The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has voted to take away a whistleblower police commissioner earlier than his time period finish date subsequent yr in a controversial transfer that drew dissent from dozens of individuals throughout public remark.
Carter-Oberstone remained defiant and refused to step apart.
“There is nothing classy about bending the knee to a mayor who would rather have a rubber stamp in my place,” Carter-Oberstone mentioned throughout Tuesday’s assembly.
Carter-Oberstone was initially appointed to the fee by former mayor London Breed. However the two clashed over coverage disagreements and after he uncovered her observe of forcing commissioners to signal undated resignation letters.
In 2022, Carter-Oberstone revealed that Breed mandated police commissioners to signal preemptive resignation letters in case she ought to determine to jettison them from their positions. He received the James Madison Freedom of Info Award for exposing the now-banned observe.
“I think he’s exactly the kind of person San Franciscans should want on a commission,” mentioned former District 5 supervisor Dean Preston in an interview. “It makes no sense whatsoever that he would be removed before his term.”
Public help and opposition
All supervisors besides District 7 Supervisor Myrna Melgar and District 9 Supervisor Jackie Fielder voted in favor of his elimination.
However Carter-Oberstone and his supporters didn’t go down and not using a struggle. He confirmed as much as Tuesday’s assembly to defend why he ought to keep.
“My job is not to become popular with the agency I’m supposed to be overseeing,” he mentioned. “It is to serve the public and protect and defend the rule of law.”
His speech was adopted by almost 100 supporters throughout public remark.
Most of them praised Carter-Oberstone for his monitor file of selling police reform, together with his efforts to cease police from being allowed to conduct pretextual site visitors stops. Pretextual stops are for low-level violations like expired registration that are used to research whether or not the individual is concerned in an unrelated crime.
“He has taken bold and swift action to protect the public and to ensure that our policing strategies are effective, evidence-based and don’t permissively target people of color,” mentioned Janelle Caywood on the assembly , the coverage director for town’s Division of Police Accountability.
Melgar raised issues concerning the lack of trigger to take away Carter-Oberstone.
A crowd up supporters cheer in help of Max Carter-Oberstone, a police commissioner the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to take away on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025 in San Francisco, Calif. (Alise Maripuu/Bay Metropolis Information)
“I do not believe in removing a commissioner or supervisor if there has been no malfeasance or misconduct,” Melgar mentioned. “You don’t have to agree with your colleagues all the time, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t have something valuable to add to the conversation.”
Some public commenters imagine that Lurie’s want to take away Carter-Oberstone is an element of a bigger plan to oust Police Chief Invoice Scott. The fee performs a big function within the hiring means of a police chief, placing ahead an inventory of nominees that the mayor chooses from.
Lurie didn’t make an look at Tuesday’s assembly, a choice that rubbed a number of public commenters the improper means. In response to Carter-Oberstone, Lurie by no means met with him to debate his elimination.
Considered one of Carter-Oberstone’s colleagues on the fee, Kevin Benedicto, spoke out on the assembly in opposition to the elimination.
“He’s collaborative, he’s a supporter of independent police reform and he should be allowed to finish his term,” Benedicto mentioned.
Dorsey, who has been vocal in help of the elimination of Carter-Oberstone, defined that Lurie is inside his proper to nominate his personal police commissioner and noticed “no legitimate basis” to oppose his choice.
“We have a newly elected executive who has earned the right to seek his own appointment,” Dorsey mentioned.
Lurie’s new appointee
Earlier in the course of the assembly, the Board unanimously voted in favor of appointing Lurie’s police fee choose, Wilson Leung.
“Wilson Leung has the experience and commitment to make San Francisco safer and we are lucky to have him joining the Police Commission,” Lurie mentioned in an announcement.
“We are appointing leaders who will work with fellow commissioners and departments to deliver better services for our city,” Lurie mentioned in an announcement despatched out Tuesday night. “Wilson’s decades of work in compliance and oversight will make him an asset as we work together to protect San Franciscans.”
