San Francisco, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 07/17/2013 -- A Federal probe of the San Francisco Police Department has been open since 2011, regarding illegal searches and misconduct that occurred in 2010 and 2011. Of particular concern were allegedly illegal searches unearthed by Public Defender Jeff Adachi, occurring in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood.
Then Interim Chief of Police, Jeff Godowin stated at that time, "We're going to audit the entire plainclothes operation. We've identified we have a problem. It's my responsibility to move forward." Little has been heard since it was reported that a federal grand jury had convened early 2012. As of October 2012, California Watch reports the investigation is ongoing.
While the investigation has been out of the news, that does not mean that it is not being pursued. An investigation of a different vice squad across the Bay, in Contra Costa County, spanned years. The first incidents in that scandal occurred in 2007, but arrests were still being made near the end of 2012.
At least one more case has trickled in: Tom Dunham of San Francisco reports that he was the victim of police misconduct, and that it may have been related to a dispute with his former employer, SelectQuote Life. He has a legal brief in which he states SelectQuote admitted to an improper relationship with the San Francisco Police Department. In arbitration over a trademark dispute, SelectQuote wrote that Mr. Dunham was lying when he stated that he went to law enforcement.
Mr. Dunham states that he in fact had gone to law enforcement about threats regarding his daughter, allegedly made at SelectQuote. For SelectQuote to have knowledge of witnesses and what they reported to police, before any trial, is quite unusual. Mr. Dunham goes on to note several irregularities that occurred when officers responded to Mr. Dunham's call from his apartment in early 2010. This incident occurred shortly after he overheard threats towards his family at SelectQuote. He alleges these irregularities and their adverse affects were severe enough to constitute misconduct.
The police took a report in which Mr. Dunham's daughter was alleged to have provided testimony against him. Not only was this untrue, there was no possible way she made such statements, given that she was only 24 months old.
He also states that one of the officers responding made a comment to the others that the captain wanted Mr. Dunham to be arrested (regardless of what was discovered at the scene). This was despite the fact that Mr. Dunham had a head wound which was bleeding badly. Mr. Dunham alleges that the police had him clean up the blood before taking pictures for evidence.
“This incident occurred shortly after I overheard threats regarding my daughter at SelectQuote Insurance Services.” says Mr. Dunham “About a month later someone was breaking in with the landlord's keys, in a manner consistent with illegal searches performed a couple blocks away that same year.”
Mr. Dunham goes into great detail on his website about a number of facts that make it appear that there was disinformation fed by his former employer to police, and that the timing of incidents at his apartment was not merely coincidence. He claims to have discovered motive, and lists a number of missteps by SelectQuote since 2010, which tend to support his version of how they may have been involved with police corruption that year. “I hope witnesses to this or other police misconduct in the South of Market area are convinced to come forward as they hear others' stories,” says Mr. Dunham,
“Any evidence you have might shake something loose in another case, or vice versa.”
Regardless of the disposition of any single case, some changes have already occurred due to the alleged misconduct in searches of South of Market residential hotels. Last July, Chief of Police Greg Suhr issued a memo instructing officers not to use 'master keys' except as allowed by law. The Wall Street Journal reported that the San Francisco Police Department was reducing enforcement of drug crimes, and had shifted focus to violent crime. While it is still early to tell, it does appear that the San Francisco Police Department is attempting to address the problems.
SelectQuote Review has been raising consumer awareness about issues at SelectQuote Insurance Services since 2011. An employee who threatened harm against a small child received financial and other incentives. There are also reasons to suspect connection to a scandal within the San Francisco police. SelectQuote Review reports on these issues and their cover-up, to help insurance consumers make an informed buying decision. More information is available at HTTP://www.selectquotereview.com.
Contact:
Tom Dunham
sqextort@sonic.net 415 852-1740
152A Langton St.
San Francisco, CA 94103