Embattled San Francisco Police Chief Resigns after Shooting


Embattled San Francisco Police Chief Resigns after Shooting

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – San Francisco's police chief resigned on Thursday at the request of the US city's mayor hours after an officer fatally shot a young black woman allegedly driving a stolen car, reports on Friday said.

The resignation was the result of the culmination of several racially charged incidents that occurred in the Californian city in the past year.

The use of lethal force by US police - especially by white officers against African-Americans and other minorities - has been the focus of nationwide protests.

The San Francisco Police Department and Chief Greg Suhr have faced mounting criticism and protests for months in the wake of several high-profile police killings and a racist text message scandal.

"I have previously expressed confidence in Chief Suhr because I know he agrees with and understands the need for reform," San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee told reporters at a press conference at City Hall, Al Jazeera reported.

"But following the officer-involved shooting and my meeting with Chief Suhr, I have arrived at a different conclusion to the question of how best to move forward."

Suhr had earlier told reporters two officers approached a 27-year-old woman as she sat in a car that had been reported as stolen.

Neither the woman nor the officers have been identified. Suhr did not give the race of the officers and said he did not know whether the woman was armed.

The woman tried to drive off, crashing into another vehicle fewer than 30 metres away. She was shot by one of the officers, a sergeant, after refusing to comply with their orders, Suhr said. She later died at a hospital. Suhr said the officers have not been interviewed.

"This is exactly the kind of thing with all the reforms we are trying to prevent," Suhr said before he resigned.

Criticism of the department began to build even more in April this year, after American media outlets obtained racist and homophobic text messages that were shared between several San Francisco Police Department officers.

The messages contained racial slurs and compared African-Americans to wild animals.

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