Call to Action: Show Your Support for Ethics Commission Process

We hear you.  You’re contacting us and you’re angry.  After pleading guilty to false imprisonment in a domestic violence case, suspended Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi has refused to step down from office.  Now, the Ethics Commission is holding its official misconduct hearings before making a recommendation to San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors about whether this conviction represents an inherent conflict with Ross Mirkarimi’s ability to serve as San Francisco’s Sheriff.

We appreciate knowing where you stand, but to make your voice heard where it counts: show the Ethics Commission and the Board of Supervisors that you’re concerned, you’re watching, and you expect a non-political hearing process that champions accountability and appropriate standards of conduct from our elected officials. 

Here’s what you can do:

1.  Attend the Ethics Commission hearings.  Stand with the anti-domestic violence community before the hearings begin to show that you’re engaged in this process and that domestic violence is NEVER a private matter. 

Next Hearings:

Wednesday, July 18th at 5:00pm, City Hall Room 416

Thursday, July 19th at 5:00pm, City Hall Room 416

Thursday, August 16th at 9:00am, City Hall Room 263

2.  Email the Ethics Commission.  Let the Commissioners know that you support and are engaged in this process.

Send your email to: .  Sample text:

“Dear Commissioners,

As a member of the San Francisco community, I support your process examining the charges of official misconduct against suspended Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi.  This process is critical to ensuring that San Francisco’s leadership operates within the law and ethics that they are charged with upholding.  I urge you to proceed with thorough care and exert due diligence throughout this hearing process.

Thank you.”

3.  Contact your Supervisor to let them know that something feels terribly wrong if Ross Mirkarimi can plead guilty to domestic violence false imprisonment and continue to act as San Francisco’s Sheriff. 

“Hello Supervisor _______, my name is ______ and I am one of your constituents.  Something is terribly wrong if Ross Mirkarimi can plead guilty to domestic violence false imprisonment and continue to act as San Francisco’s Sheriff.  I urge you to act appropriately, as a member of an independent judiciary, in the face of evidence that the former supervisor has engaged in misconduct.

Don’t know who your supervisor is?  Find out at http://www.sfbos.org/.   

It’s your story that is most important for San Francisco’s political apparatus to hear.  This is bigger than one person or one incident.  It’s about our community’s response to violence against women.   It’s about victim safety and batterer accountability – the imperative that domestic violence never be minimized or a lack of consequences explained away through technicalities.