Hugues de la Plaza was a low SFPD priorityText by Sarah Phelan
Photos obtained by the Guardian depict de la Plaza, and the bloody trial around his apartment following his killing.
Last Friday, I got an email from Hugues de la Plaza’s ex-girlfriend Melissa Nix, in which she claimed that preliminary findings by the Office of Citizen Complaints into her complaint about the SFPD’s investigation into the June 2007 death of her ex-boyfriend Hugues de la Plaza found the following:
· Homicide gave de la Plaza’s death a low priority for investigation
· There was a lack of coordination among SFPD command staff around the investigation.
· The crime lab, medical examiner and homicide unit failed to cooperate in a proper and timely manner.
· The homicide officer charged with investigating the case failed to record required monthly updates on the investigation in the case’s chronological summary.
· The lack of chronological updates also constituted a failure in supervision on the part of the homicide officer’s superiors.
Reached by phone, Nix admitted that she was on the East Coast, hadn't had a chance to read the report herself, but was not entirely satisfied with its findings, and plans to appeal by requesting an investigative hearing.
Nix said she also believes the OCC will be interested in new information involving DNA that "further calls homicide’s conduct into question."
“I disagree with the fact that there was no finding of misconduct,” Nix said. "And I question the cursory form letter the OCC sent me after I sent a 17-page list of my concerns.”
I called OCC’s executive director Joyce Hicks on Friday in the hopes she would confirm the content of OCC's report, but was told she wouldn't be in until Monday. And now it's 4 p.m on Monday, and Hicks hasn't called...sigh.
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Comments (1)
If I had to point my finger at one thing that has influence on this sad issue it would be the ongoing flawed promotional process inside SFPD. The best and brightest are not necessarily promoted to positions of greater influence, authority, and accountability within the ranks. Quality control of work product, training, policy changes and personnel management are left to politics and multiculturalism. These two areas are far more important to the elected Mayor, the appointed Police Commission, appointed DHR Director, the appointed Civil Service Commission, and the appointed at-will Chief of Police. The system is designed to look good on paper and keep various political groups and activists happy that they are "represented" in the SFPD hierarchy and internal policy makers. What they get instead is a lowered bar which allows for incompetence and ineptitude. My fellow SF Voters don't know this or don't care. Either way, incompetence rules and our police department gets even more incompetent as hard working, experienced, and competent "old timers" leave the police department miasma early out of frustration, anger and disgust. Chief George Gascon has his work cut out, but I will bet dollars to doughnuts that he won’t last four years. I love San Francisco and I hate to see this happening to my police department.
Posted by John Thomas | July 24, 2009 08:20 AM