Our neighborhoods and underserved communities are severely impacted by property crimes, car break-ins, and crimes stemming from addiction.

We must prioritize prosecutions by gauging the impact of crime on our communities as a whole.

1. Prosecute crimes that severely impact our public safety, including property crimes, car break-ins, theft, and burglaries.
2. Invite affected communities to share the impact of crime in court during trials.
3. Support legislation making it easier to prosecute auto burglaries.
4. Conduct public education campaigns around crime trends, how to protect yourself, and how to help your neighbors.
5. Clear the large number of homicide cases that have lasted more than four years and delay justice for both the accused and victims.

Communities are too often cut off from decisions affecting public safety and quality of life in our neighborhoods.

I will lead a holistic and cooperative approach to engagement and innovation, where police, prosecutors, community members, and City leaders work with people in our neighborhoods to solve problems affecting community safety.

1. Engage with local neighborhood and community groups to identify and tenaciously fix problems that threaten public safety.
2. Use crime data to work with City departments and agencies to eliminate and mitigate factors that lead to crime, including poorly lit streets, blight, and areas that discourage foot traffic.
3. Identify and propose solutions — through legislation or by creating new programs — to ongoing community concerns.
4. Develop working relationships with neighborhood interests, diverse constituencies, law enforcement, and community groups.

The District Attorney regularly fails to prosecute property and drug crimes, not only diminishing our quality of life, but also missing an opportunity for positive intervention.

We must prosecute these crimes through the lens of criminal justice reform, as an entry point for intervention and rehabilitation, to stop repeat offenses, and as a barrier against falling deeper into the criminal justice system.

1. Prioritize early intervention for first-time offenses by offering diversions out of the criminal justice system.
2. Stop repeat offenses with deterrent sentencing and intensive monitoring on probation.
3. Divert misdemeanor cases out of the courtroom when possible to provide effective rehabilitation.
4. Improve and create partnerships with the police department and other agencies to work on strategic measures to prevent property crimes, especially car break-ins, in the first place.
5. Ensure San Francisco jobs programs are a part of rehabilitation and available to those who commit minor offenses upon reentry.
6. Advocate for reform of correctional facilities that create obstacles to reentry or unfairly isolate or exploit the incarcerated.

The opioid epidemic and drug addiction on our streets is out of control. All of us, including our children, are forced to see and be affected by open drug use on a daily basis.

We must investigate and prosecute the worst street dealers, medical professionals, pharmacies, and even pharmaceutical companies selling opioids illegally or overprescribing for profit.

1. Arrest and prosecute street-level dealers who prey on those suffering from addiction and victimize communities with impunity.
2. Target gangs and organized crime to disrupt mid-level supply chains.
3. Partner with other law enforcement agencies to produce maximum results against the worst offenders.
4. Investigate and criminally prosecute doctors, medical professionals, and pharmacies for overprescribing pharmaceutical opioids.
5. Engage in civil law enforcement actions against medical corporations or pharmaceutical companies that illegally push their drugs, either by violations of law or unfair business practices.

There were 22 homicides and 110 non-fatal shootings in San Francisco in 2018.

It’s time for the District Attorney’s Office to lead on this critical public safety issue, to work proactively and aggressively to get guns off the streets and out of the hands of criminals.

1. Prioritize the prosecution of cases involving guns.
2. Work with the police to investigate and prosecute violations of gun safety laws, including illegal possession of firearms.
3. Promote and use Gun Violence Restraining Orders against individuals exhibiting warning signs of violence or harm to self or others.
4. Support new and stronger legislation to fix lax gun safety laws and loopholes.
5. Conduct and support regularly occurring gun buybacks.
6. Use the court process to ensure domestic abusers, stalkers, and other violent individuals are disarmed after a court order or conviction.

The well-publicized problems around the investigation and prosecution of police misconduct is one of the most visible signs of our broken criminal justice system in San Francisco. It should not take three years to investigate a police shooting. A thorough but expeditious investigation is necessary to allow a community to heal and move forward.

