San Francisco Police Commission Meeting - September 3, 2025
San Francisco Police Commission Meeting - September 3, 2025
The San Francisco Police Commission convened on September 3, 2025, at 1:45 PM. The meeting included recognition of an officer, public comments, reports from the Chief and the Department of Police Accountability (DPA) Director, adoption of policies, and discussion on several departmental general orders.
Consent Calendar
- The Commission unanimously received and filed multiple reports: SFPD and DPA's Sparks Report (Second Quarter 2025), Safe Streets for All Second Quarter 2025, SFPD Family Code 6228 quarterly report update, SFPD Annual Limited English Proficiency Report 2024, SFPD and DPA's Document Protocol Report for Second Quarter 2025, Second Quarter 2025 Audit of Electronic Communication Devices for Bias, a resolution authorizing acceptance of a $63,254 grant, and SFPD and DPA's SB 1421 and SB16 reports for July 2025. Motion passed 7-0.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Several members of the public spoke on various topics. One speaker expressed concerns about child safety and alleged pedophilia in government. Another commended the motorcycle division for de-escalation and community interaction. A speaker identifying as Sergeant Klein referenced a report on human rights violations and requested action. A sea captain raised concerns about the closure of a fuel dock essential for emergency marine rescues. A speaker advocated for publicizing new legislation allowing tipsters to come forward for unsolved homicides. A professor described an incident at a protest where a young medic was allegedly assaulted by police, requesting independent oversight and release of data on injuries. During the Chief's report public comment, multiple speakers praised the Chief's leadership and urged continued community engagement, while one mother highlighted her son's unsolved murder from 2006.
Discussion Items
Officer Recognition (Item 1)
- Officer Dennis O'Connor of the Fugitive Recovery Enforcement Team (FRET) was recognized for exceptional service, including locating a shooting suspect and a homicide suspect, leading to arrests and seizure of an AR-style rifle. Commissioners and the Chief expressed gratitude.
Chief’s Report (Item 5)
- Chief Yep reported crime statistics: overall crime down 27% year-to-date, violent crime down 19%, property crime down 28%, homicides down 32% (15 homicides in 2025, clearance rate 147%), firearm crimes down 47%. He summarized several notable incidents over the previous three weeks, including a fatal shooting on September 3, multiple non-fatal shootings, a protest arrest of 138 individuals on August 27, and other responses. The Chief noted the department is 523 officers below the recommended baseline of 2,074. He discussed technology initiatives including drones (58 trained operators) and the ARCTIC center relocation. In response to Commissioner questions, he addressed cooperation with ICE, department notice 25-089 on immigration enforcement, and plans to improve community alerts.
DPA Director’s Report (Item 6)
- Director Henderson reported a 27% increase in complaints compared to the previous year, with over 100 more cases. Caseloads are up 20%. All 3304 deadlines met; only one case over 270 days (to be closed this week). The department reduced pending cases significantly. He highlighted the NACOL/COA regional conference hosted in San Francisco, digitization of 1,400 boxes (over 2 million documents) of records, new multilingual phone system (7 languages), and upcoming reporting improvements seeking commissioner input.
Commission Reports (Item 7)
- Commissioners reported on community outreach for the police chief search, attendance at events including Aubrey Abacasa commemoration, North Beach listening session, Chinatown Night Out, and the Pistahan parade. They reminded the public of remaining listening sessions and online survey.
Department General Orders (Items 8-11)
- DGO 1.08 (Community Policing): A motion to adopt was made but after discussion of amendments (adding "merchants" to purpose) and concerns about implementation details, the motion was withdrawn and the item tabled for future discussion.
- Community Policing & Problem-Solving Manual (Item 9): Also tabled alongside DGO 1.08 to keep consistency.
- DGO 10.11 (Body Worn Camera): Adopted unanimously (7-0) with a 45-day implementation timeframe.
