Half a dozen ballot measures addressing law enforcement oversight from Sonoma County, San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley and San Jose all had huge leads as of late Tuesday night.
Over 67% of votes counted in San Francisco were in favor of Proposition D, which creates an independent oversight board and inspector general for the Sheriff’s Department.
San Francisco voters were also heavily in favor of scrapping a minimum staffing requirement for the city’s police department — with more than 70% of ballots counted cast in favor of Proposition E.
Voters in favor of strengthening oversight of the Oakland Police Department outnumbered those in opposition, with over 80% of ballots in favor of Measure S1. It will allow the Oakland Police Commission and Community Police Review Agency to hire independent attorneys. Passage of Measure S1 also creates an Office of the Inspector General independent of the Police Department, which would oversee OPD’s compliance with long-running federal court oversight.
Berkeley looks to be on track to reinvent its police oversight structure over the next year, with votes in support of Measure II outnumbering those opposed 5-to-1. The measure creates a Police Accountability Board with investigative authority and subpoena power, and institutes a lower standard of proof for sustaining complaints against officers.