile with one count of homicide, two firearms violations, and a gang enhancement of the juvenile was arrested while being held on unrelated charges that the juvenile justice center in san francisco. i want to emphasize, first, that crime was the most heinous crime committed in mission district in my memory, the murder of this poor fellow who was working two jobs to support his family. but the diligent work of homicide, the assistance that sgt molina and his crew gave, and the cooperation of community members and merchants, which is
6:36 pm
critical, led to the arrest of this scoundrel, and i am sure will lead to his conviction. [applause] now the reason that i asked officer cafe and sans to come forward, they're the gang car in the district. i cannot go into much detail to protect the people involved, but officers cafe and sans, on their own, develop a program that is in its beginning stages. but they talked to these kids that they are arresting, these gang-bang yers, and most of them are hard core annual market to them.
6:37 pm
but some of these kids are intimidated into that lifestyle. they think they have no other way out. well, these two officers are resting these gang-bangers, and then they're trying to get them out of the gang lifestyle. with the cooperation of supervisor campos, and i am sorry he cannot stay. but with that cooperation, they are actively getting some of these gang members jobs through the supervisor, and there are some guidelines that have to abide by. but i think it is amazing and laudable but they're out there trying to save these gang members that they're out there restingarresting. that is officer cafe and officer sans, and i think they deserve a
6:38 pm
great big round of applause. [applause] again, i cannot go into too much detail about the program because we cannot risk exposing these kids were trying to get away from the gangs. as the press release indicated, in cooperation with the community is paramount, and we realize that. these are some of the organizations that we collaborate with. you saw four recognized mini that we work with. i am sorry that susana rojas left. but at this time, i would like alfredo to come over here alfr. alfred no has worked with many
6:39 pm
organizations within the mission. he was a critical partner with us during the early part of the year when we had the serious gang violence that i mentioned in february of this year. it really could have gotten out of hand. but alfredo was out there on the street every day. he was a tremendous partner. if we recognize some other people and some people were kind of getting the credit for some of the work that alfredo did. so i did not want to go without letting everybody know what a tremendous job alfredo has done and how much we appreciate it. [applause] now, in closing, you heard the chief say he is not computer safi.
6:40 pm
i, on the other hand, and on the cutting edge -- [laughter] of technology. the mission station now has a twitter account. we have a facebook. we have a web site, and we are right on top of it. i have to make a serious correction though. when i was talking about that trial, i said six officers. six gang members, six suspects were convicted, not six officers. we have got to get that straight. [laughter] so i will close on us being on the cutting edge of technology. and if any of the commissioners have any questions, i would be glad to field them. [applause]
6:41 pm
6:42 pm
comment. the public is now welcome to address the commission regarding items that did not appear on tonight's agenda but are within the subject matter and jurisdiction of the commission. the speaker shall address the remarks to the commission as a whole and not to individual commissioners. during public comment, either police or occ personnel or commissioners are required to respond to questions presented by the public but may provide a brief response to the individual commissioners and personnel should refrain from entering into any debate or discussion with speakers during public comment. public comment is limited to 3 minutes per person. >> feel free to talk about the presentations. >> a good evening, commissioners, captain corrales, chief suhr. my name is edwin stevens, a longtime resident of san
6:43 pm
francisco, living here over 42 years. into the public schools. i am also a homeowner for the last 22 years. the reason i am coming here tonight is to let the police commissioners know that i want to commend san francisco police department, in particular, chief greg suhr, who was my captain at the baby station. we had a great working relationship. cap -- captain corrales, as well as the current captain. in particular, this is something that many people do not experience, and i hope they do not experience, on june 6, 2011, there was a shooting in front of my house, and it happened at 10:00 a.m., and their two bullet holes in my garage door. there was a man who was severely injured as a result of the shooting, and ironically, 10:00 is the time i am usually
6:44 pm
leaving, and it was in the direct line of sight of where my automobile is as they go to my car. the only thing that was indifferent as i checked a couple e-mails as i heard the gunshots ring out, and it sounded like it came out of my garage. so when i heard what appeared to be some running in my building, i did what any american would do, stayed in my house and waited until i heard the police sirens. the long and short of it was when i went outside, everything was calm. there were police from the mission station. there were police from the bay view. i saw the gentleman on his knees. he hedged it -- he had been shot in the arm and the neck. there was blood coming out of his mouth. but the police said the whole scene tape off. they had a control. they were getting statements from everyone. i was very happy to know that i live where i have that type of police protection. i was a little suspect because
6:45 pm
chief suhr was -- captain suhr was promoted to chief suhr a month earlier and was wondering if he was trying to tell me something. seriously, it is great, the relationship with the permission station, as well as with the current captain. i do not know what happened, but the man that was shot did live. so the emergency response team worked very well. i want the police commission to know that i feel very safe in my home because i always see the police in the area. i see them on the bicycles on third street. there's a lot of police presence. there is a good working relationship the police have in the bayview as a result of chief suhr's tutelage. thank you very much. [applause] >> hello, happy september could
6:46 pm
of the song always says, do you remember in september? this year, we all remember september. there was an eight-week course that committed the united against violence. i live in the sro's in the tenderloin. i heard good news that people will be working with the sro's in the tenderloin corporations, because bullying and hate crimes, they happen often. i let the police officers know when they come to a hotel, people really do need the assistance, and they do not want to look like their mental, and they really have reasons to call. we live in small spaces. we learned to survive. i love coming here because in their neighborhoods, we go to sleep, and we wake up on the morning, and there are people there, people there.
