Skip to main content

tv   [untitled]    June 9, 2012 9:00pm-9:30pm PDT

9:00 pm
are going to take them off because we are missing commissioner turman. he is on the bike ride. i have spoken to other commissioners about this, and we traditionally do this when we have all of the commissioners available, so we will remove this item. also, 2 line item number one, we want to congratulate commissioner dejesus, who was elected to the democratic committee yesterday. [applause] so i wanted to do that. those are the two announcements i wanted to make, and, actually, there is another item, and i would like to move before public comment, located in the occ directors report, but i want to address something front and center at the very beginning. ok. we will save it for the
9:01 pm
presentation and. again, a very special reward that the occ receive, so let's move to item number one. secretary monroe: this is a public comment, where members of the public can address the commission on items that are not on tonight's agenda. they are not to direct their comments to the department or occ personnel. during the roles of public comment, the personnel nor commissioners are required to respond to questions presented by the public but may provide a brief response. individual commissioners and police and occ personnel should refrain however from entering into any debate or discussion with speakers during public comment. please limit your comments to 3 minutes. president mazzucco: thank you,
9:02 pm
inspector monroe, and welcome again, ace. >> ace washington. i spoke to the president, and i am asking for the permission to speak more than three minutes, not as ace washington -- can i speak, commissioner? no, no, no. it is not that you cannot. you have the authority is to do what you want. i am not new to this. i am trying to be professional. i am not speaking for ace. i am speaking for a race that is in a state of emergency, and it is called the african-american out migration, and this commission, excuse me, is bound by that. am i right or wrong? i am representing that to you as a representative of that, and you tell me i cannot even finish my sentence? that is what is going on in the city?
9:03 pm
♪ my name is ace and i am on the case some of you people out there do not want me but it is no mystery i am just working on a case involving a lot of conspiracy ooohhh ♪ i am talking on authority. the mayor knows it. everybody in the city. number one, i just want to speak a couple more minutes, but the disrespect that the african- american black community did in this city is unacceptable. starting at this moment, because there is the african-american out migration plan, and the police is on top of this why they are leaving the city, and that is a pity, and i dare you to sit there and address me like you are the police department,
9:04 pm
disrespecting 8, and the press, on friday. coming up to me and acting like i am a terrorist. l'chiam training to go to the white house. that is unacceptable. it is blatant racism. i will be damned. this is the authority that was interested -- and vested in me to represent my family, and you sit here to tell me that i don't have the right to come here and speak on behalf of the african americans in a city that knows how to get rid of the urban renewal. -- removal. by asking for more time to talk about the racism that is going on, which the deplete department, -- police department, ok? it is no mystery.
9:05 pm
i just asking for tw minutes, and i am asking very respectfully. we are talking about accountability and conflict resolution. that is the one thing that is going to have transparency and what we call community perform right here in the city of san francisco. president mazzucco: mr. washington, there is a three- minute rule -- >> as the chairman of the assembly. two minutes. >> when we get to the chief's report, then you can do the other. >> i am the one you did that. yes, sir. >> your time is up.
9:06 pm
thank you. thank you. >> i am so-called of this city, and this administration. >> your time is up, sir. >> mr. washington, do not forget your -- president mazzucco: next speaker, please. clyde? >> good afternoon. i feel his pain. i know his pain, but that is another subject. i would like to address something.
9:07 pm
i hate to say this, and i do not want to be disrespectful. chief suhr, who i respect, and he will be here for six more years because the mayor is going to get reelected. he is doing a great job. he would get praises under -- get pay raises under prop m. he will retire at 90% of his base pay. he will cash out all of his vacation time, his compt time, his sick time, so chief suhr will walk out of city hall with a check possibly for $800,000, give or take, just like the fire chief. what is wrong with this picture?
