San Francisco Police Commission Regular Meeting - March 4, 2026

The San Francisco Police Commission held its regular meeting on March 4, 2026, at 1:45 PM. The meeting covered consent calendar items, the Chief's weekly crime trends report, the DPA Director's report, a presentation on the AB 481 annual report on military equipment, and adoption of revised Department General Order 8.12 on in-custody deaths. Public comment was heard from a mother advocating for awareness of unsolved homicides.

Consent Calendar

• The commission voted 5-0 to receive and file two items: the Audit of Electronic Communication Devices for Bias (4th Quarter and Year-End 2025) and the Department's Use of Non-City Entity Camera Policy Quarterly Report (3rd and 4th Quarter 2025). The Limited English Proficiency 2025 Annual Report was removed for a future presentation.

Public Comments & Testimony

• A mother of a homicide victim spoke during general public comment, urging the commission to raise awareness for unsolved homicides. She described her ongoing grief and called for resources for youth to prevent violence. She also submitted lists of unsolved cases.

Discussion Items

• Chief's Weekly Crime Trends Report (Chief Derek Liu): Chief Liu reported overall Part I crimes down 35% year-to-date compared to 2025. Violent crimes down 28%, property crimes down 36%. Homicides: 9 year-to-date (including that morning's incident), compared to 1 in 2025. Non-fatal shootings: 18 incidents (20 victims). Gun violence victims: 21 vs. 20 in 2025. Gun seizures: 152 firearms (13 ghost guns). Recruitment: 289th recruit class with 39 officers; applications reached 803 in January 2026 (record). Chief also discussed a departure from strict rank-order promotions, using secondary criteria (resume, interview) to select sergeants and commanders. He committed to providing an update on chief hearings backlog at the next meeting. Commissioners questioned about redistricting boundaries, community policing plans, and efforts to address budget cuts affecting youth programs.
• DPA Director's Report (Executive Director Paul Henderson): Henderson noted new complaints down 20% in Jan-Feb 2026 versus 2025, but overall volume remains 10% higher than two years ago. Open cases: 197. No missed 3304 deadlines. 11 tolled cases (over 270 days). 67 sustained cases pending SFPD action. DPA is participating in working groups to update DGO 5.20 on language access (LEP).
• AB 481 2025 Annual Report (Carl Nasida, Government Affairs Manager, and Acting Captain Mason): The report covered categories of military equipment: throwbots (17, used 7 times), Lenco Bearcat armored vehicle (1, used 42 times for high-risk warrants), command vehicles (5, used for events), breaching tools, flashbangs/pepperball (used 31 and 1 times respectively, with one violation under investigation), LRADs (4, used 52 times as public address system), specialized firearms (16 submachine guns, 64 short-barreled rifles; one OIS death), 40mm launchers (229, used 38 times; one investigation), and drones (98, deployed 1,122 times). No MRAPs, Humvees, water cannons, or microwave weapons. Costs totaled about $5.6 million. The department seeks to acquire another Bearcat and more drones via grants.
• Adoption of DGO 8.12 (In-Custody Deaths): The commission voted unanimously (7-0) to adopt revised Department General Order 8.12 with a 30-day implementation timeline, effective April 16, 2026.

Key Outcomes

• Approved consent calendar items (2 of 3) with 5-0 vote.
• Voted 7-0 to adopt revised DGO 8.12 on in-custody deaths.
• Voted 7-0 to go into closed session (item 12) and later voted 7-0 not to disclose closed session discussions (other than non-privileged information to be added to minutes).
• Chief Liu agreed to provide updates on redistricting, chief hearings backlog, and academy attrition at future meetings.
• The AB 481 report will be submitted to the Board of Supervisors for approval of continued equipment use.