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Cost of extra police on Halloween ‘a wash’
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Related Topics: SAN FRANCISCO
SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - The Halloween nonevent in the Castro last week may have been a dud of a party, but at least an added presence didn’t cost the San Francisco Police Department any more than the previous year.
Speaking in front of the Police Commission on Wednesday night, Deputy Police Chief David Shinn said the costs of buckling down The City were “a wash” compared with 2006, when a scaled-down event raged all night with bloody consequences.
Shinn, who heads the Police Department field operations division, said despite an extra 200 officers on the streets, overtime costs were held to a minimum because most officers were able to go home around midnight, when the night wound down.
According to Shinn, there were no reports of assaults, stabbings or shootings in the entire city on Halloween night. The department also redeployed a number of officers to other parts of The City as problems arose.
Several members of the police commission were in the Castro on Halloween; they thanked officers for keeping The City safe.
Commission President Theresa Sparks said police didn’t really have much say in The City’s policy on Halloween and she thanked officers for following procedure.
“The officers I talked to seemed to be almost to the state of being bored, it was so quiet,” Sparks said. “And I think that was a good sign as I walked around.”
Critics say the “nonevent” resembled martial law and that many of the Castro’s gay-owned businesses were pressured into closing down on one of the most lucrative nights of the year. Sparks said she was also concerned about some issues and called for an investigation into whether bars and other businesses in the Castro were pressured by police to close their doors.
Ted Strawser, a founder of Citizens for Halloween, said some officers were rude to the hundreds of revelers who still showed up. He also complained that despite an earlier public meeting, surprises such as BART closures and an early Muni shutdown made it clear that public comment was not considered.
“I felt like all of our comments and all of our testimony one month before had gone nowhere,” Strawser said.
Comments from Examiner Readers
10:30 AM MST on Thu., Nov. 8, 2007 re: "Cost of extra police on Halloween ‘a wash’"
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11:47 AM MST on Tue., Oct. 30, 2007
re: "More cops to patrol Castro on Halloween"
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9:31 AM MST on Tue., Oct. 30, 2007
re: "More cops to patrol Castro on Halloween"
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7:56 AM MST on Tue., Oct. 30, 2007
re: "More cops to patrol Castro on Halloween"
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7:05 AM MST on Tue., Oct. 30, 2007
re: "More cops to patrol Castro on Halloween"
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9:53 PM MST on Wed., Oct. 17, 2007
re: "Blitz on Castro Halloween ban eased"
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10:51 AM MST on Wed., Oct. 17, 2007
re: "Agency eases blitz on Castro Halloween ban"
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1:34 PM MST on Wed., Aug. 22, 2007
re: "Halloween in the Castro? S.F. says: Don’t go there"
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Examiner Reader said:
Commission President Theresa Sparks said police didn’t really have much say in The City’s policy on Halloween The politicians, Police Commission (civilian), and other non-law enforcement groups had everything to do with the Closing of the Castro on Haloween. The Police followed orders and now somehow they are to blame for the non-event?
174 agree | 163 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
I'm with James on this one. Local authorities and politicians are off base on this one. Because it appears most other efforts failed, they are simply going to strongarm this event out of existence by closing transit stations and flooding the Castro with law enforcement. I hope the voters will take note of agencies and individuals who endorsed this behavior and take the appropriate action come election time.
202 agree | 197 disagree
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Tyronne Fatsengalla said:
Do not blame the SFPD. Politicians aka civilians set policy. SFPD only follows the policy whatever it is.....
178 agree | 186 disagree
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James, San Francisco said:
So, let me get this straight (pun intended): now, with the legendary Castro Halloween shut down, there will be a larger police presence than if it had been permitted and properly managed? San Francisco must be careful not to walk on this longstanding tradition of celebration and revelry. I fully support making people behave in public and keeping the peace - I live in the Castro. However, one does not do this by smashing a cultural tradition. If Toronto can throw an entire week of Halloween festivities and Sydney can throw the world's largest gay Mardi Gras - and invite the entire world to these events - then, San Francisco can also support gay/queer culture and keep our beloved City a prime destination for gay folks and freethinkers. Otherwise, who wants to live in a place devoid of joyful celebration?
177 agree | 182 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
fascist frisco, who'd have thought. glad I'm not a peon who depends on public transit
185 agree | 189 disagree
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Paul V said:
The problem with putting the ad on KRON 4 is that, since it's no longer the NBC affiliate or for any major network, it will rarely, if at all, be seen. The city isn't even remotely trying to find a place to send the thousands of people. Yes, I know the Citizens of Halloween is trying to do something; but, with less than two weeks to go and still no sign of anything definite, the crowd will still show up. Arrogance (drunk or sober) is much more popular in this city than the police or City Hall want to believe. A lot of businesses close down on New Year's Day. That doesn't keep thousands of people from roaming around that area. You can't put a grease fire out with water. It will just spread out into a bigger mess.
232 agree | 235 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
having been in s.f. for 3 decades and been witness to most of the halloweens in the castro, just the idea the city is going to squelch the halloween celebration is silly on its face. last time i checked, the city doesn't even sponsor the event. while the tone of the event has changed over the years and not necessarily for the better, who are the mayor, supervisor dufty and the convention and visitors bureau to stop it? i'm in no way advocating for violence, but the numbers injured pale against the millions who have attended over the last 30 years, i dare say statistically nil. let the halloween celebration happen.
215 agree | 199 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
This is the silliest plan that I've ever heard. But if it works, we can tell the gunslingers that there are no more targets in Hunters Point. Then the homicide rate will decrease dramatically
256 agree | 239 disagree
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