9:08 pm
the president of the united states makes $400,000 per year. chief suhr will walk out with $700,000? ken cashman, when he retires, he will walk out a city of with $400,000, $500,000, right, if you crash everything out, give or take? honestly, mr. cashman, when you cash out -- president mazzucco: you are not supposed to address individual members. >> ok. this is ridiculous. this is totally crazy. this is totally crazy. the poa, prom m, they are not worth that kind of money. do not get me wrong. they are doing a great job, but
9:09 pm
greg suhr is not worth $800,000 when he walks out of city hall. president mazzucco: thank you, clyde. next speaker. >> good afternoon -- good evening. my name is kim carter, and i am with a local, and we represent the dangerous conditions at the crime lab and our disappointment with the department's ability to resolve these matters in a timely matter. -- manner. we first brought this issue when the roads were flooded every time it rains, making it impossible for the people work there. our members to set up a system where they shuttled employees to and from their cars, which they had to leave over 1 mile away from the actual laboratory. this issue prevents employees from getting to work on time as well as prevents them from leaving for a meal, break, etc.,
9:10 pm
and i have some pictures that were presented to the department in february so you can see the scope of the problem. in addition to flooding, there are severe potholes. the route requires 1.5 miles of driving on these has its roads through an area that as many abandoned buildings, many potholes and old railroad tracks, so it is of great danger to personal vehicles. the route is also extremely muddy, and some is not paved. president mazzucco: would you like to put something on the overhead? >> i do not know how to do that. sure. it is wear and tear on personal vehicles and city vehicles, and there are suspension problems, the alignment, and excess of wear. there were experiences with tire damage and scrap metal that has required tire replacement as recent as last week.
9:11 pm
currently, one vehicle is being repaired for damage to tires. in addition to potholes and a rough roads, employees are not able to drive to and from without having their vehicle covered with mud, and passed testing of this month shows that it contains asbestos. this will happen as long as the employees are required to drive through the is a muddy road conditions. of note, the construction trucks that come in and out are hosed down before they leave the base to not track this into the public. one person has been hurt due to the road conditions. there was a motorcycle accident on may 30 while driving to work. he hit a pothole and adjacent to the old track, with the road be and what with the water trucks, the wheels lips, and he fell off
9:12 pm
the motorcycle. he was taken to hospital by ambulance, and there are pictures of his injuries. there is no cell phone reception are very poor cell phone reception at the current route. if one were to get a flat tire, they would not be able to call for help. this is of great concern. i was asked a question, so i would like to have a little more time. president mazzucco: unfortunately, as we told mr. washington, we have the three- minute rule, and there are the people with the sunshine ordinance who monitor us, so i apologize. >> you asked me a question. president mazzucco: that took about five seconds. >> your time is up. >> all right, thank you. >> i represent local 21.
9:13 pm
there was a gentleman who fell off on his motorcycle. he had a sprain, but luckily did not have a head injury despite hitting his head. she gave you pictures. she talked about the cell phone reception, as though it one were to get a flat tire, they would be unable to call for help. there was an incident on the base where two women were attempted victims of a sexual assault. in the was a physical altercation with someone trying to get on. one of our members tried to call 911 and could not get a signal, until she dropped 1.5 miles away from the gate. the response time to and from this remote location has increased for all emergency vehicles. this affects all, as well as all emergencies where a clinic is stored. the mobile command center. to conclude, we are concerned for the safety and health of the
9:14 pm
employees at the crime lab. this is including personal expenditures. it is dangerous. employees are paying out of their pocket for the cost of repairs and the removal of mud, which we remind you includes asbestos and mud, which is part of their work because the laboratory is in such a remote location. that should be enough for the department to take immediate action. we would like the street opened immediately. that would make the route much safer for all employees and visitors. after many attempts to talk to the department about this request, we finally received an email last week that they would not pay for a guard at the gate and it would therefore not be opened. we requested that they pay for a guard at the gate, and we have received no response. it is their job to provide a safe environment for their employees, and one injury should be enough. the cost of a guard is nothing
9:15 pm
