Support for Stephanie’s withdrawal, a moderate Democrat who is considered a potential contender for Buden’s place if he is removed, stands alone among her colleagues on the Supervisory Board, most of whom supported Buden. Four others have not taken a public stand on the seizure.
In an exclusive interview with The Chronicle, Stephanie said she believes Buden is failing to achieve the kinds of significant reforms he promised and failing to keep the city safe.
“I think the Franciscans are just tired of all the nonsense,” said Stephanie. “We are tired of wanting progress and results and receiving excuses and slogans. That’s enough for people, including me. “
Stephanie’s sentiments reflect those of the withdrawal campaign, which says Buden’s policies – designed to prioritize diversion and rehabilitation over jail for low-level offenders – fail to hold criminals accountable and have made San Francisco a more dangerous place to live. and work.
Supporters of Buden cite data that show no significant change in most crime rates in San Francisco since Budin took office, and say his detractors are seeking a return to austerity policies that overcrowded prisons and disproportionately punished blacks and brown people.
Stephanie is believed to be on the shortlist to get Buden’s job if he is fired. She is a former prosecutor in Contra Costa County and has many ties to Mayor London Bridge, who would elect Budin’s deputy if he is rejected.
The choice of breed can be a substitute, as voters will also decide whether the deputy mayor can run for office.
Julie Edwards, a spokeswoman for the anti-Buden recall campaign, said that if Stephanie wanted to set a record against Buden’s, she was “welcome to do so in 2023” when Buden was re-elected.
“But there is something deeply troubling about approving the withdrawal, because she hopes to be appointed without facing voters,” Edwards said.
Stephanie declined to comment on whether she would like the role, adding that she was “laser-focused” on the June election.
In addition to Buden’s recall, voters will decide whether to accept a voting measure proposed by Stephanie, which will set up a new city office for victim services.
“There is currently no vacancy and I will not discuss it until there is one,” said Stephanie.
San Francisco supervisors Hillary Ronen, Connie Chan, Gordon Marr, Aaron Peskin, Dean Preston and Shaman Walton backed Buden, while Rafael Mandelman, Asha Safai and newly appointed supervisor Matt Dorsey took office. Supervisors Mirna Melgar said she did not support the withdrawal of elected officials in general.
Matt Haney, who recently vacated his seat in Sixth County after being elected to the state assembly, backed Budin.
In her interview, Stephanie focused on Buden’s attempts at domestic violence, drug and weapons crimes, claiming that he regularly underestimated or completely rejected cases. She said his prioritization of “pounds, not crumbs” for drug cases did not reach the goal in a city that has suffered more than 1,300 overdose deaths in the past two years alone, and called drug harassment “a program to catch and release ‘.
Stephanie cited figures showing that police had made 131 arrests of domestic violence in the last three months of 2020 and that Buden’s office had fired 113 of them.
In a particularly tragic case, a 7-month-old boy is said to have been killed by a man who has been arrested twice in recent months on charges of domestic violence and who has been released without charge.
“There was no intervention, Chesa just let the man go,” said Stephanie. “And then he accused the woman in this case of not wanting to testify against her abuser.”
Edwards, a spokesman for Budin, said the figures quoted by Stephanie were “chosen” and “wrong”.
The rate of allegations of domestic violence by Buden in 2021 is 37% and so far in 2022 it has been 46%, compared to an average of 32% in the nine years preceding Buden’s rule, Edwards said.
Megan Cassidy is a full-time writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy
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