Latest Fatal SFPD Shooting Raises Use Of Force Questions
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Thursday's deadly shooting in the Bayview is raising new concerns about the use of force by SFPD, including the question of whether police should be allowed to shoot into a moving vehicle.
The fatal incident has sparked an outrage among the public, but it may also be sparking and debate of policy with major changes to follow
The shots fired late Thursday morning marked the end of former Chief Greg Suhr's career and may have launched a major debate about police policy and the legality of officers firing into cars.
An SFPD sergeant shot into this stolen car, killing the 27-year-old woman behind the wheel. Police said she was driving forward and backward trying to run from officers after she crashed the car.
"Moving cars; I think that's one of the first things that the acting chief is going to prohibit. The shooting into vehicles," said Mayor Ed Lee.
Martin Halloran of the San Francisco Police Officers Association had a different opinion of the use of force.
"Those officer's lives were in danger, said Halloran. And some are saying 'Oh, she didn't have a gun.' Well, [she was] behind the wheel of a 4,000-pound automobile. That is a weapon if it is going to run over a police officer and kill them."
But the policy change Mayor Lee is talking about would rule that out, making this kind of officer response illegal.
In fact, the public defender's office questioned it Thursday with a tweet citing SFPD policy. So far, no complaints have been filed, but it looks like big changes -- and possibly a big battle over them -- is set to come.
It's just one of those things that's very basic as part of the overall reforms that we have," said Lee.
Politics is in everything in San Francisco, and it's certainly entered into the incident that occurred yesterday," said Halloran.
