February 3, 2010 - Minutes
JUSTICE AND COURAGE PROJECT
OVERSIGHT PANEL MEETING
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
9:00 am
City Hall, Room 408
San Francisco, CA 94102
Minutes
Members Present: Kathy Black, La Casa de las Madres
Dorka Keehn, Commission on the Status of Women
Emily Murase, PhD, Department on the Status of Women
Antonio Ramirez, POCOVI
Dion Roberts, Human Services Agency
Ken Theisen, Bay Area Legal Aid
Beverly Upton, Domestic Violence Consortium
Carol Sacco, Department on the Status of Women (staff)
Members Absent: Allyson Hauck, Rene Sloan Holtzman Sakai LLP (excused)
I. CALL TO ORDER/AGENDA CHANGES ACTION
Panel Chair Dorka Keehn called the meeting to order at 9:05 am and conducted roll call.
ACTION: The agenda for the February 3, 2010 meeting was approved.
(Theisen/Black/All)
No public comment.
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES ACTION
ACTION: To approve minutes from meeting of December 2, 2009.
(Theisen/Keehn/All)
No public comment.
III. REPORTS DISCUSSION/ACTION
A. Governance Committee
Justice and Courage staff member Carol Sacco circulated the roster of panel members and their terms of appointment. Panel Chair Keehn will contact all committee members regarding their intention to remain on the Oversight Panel. The maximum time of services is 3 terms of 2 years each, for a total of 6 years.
B. Audit Implementation Committee
Committee Co-Chair Ken Theisen reported that the committee has not met, but Policy Analyst Laura Marshall circulated a draft of the final report to committee members for their review. The next committee meeting will be held Friday, February 12, 2010, 10 am, Bay Area Legal Aid, 50 Fell Street.
C. Batterer Accountability Committee
Panel Members Beverly Upton, Allyson Hauck, Antonio Ramirez, and Ms. Marshall met to share resources. Ms. Marshall also met with Adult Probation Officer Art Faro to discuss the best way to get information about attendance and compliance rates. Mr. Faro reported that other counties have online systems to track these data. The next Batter Intervention Program Community Advisory Council will be scheduled later this month.
D. JUSTIS
Panel Member Kathy Black attended the January 7 meeting and reported that Deputy Chief of Staff Cristine DeBerry and Budget Analyst Meghan Wallace represented the Mayor's Office on the Council. The Sheriff's Department has fully implemented its case management system and is running live data through the JUSTIS data hub. The City has issued an RFP for project management for the JUSTIS project. Panel Member Beverly Upton reported that Board of Supervisors President David Chiu is considering centralizing information technology throughout the City and is committed to seeing the JUSTIS project through. Discussion focused on staff changes at the Police Department. The Chief Information Technology Officer was recently let go, after a year on the job. Ms. Black expressed deep concern and frustration about the time, effort, and money invested in recruiting the individual, only to have the individual terminated after such a brief tenure. Panel Members discussed strategies for ensuring timely action and continued progress. Dr. Murase stated that she would forward recommendations to the Panel after attending the next JUSTIS Governance Council, scheduled for tomorrow morning.
E. Family Violence Council
Ms. Upton stated that there have been important gains in having advocates addressing child abuse and elder abuse together with anti-domestic violence advocates. A subcommittee is looking at intervention programs for child abuse. Ms. Upton also stated that then-Deputy Chief of Staff Catherine Dodd and Captain John Ehrlich were helpful in moving forward on gathering data that formed the basis of the Council's Annual Report on Family Violence.
Captain Ehrlich explained that numbers reported to the US Department of Justice on aggravated assault has not included domestic violence statistics. He is aware of the community’s request to improve reporting on domestic violence.
Ms. Upton stated that the Council is gathering information on the impact of budget cuts on services to address child abuse, domestic violence, and elder abuse.
The next meeting of the Family Violence Council will be held on Thursday, April 15, 2010, 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm, San Francisco Superior Court, 400 McAllister, Room 617.
F. Stalking Task Force
Maria Bee of the District Attorney's Office reported that the Assistant District Attorney responsible for stalking cases is now Van Ly, who has a long record of working with the community. The Stalking Task Force has not convened since the staff change. She also reported that Jean Roland is the new head of the Domestic Violence Unit in the District Attorney's Office.
G. Housing
Panel Member Dion Roberts explained that there are several housing agencies in the city. She represents the Human Services Agency (HSA) but there is also the federal Housing Authority. She stated that HSA partners with housing developments to provide affordable housing units. Ms. Roberts is aware that there is a great need for permanent supporting housing among survivors of domestic violence and their families. She pointed out that there is no written protocol among property managers for meeting the particular needs of this group. Based on the Strategic Plan priorities, Ms. Roberts suggested that a Housing Committee be convened. She would be willing to lead this effort. She also pointed out that there are many issues related to the Housing Authority.
Ms. Roberts oversees 1500 units of permanent supportive housing for families across 15-17 buildings. She emphasized the importance of the Local Operating Subsidy program. Now, HSA has control over populating a portion of these units, including at least 106 units that have been newly acquired. She explained that domestic violence shelters and family shelters are prioritized among the 17 agencies that serve as access points to HSA's permanent supportive housing program.
Panel Member Ken Theisen stated that Bay Area Legal Aid has several staff members dedicated to housing issues. He suggested that his colleague Minouche Kandel be included in the Housing Committee. He further pointed out the particular housing challenges that domestic violence survivors face, including bad credit stemming from an abusive partner. Discussion focused on additional problems for residents of Housing Authority units.
Ms. Black stated that the fact that domestic violence shelters are now access points for permanent supportive housing represents an important advance in city policy. She pointed out that domestic violence victims fear calling the police since this could jeopardize their housing.
