Francis J. Ahern (1899–1958) was the San Francisco Police Chief from January 1956 to September 1958. Appointed by mayor

George Christopher George Christopher (born George Christopheles; December 8, 1907 – September 14, 2000) was a Greek-American politician who served as the 34th mayor of San Francisco from 1956 to 1964. He is the most recent Republican to be elected mayor of San ...

's police commission, Ahern, with the rank of patrolman, was elevated to chief over every captain, lieutenant and sergeant on the force. Ahern's rank was deceptive, as he had been passed over for promotion time and time again because, it was said, he wouldn't go along with corrupt police leadership. He was actually head of both the homicide and rackets details with the title of Inspector, which was not a civil service title. He also spent time as an investigator for

Estes Kefauver Carey Estes Kefauver (; July 26, 1903 – August 10, 1963) was an American politician from Tennessee. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1939 to 1949 and in the Senate from 1949 until his d ...

's anti-crime

Kefauver hearings The United States Senate Special Committee to Investigate Crime in Interstate Commerce was a special committee of the United States Senate which existed from 1950 to 1951 and which investigated organized crime which crossed state borders in the Un ...

. Christopher was intent on cleaning up the police force and had given an ultimatum to the previous mayor's chief, George Healy. After an embarrassing gambling raid by federal agents next door to the old Hall of Justice on

Kearney Street Kearny Street () in San Francisco, California runs north from Market Street to The Embarcadero. Toward its south end, it separates the Financial District from the Union Square and Chinatown districts. Further north, it passes over Telegrap ...

of which Healy claimed no prior knowledge, the newly appointed police commission accepted Healy's resignation and Ahern was tapped for the top job. Ahern's first move was to transfer every district captain; then he moved every twenty lieutenants to new assignments. Next, he transferred one hundred of the department's 200+ sergeants. Then he began the reform of the traffic bureau. Police were expected to close gambling and vice operations in their districts and the old excuse of not knowing was no longer accepted. At some point, Ahern's zealousness caused the mayor and the department some embarrassment when he tried to close down Bridge clubs. Mayor Christopher pulled him off of this effort. In September 1958, Ahern died of a heart attack at a Baseball game at

Seals Stadium Seals Stadium was a minor league baseball stadium on the west coast of the United States, located in San Francisco, California; it later became the first home of the major league San Francisco Giants. Opened in the Mission District in 1931, Sea ...

. His funeral was held in the rotunda of City Hall. A half block alley on the north side of the San Francisco Hall of Justice that opens onto Sixth Street is named for Francis Ahern.

References

*Dorsey, George - ''Christopher of San Francisco'' - 1962 MacMillan Company, NY (LC# 62-13596) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ahern, Francis J. 1899 births 1958 deaths San Francisco Police Department chiefs History of San Francisco