6:47 pm
we feel we should get a benefit from people being in our neighborhoods so much. coming here, you can feel that their community police. you have got trees. it is not a threat to ask people were cesar chavez elementary school is. i did some block cleaning in this area. i think we have to be the america that no one believes in that is not a partisan. san francisco is high on the mountain because it is the last place in america before you fall off into the ocean. so you see how significant we are? community united has been great for me, to have someone you talk -- to talk to when you're dealing with bullying and hate crimes when people think it is normal. don't ask, don't tell made history last tuesday. people will challenge who we are in this country.
6:48 pm
so i really want us to make san francisco hate-free. pass those hate crimes. make sure people do not worry. that is why people come here from america's cities in many countries. they come here as a refugee. i know this city will know how to work that. i am here to volunteer my service. thank you. and come out to city hall friday. we have a president obama town hall meeting from 5:00 to 9:00. the first one that is going across 15 states at city hall this friday, september 30. thank you, police commissioners. [applause] >> good evening, commissioners. president pro tem, president,
6:49 pm
and commissioners. i am a native san franciscan, born and raised in the mission district. i grew up here. we have lived in sentences go all our lives. we have spent a great deal of our adult lives making sure we improve a lot for our community. first, i want to thank you all for coming down to the mission district. i want to thank commissioner chan for reaching out to the latino committee every time there are issues. our issues these days are the surge of violence taking place, and that is the reason why we have come to the mission to say that we need you to come down and meet with the community. it is good to see you here. a lot of good things that are happening here. i came to ask some questions. but to be honest with you, captain corrales did such an excellent job of providing all of the answers for my questions, particularly one of the top
6:50 pm
questions i was going to ask and i should have known at the response, and that is the staffing. because when we have seen these surges in violence, the stabbing has not gone up. in fact, the stabbing has been under what we think it should be. there has got to be a police presence out there when these things happen. we just sat union officials, and from sacramento and stockton. they wanted to come to the mission district and go to 24th street. i was a little hesitant. i thought, maybe we should be of to showcase our communities and our culture. so we took them down. spent about an hour and a half. they had dinner here. did not see any police presence. but let me tell you what i did see. i do not see any crime, and we felt safe. i think that is the result of the fact that we have got a chief who has done some amazing work. he did it when he was here as the captain. we watched him carefully.
6:51 pm
when he was in the bay view, he did the same thing. chief suhr does not just spell community policing, he lives it every day. under his command and under captain corrales' command, we have the type of community policing that gives people that have worked in the mission district entire life the confidence and trust in the officers. because when you saw these guys, it is because folks in the committee stepped forward and said i know what happened, i saw what happened, and i know you need to speak to. you cannot do without the involvement of the community. i want to thank you all for being here. we need you here from time to time. it is nice to see that the police commission does not have its hearings in the hall of justice, because folks do not always feel comfortable there. even city hall, as beautiful as it is, it is always nice to have you in the neighborhood.