- DGO 11.02 (Secondary Employment): Adopted unanimously (7-0).
Closed Session (Items 12-15)
- Public comment was invited. The Commission voted to hold Item 14 in closed session and later voted unanimously not to disclose closed session discussions, with the exception of factual updates on 14A to be included in minutes.
Key Outcomes
- DGO 10.11 (Body Worn Camera) adopted (7-0).
- DGO 11.02 (Secondary Employment) adopted (7-0).
- DGO 1.08 and manual tabled for further discussion.
- Consent calendar approved (7-0).
- Minutes of July 9, 16, and August 13, 2025 adopted (7-0).
- Closed session held; no disclosure of discussions except factual updates on 14A.
- Commission scheduled additional chief search listening sessions and continued community engagement.
Meeting Transcript
President Clay would like to take role. Commissioner Techke. Here. Commissioner Scott? Here. Commissioner Leong. Here. Commissioner Ye. Here. Commissioner Elias is in route. Vice President Benedicto. Present. Commissioner President Clay, you have a quorum also with us tonight, our Chief Yep from the San Francisco Police Department and Executive Director Paul Henderson from the Department of Police Accountability. All right. Thank you, Sergeant. Welcome everyone to the September 3rd Commission meeting. At this time, uh Sergeant, will you please call the uh the order of Line item one, weekly officer recognition certificate. Presentation of an officer who has gone above and beyond in the performance of their duties. Officer Dennis O'Connor, star number 4350 from the Fugitive Recovery Enforcement Team. No? There we go. Good evening, President Clay, Commissioners, Police Chief, Yep, Director Henderson, and members of the public. I'm Captain Jim Ahern, and I supervise the DMAC unit, which FRET is a part of. The Fugitive Recovery Enforcement Team, or FRET, is a specialized unit dedicated to locating and apprehending individuals with outstanding arrest warrants. While the mission may appear straightforward, it plays a vital role in enhancing public safety and maintaining order across the city. Among the units standout members is Officer Dennis O'Connor. Officer O'Connor is one of the hardest working people I know. He shows up early and he never complains about the job. He goes after some of the most dangerous criminals in our city, the people who put others at risk. He doesn't do it for recognition, headlines, or awards. He does it because as a proud San Francisco native, he believes in protecting San Francisco. I'll highlight two recent cases that exemplify Officer O'Connor's dedication, tenacity, and investigative skills. In the first case, Officer O'Connor led the effort to locate a suspect wanderer for a shooting in San Francisco. As he attempted to track down the suspect, he identified a friend of the suspect who was on active probation with a search condition and prohibited from possessing firearms. Officer O'Connor located and arrested the shooting suspect on the attempted homicide warrant. That alone would be a great job, but he took it one step further. Officer O'Connor tracked down the friend and conducted a probation search. The search of the associate's resident resulted in the seizure of an AR-style rifle and ammunition. The shooting investigation not only led to the arrest of a violent felon, but also removed an illegal firearm from our streets. In the second incident, Officer O'Connor was contacted by our SFPD homicide investigators regarding a wanted murderer. The case was time sensitive because the investigators were worried about the loss of critical evidence. Relying on Officer O'Connor's expertise, they entrusted him with the task of locating the suspect. Within two hours, Officer O'Connor had identified the suspect's vehicle, determined a likely location, and established connections to associates. His uh efforts led to a swift and safe apprehension of the homicide suspect. And as a result, the case was successfully presented to the San Francisco District Attorney's Office for prosecution. These examples are just a glimpse into Officer O'Connor's tireless commitment to public safety. He has been a leader within the FRET unit since its inception and continues to serve as a role model for his peers. I would like to also mention that Officer O'Connor is a veteran member of the specialist team. And for those on the commission and the public unfamiliar with the specialist team, they're a collateral assignment and they work closely with our SWAT team. They're the first ones responding to critical incidents, and they helped the SWAT team on high-risk search warrants.
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