The San Francisco Police Officers Association (SFPOA) is the largest
police union
A police union is a trade union for police officers. Police unions formed later than most other occupations, reflecting both a conservative tendency and relatively superior working conditions. The first police unions formed in the United States. Sh ...
representing the
San Francisco Police Department, with around 2,200 members as of 2016. It was founded in 1946
and by the late 1980s had around 1,750 members, amounting to the majority of San Francisco
police officer
A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...
s.
As of 2022, its acting president is Tracy McCray.
Advocacy history
On February 12, 2006, the head of the San Francisco Police Officers Association said that
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
Gavin Newsom
Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California fr ...
showed "a complete and total lack of respect for the rank and file" in his response to a
San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...
series examining San Francisco officers' use of force.
In October 2006, the vice president of the San Francisco Police Officers Association, Kevin Martin, was issued a
restraining order
A restraining order or protective order, is an order used by a court to protect a person in a situation involving alleged domestic violence, child abuse, assault, harassment, stalking, or sexual assault.
Restraining and personal protection or ...
from Susan Leff, an attorney for San Francisco's police watchdog agency.
Both assemblywoman
Fiona Ma
Fiona Ma (born March 4, 1966) is an American accountant and politician. She has been serving as the California state treasurer since January 7, 2019. She previously served as a member of the California Board of Equalization from 2015 to 2019, t ...
and Mayor Gavin Newsom have been endorsed by the San Francisco Police Officers Association in part due to their opposition to legislation that would increase Californians' access to police disciplinary records by rolling back a 2006
California Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacra ...
ruling.
In 2016, the SFPOA hired political communications expert
Nathan Ballard for what was described as a "counterattack" against police reform attempts following the controversial killing of
Mario Woods
is a character (arts), character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in ...
by officers and concerns about racism in the city's police department.
/ref> The union's campaign against reform proponent George Gascón
George Gascón (born March 12, 1954) is an American attorney and former police officer who is the district attorney of Los Angeles County. A member of the Democratic Party and a former Republican, Gascón served as the district attorney of San ...
was criticized for using exaggerated crime figures, and Ballard acknowledged having misread the rates.body cameras
A body camera, bodycam, body worn video (BWV), body-worn camera, or wearable camera is a wearable audio, video, or photographic recording system.
Body cameras have a range of uses and designs, of which the best-known use is as a part of poli ...
for officers, the union achieved what acting SFPD chief Toney Chaplin described as a "huge concession", allowing an officer involved in a shooting to view the footage before giving a full report.
See also
* List of events in the history of the San Francisco Police Department
References
External links
San Francisco Police Officers Association Official Website
San Francisco Police Department
Law enforcement in California
Police unions in the United States
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