By Andrew Segal
A group of West Portal residents and leaders met with Mayor Lee and ex-Chief Suhr on Friday May 13 to share our crime concerns and press for more officers for Taraval Station. We discussed our efforts to track local arrests through the court system and learned that our work is making an impression. Mayor Lee committed to improve the reporting system so that we can easily see how local arrests are adjudicated. Our efforts are being heard.
On Thursday May 19, I attended a SAFE meeting with the 16th Avenue and Moraga Steps Neighborhood Watch that included a presentation from Assistant District Attorney Shirin Oloumi, the prosecutor responsible for auto burglary. She described the process and highlighted some of the cases she has successfully prosecuted. The vast majority end with some form of negotiated plea, either between the DA and defense attorney or with the Judge directly. The net takeaway was that the more evidence she has, the better she is able to seek stronger penalties. Video footage provided by neighbors is among the best. If you have a camera, please register it with SFPD by emailing Michael Pheng michael.pheng@sfgov.org