SAN FRANCISCO—25 people were arrested over the weekend for public intoxication Mayor London Breed said in an interview with KQED’s Alexis Madrigal on Wednesday, June 7. Of those arrested nine of them had warrants and only one had a residential address. According to the Mayor, some of those arrested were released and offered services but no one accepted the offers.
These arrests come after the Mayor announced a new strategy to address public intoxication. In the KQED interview she explained that the arrests could play a part in handling public substance abuse that has become a problem in the city. As part of her proposed budget, the Department of Emergency Management is working on a pilot program that would allow city personnel to address situations when a person’s drug use poses a danger to themselves or others.
Supervisor Matt Dorsey confirmed that 16 additional people were arrested the week before in an interview with KGO. SFPD has been working to arrest those who are found to be under the influence in public Dorsey explained but, that there isn’t much of a difference in Street conditions. According to reports, people are getting arrested but being released the same day.
Dorsey added that he does support the Mayor’s new program but added that he wants to include an intervention that is more than just jail.
Supervisor Dean Preston has called Breed’s new program “reactionary, cruel and counterproductive.”
Back in March San Francisco requested federal assistance to deal with the city’s drug crisis. In April, California Governor Gavin Newsom sent the National Guard to San Francisco to address local fentanyl markets.
According to the San Francisco Chronlicle there have been 625 accidental overdose deaths in 2021. In the past three months there have been 200 reported deaths caused by drug overdoses.