compared to the liability if someone is hurt or killed while trying to get to work. thank you for your time. president mazzucco: thank you very much. we do not normally respond to public comment, but this is a tad bit concerned. if there were any -- is there anything you can add to this or update us? >> certainly. first, i would like to thank been wearing -- union representatives for addressing this evening. and disclosure, i did get a heads up and ask for a briefing this morning. i got a beat -- detailed briefing and comprehensive response plan. what is being represented by the representatives is largely very accurate -- accurate. there are many challenges, and the chief remains fully committed to creating a safe environment for our crime lab employees out there. i do have a detailed response
9:16 pm
plan year. it is and will involved. i can certainly share it with you after the meeting. it is a detailed timeline of what we have been doing. i am convinced we have been working diligently to solve these problems that you so well articulated, and we remain committed to doing it. there are some challenges because of the landlord, but we remain committed. we will come back to the commission in the near future with our response. president mazzucco: that is what we will have to do, with an agendized item, and we do not normally do this, but you have been year before, so we are going to agendize this item and see what we need to do. thank you. further public comment? >> good evening, commissioners, members of the public. i want to let you know that we are currently meeting the sunshine ordinance with the family of oscar grant and
9:17 pm
another, jr., and there was a sunshine or in its request to obtain the video, and the sunshine ordinance has been out of compliance. it was eight months. also, we were going to do a request on the death of kenneth. his mother has not gotten the coroner's report, and there was the initial police report for the investigation. when my son was killed, there was the coroner's report. and there was the original transcript of the police report.
9:18 pm
within three weeks, and we want to see the same thing happening to the sunshine ordinance for this case. thank you. president mazzucco: thank you for coming. commissioner: you made a request from the police department? >> muni has copies of the tapes. there were four tapes, one of the house, one with muni, two cameras at a corner, and one from a store, so we do understand that some of those were confiscated as part of the evidence, but we are trying to get a copy of the muni tape, because the police claim there was a gun in the train, and that is why they started chasing him on foot.
9:19 pm
not being able to get that tape is awfully suspicious. whatever the finding is, we need to know. president mazzucco: thank you. any further public comment? seeing none, public comment is closed [gavel] please call line item number two. secretary monroe: line item number two, reports and announcements. president mazzucco: good evening, mr. cashman. >> he will be back, and i am pinch hitting. it has been a busy two weeks. overall, it was a very good and very challenging two weeks. one of the things i want to showcase is that there was a special victims regional summit returning information sharing. this goes to furthering the
9:20 pm
chiefs vision of the victims unit, which was created last year, and the captain did an outstanding job pulling this together. it was basically a one-day summit to bridgeville and share information. also, there were legal updates on how to do jurisdictional case reviews and the latest in forensics and technology, so a huge congratulations to joanie. days or hours away from ending his 30-year career. it was a tremendous program, and we look forward to continuing it. additionally, over the past two is, we at several events which were challenging but successful. there was the police response to the activities on may 26 and may 27. overall, it was a very calm event, much calmer than we have seen in recent years, with a few of intoxication rest. sunday, may 27, we had double duty in one part of the city
9:21 pm
where we worked with the 70th anniversary of the golden gate bridge. no real event there, it's very successful operation, according to chief schmidt, and then on june 2, we had the black and white ball, and that was very successful, but we also had prior to that the union street fair, a two-day event, and in the past, there had been public drinking. over all, a very successful event with i believe only five arrests for public drunkenness, and then of course, we were dealing with president obama visiting some event in san francisco. all went off without a hitch, and he went safely back to air force one, so a very busy two weeks for the police department. we get about one week of rest, and then we get into june, and then there is the u.s. open, which will be co hosted until the 17th.
9:22 pm
actually, it starts monday with some practice rounds. it will be a very busy time. in addition, in the middle of the month, there is the pride weekend and then a fourth of july, so it is a very, visit -- busy time. we have reduced our overtime budget, but we are getting the job done. that being said, we were very happy when the chief and the mayor made the announcement about the mayor's hiring plan last week and presented it to the board. we are basically -- everybody knows the projected attrition rate in the police department is going to be devastating if we do not have any effect of hiring plans, and we are happy with the mayor's plan, and we are looking forward to working with the board throughout the budget process. on the budget process, for anybody following this, the first budget subcommittee meeting is june 13, in the first hearing before the board is the 20th.
