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| Comments |
| "I'm surprised that the City of San Francisco does not leverage
the incredible resource of the PSP much more heavily, as many other
major cities do worldwide and here in many other States. Especially
in such cash strapped times, Patrol Special Police officers could
alleviate a considerable amount of lower level operational obligations
(such as neighborhood beat patrols, loitering, drunk and disorderly,
noise nuisance calls, crime scene security etc.) that would help
to free up SPFD officers for higher level strategic obligations
such as patrolling high crime areas, drug interdiction, DUI intervention,
and so on. I would advocate enhancing and re-affirming the historic
purpose of the Patrol Special Police in San Francisco and begin
the development of a strategic collaboration with them to enhance
overall operational capacity and effectiveness, much as New York
City, the City of London in the UK, and many other cities are currently
doing. Ken Craig (12-28-09) President, Founder & Grand Master Instructor of Triangle Martial Arts Association, International (www.Trianglemaa.org) ; Vice Chair, Director of Training and Emergency Services Liaison of Castro Community on Patrol (www.CastroPatrol.org) |
| "Policing is reactionary,
that was one of the problems I saw with Halloween in the Castro. Police
(regulars) were standing around waiting for something to happen and
then they reacted.[However, Patrol Special Police] were proactive
and spoke with revelers before anything went wrong. That's community
policing, getting cops out of their cars." Alix Rosenthal (11/6/06),
former candidate for Board of Supervisors quoted by Channel 5 TV News
after 10 people were injured during a 2006 Halloween Festival in the
Castro District, San Francisco. Rosenthal said that during the Halloween
event she was surprised by the friendliness of the San Francisco Patrol
Special Police, a group of officers appointed by the police commission. http://cbs5.com/local/san.francisco.supervisor.2.449184.html |
| “I think the (new SNP web) site is exceptional and as Vice-Chair of the Castro Patrol, I can assure you that we will not only promote and add the site link to our own web site, but we will also actively direct people we meet during our patrols and many interactions with the community and business groups to the site.” – Ken Craig, Vice Chair, Castro Patrol (10-3-09 email to Grogan) |
| “We can express the approach we wish our
officer to take toward Glen Park, consistent with our special culture
and social milieu.” John, Glen Park (4-20-09) |
| “I feel better knowing
that my art class students are passing through areas that are patrolled.
We are doing a good thing for Glen Park.” Barbara Kaufman, Owner,
The Painting Studio, Chenery Street (7-22-08) |
| "For $300 a month, Jane is the best bargain
in town. The specials fill a vital niche that SFPD, with its strapped
resources and focus on serious crime, can't hope to fill." Michael
Robb, Owner, Home Restaurant (On Market Street, at her first stop,
a homeless man is sprawled on the sidewalk near the entrance to Home
restaurant, where he's been lying in a stupor for four hours. That's
also how long it's been since the restaurant's manager, Michael Robb,
first called SFPD to have a squad car sent over. One never came. After
a couple of minutes of gentle prompting, Warner has the man on his
feet and on his way, from SF Weekly 6-3-08) |
| "Castro merchant Imad Bitar chased and tackled
a shoplifter who stole close to $600 of merchandise from Phantom,
a novelty gift shop. Bitar struggled to hold on until police arrived.
Patrol Special Police Officer Jane Warner arrived within three to
four minutes, and the S.F.P.D. officer arrived about 10-15 minutes
later, Bitar recalled. "If I had to wait for 911 it would've
been a different story. The man was a big strong guy and I couldn't
hold him for too long. It really helped for me to have Jane around."
