SAN FRANCISCO—The San Francisco Police Commission unanimously voted to repeal its gender-based dress code on Wednesday, December 2.
SF Police Chief William “Bill” Scott stated in a November 24 department bulletin that aside from earrings, members cannot wear facial jewelry, but have the option of wearing at least two rings. Members can also have one wristwatch and “hair clips or pins that match the color” of his/her hair.
The last time the dress code policy was updated was in April 2007, almost 13 years ago. Regarding earrings, the 2007 policies stated that only female officers can wear one earring per ear and must be either “plain metal, gold or silver colored” but forbid earrings that hang.
Scott, who has been SF’s police chief since January 2017, said possible accommodations will be on a “case by case basis,” such as medical or religious needs. In addition, he said supervisors are responsible “to exercise good judgement when enforcing these standards.”
The new policies, he said, should not “compromise a member’s safety.”
Updating the dress code policy has been underway since the previous year.
In early June of 2020, the SF Examiner reported that Rubin Rhodes, a police officer, was sent home after wearing earrings on-duty, which is not allowed for male officers. Rhodes, who identifies himself as non-binary, said it is “nonsensical” and asked “Why would you send somebody home for an earring?”
Police Chief Bill Scott will soon issue a new bulletin with the updated policies and requirements.
San Francisco Police Commission Repeal Gender-Based Dress Code was originally published on San Francisco News
