Civil Grand Jury Report: Investigations Into San Francisco Police Shootings Lack Transparency
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Investigations into officer-involved shootings take too long and provide too little information to the public, according to a San Francisco Civil Grand Jury report released Wednesday.
The civil grand jury reached its conclusions after analyzing the 18 fatal San Francisco Police Department officer-involved shooting incidents that have occurred since 2011.
"The citizens of San Francisco don't get enough information to determine whether the current OIS investigation process works properly or whether the results of these investigations are fair and just," said civil grand jury member Eric Vanderpool. "We have made a number of recommendations directed at each of the City agencies involved that would remedy this problem."
Officer-involved shootings are currently investigated by police, while the District Attorney's Office conducts a parallel criminal investigation, according to the report.
The civil grand jury recommended that the city create a task force to oversee investigations with members from city agencies including the Sheriff's Office, the District Attorney's Office, the Office of the Medical Examiner, police and the Office of Citizen Complaints.
That task force would be intended to reduce the perception of bias, ensure that investigations are completed in a timely manner and release a public report at the completion of the investigation, according to the grand jury.
The jury also recommended that both police and the district attorney's office streamline and speed up their investigation process. In addition, the report recommended that police provide more information to the public about each officer-involved shooting investigation and up-to-date statistics on such incidents.