9:23 pm
and i think that is about all i have. president mazzucco: well, thank you, chief. i was present at the press conference made last wednesday with the mayor made those comments. this commission has really pushed, and many members of the board of supervisors, the mayor's office, because we're on the front line of realizing that we -- we have three under to 400 officers retiring, and we know the attrition rate takes officers, how long it takes to train the officers, the percentage who make it through the academy training, and we know it takes between three to five years before they become efficient officers, so i have to tell you, one thing they have done, i want to thank the supervisors and the mayor. i think it is incredible that we announced three academy classes, and there are the young officers, and that is great news. it is great news for the public. the public is safer. the more officers we have, the
9:24 pm
more projects we have, so i cannot think chief suhr and the members -- thank chief suhr and the others, and this includes paramount classes, so public safety is a important issue for this board and the mayor. >> we want to thank the board, as well, think. president mazzucco: commissioner dejesus? commissioner dejesus: i want to thank them for the academy classes, but i also want to think this board for the budget and for continuing to raise the alarm of the number of officers. i want to command commissioner slaughter, who continue to bring up this issue and pick at it.
9:25 pm
and i am glad he did something about it before it was disastrous. but i do want to ask some questions. i saw the video, the 10-minute video with a bit more detail. i am just wondering, are we doing an investigation regarding that rioting on the mission station and the surrounding business owners? it appears there was no response from the station. i do not know. i am wondering if we are looking into that. >> we are doing an administrative review on the events, and we have a concurrent criminal investigation going on to help identify some of the suspects, and we are optimistic we will be able to make some arrests in that matter. commissioner dejesus: and i am also wondering, has the department been able to reach out to those who are rightly so disappointed and upset? i am wondering if there were
9:26 pm
meetings our future plans on how to handle these events? >> there has been a lot of outreach. of is the, the captain and the mission station have been doing a lot of informal -- we have not had a town hall meeting, to speak. the police department really prides itself on crowd control measures. there are some significant challenges. not the least of which was the staffing levels, but we are doing in the minister in a review to find at how we can improve on the performance. >> i have to say, it would be interesting, if there was a town hall meeting, to complete the administration review, and perhaps the commissioners can be part of a meeting with those to get an idea of their losses and the damage done to them, and some ideas of what they might have for the future with whatever the industry review
9:27 pm
brings board, so those are just some of the thoughts i had on that, and the last thing is back one woman just brought up hot -- brought up not getting it report, and i thought there was something, the incident report? >> i can speak a little bit about policy on this. when there is an active and open a criminal investigation, for instance, with an officer- involved shooting, there is a separate, parallel investigation done by the special investigation unit. as long as it is an active and open investigation, we do not release this, the incident reports are part of the case file. when we get something from the district attorney's office or a declaration, the matter is closed, the case closed, and then everything is available.
9:28 pm
commissioner dejesus: i appreciate that, and i know there is a procedure put in place, but i know we had someone discussing with family members to discuss what is going on and where we are. >> that is correct, and someone is in that position now. a lot of times, people are frustrated by the lack of information, but it is part of the investigation, is essentially. commissioner dejesus: i just took that family was also contacted about where the investigation is. i assume that was done. >> i cannot tell me now, but i can guarantee it will be done tomorrow. commissioner dejesus: a kick, and the last, i wonder, do our crime lab people go out in the night? do they have to go out at night and that kind of pothole and flooding? >> i think we're talking about employees to work at the crime lab, and traditionally, the
9:29 pm
crime lab would be more analysis from csi. commissioner dejesus: ok. got it. a kid, well maybe we should make some of this picture is available to the public so we can know what we are talking about, and i look forward to the report. thank you. president mazzucco: anything further for the chief? great. inspector monroe, please call line item 2b. secretary monroe: item 2b, the occ directors' report. president mazzucco: good evening. >> good evening. i would give you a more detailed report on june 20 as well as the occ report, when