It is the District Attorney’s job to hold the police accountable for their actions — to restore the public’s trust in the system.

1. Complete all Officer-Involved Shooting investigations within six months. For cases not completed within six months, provide public updates on a monthly basis.
2. Investigate and prosecute officers who commit crimes under color of law or criminally abuse their authority.
3. Work with SFPD leadership to identify issues in screening or training and work to prevent future incidents.
4. Develop real partnerships and working relationships with the police officers who serve our communities.
5. Work with the SFPD and Police Commission to emphasize de-escalation methods of engagement and non-lethal alternatives to firearms.

The District Attorney’s Office has recently had very public prosecutorial failures, including acquittals on cases with problematic evidentiary issues and not turning evidence over to the defense.

I will hold the District Attorney’s Office to a higher standard with a renewed commitment to prosecutorial ethics.

1. Review charging procedures to prevent overcharging and ensure cases can be proven.
2. Conduct a review of all internal policies to ensure evidence is turned over to the defense in a timely manner.
3. Streamline the discovery process and implement an “open-file” system to ensure there is no inadvertent or intentional withholding of evidence from the defense.
4. Digitize and Bates Stamp all documentary evidence and develop audit procedures.

Across our government in San Francisco, there are many stories of influence peddling and political corruption. When corruption goes unchecked, the individuals and the public become unwitting victims.

I will root out and fight public corruption, consumer fraud, embezzlement, environmental pollution, and violations of worker safety.

1. Investigate and prosecute public corruption, embezzlement of public funds, and abuse of authority.
2. Investigate and prosecute complex civil litigation in the public interest:
1. Corporate fraud and anti-competitive behavior
2. White-collar crime in business and government
3. Environmental dumping and pollution
4. OSHA worker safety and health violations
3. Protect whistleblowers who come forward to expose corruption and fraud.
4. Collaborate with other county District Attorneys and the Attorney General on statewide cases that also impact San Francisco residents.

The District Attorney has failed to publish any data since at least 2014.

I will ensure the public has access to critical information so the community can independently review and evaluate the District Attorney’s Office.

1. Produce an annual report that provides an analysis of raw performance data in addition to releasing raw data.
2. Release anonymized raw performance data to be transparent with the public about how the Office is doing.
3. Ensure all data can be easily matched up with SFPD data to show crime trends and conversion rates from case clearances through the end of prosecutions.

The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office has a proud history of recruiting and retaining a diverse staff. Yet in recent years, women, people of color, and other talented attorneys have left the Office.

It is time for a renewed commitment to recruiting and retaining professionals who reflect the diversity of San Francisco.

1. Recruit and retain women, people of color, and people from diverse backgrounds at every level, including prosecutors, investigators, paralegals, and support staff, to more fully represent our community.
2. Conduct a top-to-bottom salary review to ensure compliance with the Equal Pay Act.
3. Ensure new attorneys are prepared with adequate training and experience before moving on to more challenging assignments.
4. Develop retention programs that encourage talented attorneys to stay at SFDA throughout their careers.
5. Support working parents by creating a family-friendly workplace and implementing part-time and job share positions to retain top talent.

In recent years, mismanagement has demoralized current and future leaders by making promotion decisions unpredictable and putting leadership roles out of reach.

I will cultivate new leadership pipelines at all levels of the Office, empowering dedicated public servants to advance their careers and better serve the people of San Francisco.

1. Develop new, practical training programs that encourage staff to grow their careers at the District Attorney’s Office.
2. Define a predictable advancement track based on a clear set of criteria and performance.
3. Create a leadership training program and management track within all levels and functional areas.
4. Streamline assignments — especially for case negotiations, evidentiary hearings, and trials — to give staff and attorneys greater ability to grow their skills and leadership and better serve the public.
5. Create opportunities at all levels that encourage attorneys and staff to connect on a personal level in the community.