Rules Committee hears four candidates for Police Commission, continues appointment to Dec. 13

The Rules Committee on Dec. 6 held a hearing on candidates for a vacant seat on the San Francisco Police Commission and continued the item one week to Dec. 13.

Four applicants addressed the committee: David Ryzick (attorney and oversight-experience candidate who cited work at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, BART's citizen review board and experience as an assistant federal public defender); Jesus Gabriel Yanez (community-based violence-prevention and mental-health-informed programs leader); Stephen Schwartz (known as "Lulu," a longtime local journalist and trans activist with international human-rights investigation experience); and Veronica Fimbres (a nurse with years of work interfacing with police and corrections and prior appointed service).

Applicants described differing but complementary qualifications. Ryzick emphasized evidence-based reform, policy drafting and prior oversight experience; Yanez emphasized community violence-prevention work and building trust between immigrant communities and the San Francisco Police Department; Lulu stressed the need to modernize policing and incorporate rank-and-file perspectives; and Fimbres highlighted mental-health and transgender-community concerns.

Public comment included multiple letters and callers endorsing both Yanez and Ryzick, submitted by community organizations, the Latinx Democratic Club, juvenile-justice and violence-prevention groups, and lawyers' associations. Supporters stressed community trust, bilingual outreach, juvenile-justice experience and subject-matter expertise.

During deliberations supervisors discussed representation and expertise, with several expressing a desire to find space for both leading candidates on the commission in the near term. The committee agreed to continue the matter to Dec. 13 to pursue consensus, including outreach to the mayor's office about potential mayoral appointments.

No final appointment was made on Dec. 6; the committee's continuance means the item will return next week for final committee action and a committee report to the full Board.