A San Francisco precinct leader is calling for more policing in the crime-ridden city – despite campaigning for police relief in 2020.
Hillary Ronen, Democrat, represents District 9 on the San Francisco board of directors. During a Budget and Appropriations Committee meeting on Wednesday, she passionately advocated adding more officers to the mission district she represents.
Ronen attacked the San Francisco police chief for working long hours on a retail theft prevention program instead of prioritizing the police presence in her district.
“I’ve been asking this department throughout the year to give the mission what it deserves in police presence,” Ronen said. “And I’ve been told over and over again that there are no officers we can send on the mission.”
VISIT INCREASED DUE TO INCREASING CRIME IN SAN FRANCISCO DAMAGING BUSINESS
Supervisor Hillary Ronen speaks with the Chronicle editorial board about her San Francisco mental health proposal on Monday, June 10, 2019 at the San Francisco Chronicle offices in San Francisco, California. (Gabrielle Lurie/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
“It hurts. And I feel cheated by the department. I feel betrayed by the mayor. I feel betrayed by the city’s priorities,” the Democratic politician added.
The speech contradicts her stance on policing in 2020. In the wake of the George Floyd protests, Ronen tweeted that she “strongly believes” the San Francisco police force needed to be downsized.
“I want to make it clear that I strongly believe in decongesting the police force and reducing the number of officers in our force,” Ronen wrote. “For decades we have had an imbalance in our city’s budget, with hundreds of millions of dollars going to the SFPD to do jobs they are not qualified to do.”
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San Francisco County Sheriff’s Office deputies walk past a sanctioned and fenced-off homeless camp across from City Hall in San Francisco, California May 19, 2020. (Jane Tyska/Digital First Media/East Bay Times via Getty Images)
In 2020 Mayor London Breed diverted $120 million from law enforcement to fund other city initiatives. Crime in San Francisco has continued to deteriorate, with homicides increasing 20% in 2020 compared to 2019. Homicides increased by 17% in 2021 compared to the previous year.
By December 2021, Breed made an emergency request to the Board of Supervisors to add more funding to the city’s police department.
The San Francisco Police Department has struggled with staff shortages in recent years. In February, officers responded to a burglary more than 15 hours after the 911 call was made.
“While the SFPD is understaffed and our response times have been adversely affected, a response time in excess of 12 hours for a call of this nature falls far short of department and public expectations,” said Officer Robert Rueca.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Ronen’s office for comment but has received no response.
Fox News’ Emma Colton contributed to this report.
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