Imad Bitar, quoted in the Bay Area Reporter (4-18-02) |
| "When I met (Patrol Special Police Officer)
Jane Warner about two years ago, I was so impressed watching what
she did. Whether she was working with homeless folks, merchants, elected
officials, or youth, she has a connection to everybody and I knew
I wanted to be a part of that. (After I joined the Patrol Special
Police) I made it very clear (to my clients) that if they were looking
for someone to kick butt and put people away, then they shouldn't
hire me. I want everyone to know about the resources available to
them so that they can get a leg up in life." Darrin Dill, Patrol
Special Police Officer, quoted in the BAR Newspaper (3-1-01) |
| "I recently moved my retail lingerie boutique
from the Marina to Upper Market. I was met by a very friendly reception
by merchants and customers, and a very unfriendly reception by street
bums, rip-off artists, homeless, and the mentally ill. During my first
week in business I was rousted out of bed at 4 am by the police to
go to my shop because someone attempted to push open the front door
and set off the burglar alarm. Despite my personal invitation to 'X'
(the only SFPD officer I have ever seen patrol Castro Street), he
has never visited my boutique in the five weeks I have been at my
new location. In fact, I have never seen him on Market Street at all,
but only on Castro. Despairing of ever receiving the police services
for which as a resident and business owner I pay, I learned of and
quickly saw the necessity of hiring the Patrol Special Police Services
headed by Officer Jane Warner. This letter is to commend her services."
Ann Grogan (10-22-97) |
| "Although I am the Vice President of my neighborhood
association, I am writing as an individual to support the Patrol Special
Police Officers... My impression of the Police Department is that
it is over stressed and constantly in need of setting priorities as
to which calls can be taken. I live in a very noisy area. ..when I
call about noisy groups of people on the street at 3 am, the questions
from non-emergency dispatch are usually about the presence of weapons:
loss of sleep is not considered life-threatening. if the Patrol Specials
can take care of some of the routine calls that might otherwise tie
up the 'regular' Police Department, this is an asset to the whole
community...I feel that a consistent police presence in problem areas
would be effective in controlling some of our problems. Police Specials
could make this presence possible. A committed, hard-working police
force has no reason to feel threatened by the Specials and should
welcome their help. The tax payers can't do it all." Rachel A.
Heyman (10-14-97) |
| "We have subscribed to the Patrol Special Police's Castro District's service since July 1994. Since subscribing, there have been numerable benefits for our business. We have had dramatically fewer incidents with the homeless. Our customers have remarked that they appreciate not being panhandled whenever they come for a meal. We have had immediate follow up on incidents when someone has tried to defraud us of the price of their meal. We have had the Patrol Special pick up people who don't have a place to stay and bring them to a shelter. They have immediately dealt with aggressive behavior from the homeless and customers. We are just a small establishment and many of our concerns are too minor to call 911 however we feel that the safety of our customers and employees has been greatly heightened by the availability of the Patrol Specials. Since many of our employees live in the neighborhood we are glad to have uniformed officers patrolling the beat as it makes the entire neighborhood safer." Susan Fortner, Night Manager, Bagdad Cafe (2-13-95) |
| "I love these
guys. They take care of us. When I call them, they come right away
and they solve the problem and they go away. The police don't come
immediately because most of the problems are relatively minor. When
I called the police they would come in two cars in a group of four
or five. They made a big scene and it's not good for business."
Sam Alkhraisat, Manager, Coffee Zone, quoted in The Independent Sunset/West
Edition (10-18-94) |
| "The San Francisco Patrol Special Police's care and concern for their communities have made an untold number of lives safer and happier, prevented unnecessary injury and suffering and added quality of life for all residents of San Francisco." Mark Leno, California Assemblyperson, statement provided when a Board of Supervisor member, San Francisco |
| "The San Francisco Patrol Special Police have proudly served by our side for over a hundred and fifty years receiving many commendations for their dedicated service to the City of San Francisco. They have proven to be a valuable part of our law enforcement team." Earl Sanders, former Deputy Chief of Police |
| "At no cost to the tax payer, the San Francisco Patrol Special Police has provided our city with additional unformed police officers who have patrolled our neighborhoods and communities with dedication and professionalism for over one hundred and fifth years." Morgan Gorrono, former Civil Service Commissioner, San Francisco |
| "The San Francisco Patrol Special Police has been a valuable asset to our neighborhood, making our streets safer for its business community and residents alike. The Patrol is wholeheartedly endorsed by the Merchants of Upper Market and Castro." Patrick Batt, former Present of the Merchants Association |