6:52 pm
welcome to the mission district. please do not let it be the last time. thank you, commissioners. [applause] >> good evening again to the commissioners, chief suhr, and captain corrales. my name is rita, and i would like to speak on two issues. i have always been a beat officer supporter, because i think it is very, very important to have them around. i would like to recommend for the beat officers of 24th straight that they work at 12:00, at noon. because of the work up to midnight, i think there's a lot that goes on during the day. there are a lot of kids on the street. we know there is not that many
6:53 pm
officers, but i think 24th street should deserve beat officers in the afternoon. also, i would like to strongly recommend that the beat officers have cell phones and give them out to the merchants. because of something is happening, the merchants can call the beat officers and they can get there. i would like to say we do have a wonderful beat officers, excellent beat officers. otherwise i would not be here supporting them. i do not know what the process is, but i would like to ask for the support of the commissioners, the chief, and the captain to see that 24th street does have beat officers beginning at 12:00. another thing i want to talk about, and that is why i am very proud of chief suhr, and again, i want to thank all of you for supporting him to become the chief, because he is very
6:54 pm
community-minded. he does work very well with the community. we are taking -- i run an after- school tutoring program on 24th street, and we are taking serious -- students over to san bruno. that is the garden project. that gives these city kids an opportunity to go out, plant vegetables, take vegetables, come back home, and have something to show. because the kids i work with do not have that opportunity to go out to farms and do things like that. and i also appreciate sergeant steve toma. he is a very good committee officer, and i would like to see we continue those kinds of things. because catherine, who runs the garden project, she has troubled youth.
6:55 pm
she pays them, and they're getting an education while they are getting paid. and i think we need more programs like that. thank you very much. [applause] >> good evening, commissioners. chief suhr, captain corrales -- i am l. little nervous today. i got overwhelmed with a conversation i had a little while ago with chief suhr. some of you might know me from my son, alberto, who was shot and killed at 13th and folsom almost five years ago, january 7, 2007. but why i am here today is i addressed you last week in regards to my mother, my 68- year-old mother who has a
6:56 pm
replacement -- an artificial valve and a pacemaker. she was a salted on 9/11 double the she was assaulted on 9/11 at 2500 hours. chief suhr give me some feedback from our last meeting, and i was happy to hear that he told me that he is still looking into the situation. i am hoping that something does work out with that and that we do hear from gascon's office. but i am here today to also let you know at the mission statement -- station that the perpetrator that insulted my mother lives one block away. he is a marine. he is getting away with assaul ting my mother, left her face
6:57 pm
black and blue. because he was a marine, the district attorneys originally dropped the charges. i think that what they are saying to me is that they dismissed the charges because he has head trauma to the ia. i am sorry, but i have head trauma, too, from losing my son. but that does not mean i can go out there and find those who killed my son and shoot them, too. he was in iraq and blew up in the clubs in a fight and to get out on everybody around and hit my 68-year-old mother. he needs to be held responsible for that. i am not saying they need to put him in jail. i am not saying he needs to be locked up. but he does need mental health services. i have undergone five years of therapy there my daily work that you know i do with the committee, with the jails, with
6:58 pm
the healing circle. so this person needs to be referred and action needs to be taken with him. thank you. [applause] >> good evening. my name is mike daily. i lived since 1980 in that fair? -- thurmont district. i come from the structural steel industry. keeping with the rules of public comment on the topic of tonight, at three things to offer in terms of community service. recently i completed -- one of 23,000 san franciscans who completed the fire department's neighborhood emergency response training. it is an extraordinary program. in my industry, we train our employees, the hard workers in all kinds of rescue and retrieval. that program as well-funded as if it is, looking better than what the fire department is
6:59 pm
offering to everyone here in the city. the only problem i have with the program as it did not include the police department. the only police presence throughout their entire program and their literature is -- a fellow came by from the credit union trying to sign this up. that was fine. that was well-appreciated. nevertheless, as we learned in new york 10 years ago, when our uniformed officers are not working together, uniformed officers lose their lives. i really hope that there is a way -- when i asked personnel, why are police not here, there would say that they have their own programs. tonight we talk about community policing and crn. but what they do is build teamwork block by block, neighborhood-they do not try toe work. they tell you when you go they tell you when you go through these classrooms that we
259 Views
IN COLLECTIONS
SFGTV: San Francisco Government Television Television Archive Television Archive News Search ServiceUploaded by TV Archive on