In terms of next steps, Mr. Theisen suggested that Panel Members forward proposed committee members to Ms. Roberts. The committee should be convened before the next Panel meeting. Panel Chair Keehn suggested that a written protocol for property managers be addressed by the committee. Ms. Black stated that there had been meetings between property managers and advocates addressing domestic violence, but it was on an informal, ad-hoc basis.
H. Legislative Update
Ms. Upton reported that La Casa de las Madres hosted a press conference on January 13 with State Senator Leland Yee on SB 662, which would increase the portion of marriage license fee dedicated to domestic violence shelters from $3 to $10. This is expected to raise $3-$5 million annually. The California Partnership to End Domestic Violence is organizing a legislative effort March 22-23 to advocate for adoption of this legislation. A vote in the state legislature is expected in June.
For the state budget, the Governor eliminated what had been originally $20 million in state funding for domestic violence shelters. Last year, the fund was cut to $16 million, but the Governor then eliminated all funding. Senator Yee led the effort to restore the $16 million, but was only able to do so on a one-time basis. Ms. Black reported that La Casa de las Madres is facing a $450 million cut in its annual budget.
IV. OLD BUSINESS
A. Update from the San Francisco Police Department
1. U-Visa Protocol
Captain Ehrlich stated that while he does not have a written protocol completed yet, the U-Visas are being processed in a timely manner. There is currently no backlog. Mr. Theisen reported that Bay Area Legal Aid has processed about 100 cases, and only 1 has been rejected.
Ms. Upton stated that she and Minouche Kandel had put together a draft protocol and offered to provide Captain Ehrlich with this work. Captain Ehrlich welcomed the offer and asked that material be sent to john.ehrlich@sfgov.org. Ms. Black also offered to work on the protocol. Ms. Upton reported that community agencies have reported progress on securing U-Visas.
2. COMSTAT Data Collection
Ms. Upton reported that during the Oversight Panel meeting with Chief Gascon, the Chief made a commitment to disaggregate domestic violence statistics. Captain Ehrlich explained that COMSTAT issues should be directed to Commander Gedoin(sp?) who was recruited from the Los Angeles Police Department specifically to run COMSTAT. Meetings are open to the public, every other Wednesday, at the Scottish Rites Temple, 19th and Sloat Boulevard. The schedule, available on the SFPD website, should be confirmed before attending.
B. Domestic Violence Cases/Trials Upton
Ms. Upton provided an update current domestic violence cases. The jury returned a first-degree murder verdict on the Maria Corpuz domestic violence homicide, but the judge sentenced the perpetrator to a 2nd degree murder charge. The District Attorney will appeal this decision. The Cindy Weaver case is moving forward. D'Ebony Smith, accused of murdering her batterer, was acquitted in December, a year after the incident. There is no new information on the Ina Canales case. The next court appearance is scheduled for February. In the 2009 homicide of Maria Tamayo-Gomez, suspect Saul Gallegos is still at large. In Marin, the James Mitchell case will be continued indefinitely as Terence Hallinan has left the case as defense attorney.
Mr. Theisen reported that the Government of Mexico has launched ambitious new initiatives on addressing violence against women and the Consul General in San Francisco has taken a lead. Mr. Theisen suggested that the Consul staff member working on this issue be invited to address the Panel. Ms. Upton has engaged the Mexican Consul General in recent months and supported the suggestion. Panel Chair Keehn asked that an invitation be extended to the Mexican Consul General staff for an upcoming Oversight Panel meeting.
V. NEW BUSINESS
A. Probationer’s Study
Ms. Ukuku presented the findings from the 2009 Study of Domestic Violence Probation in San Francisco which examined completion rates for the domestic violence program and domestic violence probation. The study followed all domestic violence probationers in 2005 for the full 18 months of domestic violence counseling required by state law. For comparison, a 2005 study found that the non-completion rate was 63%. The 2009 study found a 72% non-completion rate within the 18-month period, but beyond 18-months, the non-completion rate dropped to 38%. Other demographic data was highlighted.
Dr. Murase explained that this project stemmed from a meeting that Oversight Panel Members had with Judge Mary Morgan in 2008. At the time, Judge Morgan stated that she was interested in conducting a study of probationers, but that the legal intern slated to do the study was no longer available. Dr. Murase stated that former Commissioner Andrea Evans of the Commission on the Status of Women connected Nnena Ukuku with Judge Morgan. The Oversight Panel expressed appreciation to Ms. Ukuku for her detailed report.
Mr. Theisen asked for the full report. Ms. Ukuku suggested that the Panel contact Judge Morgan for access to the full report. Ms. Ukuku stated that one of the assets resulting from the study is the probationers database that was created. Ms. Roberts asked about the family configuration and age range of probationers. Ms. Ukuku stated that some of this information is available in the full report.
Panel Members asked that meetings be set up with Judge Mary Morgan, the family court judge, and the Presiding Judge. Staff will request the full report and forward it to Panel Members for review before the meeting with Judge Morgan. Mr. Theisen suggested that a meeting be scheduled with the Adult Probation Department after the next Oversight Panel meeting in May.
B. “Bridges to Freedom”
Dr. Murase presented information on the collaboration between the Department on the Status of Women and the Office of Immigrant Affairs to train criminal justice personnel to respond to domestic violence calls in Chinese and Spanish.
VI. PUBLIC COMMENT
This item allows members of the public to comment generally on matters within the Panel’s purview as well as to suggest agenda items for future consideration.
Ms. Black reported that space issues remain a concern for the Domestic Violence Response Unit. Panel Members requested that a meeting with Police Chief Gascon be scheduled before the May meeting to follow-up on this and other issues.
VII. ADJOURNMENT ACTION
The meeting was adjourned at 11:15 am. The next Oversight Panel meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 5, 2010.
