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Man at center of contentious SF police abuse case wants officer 'held accountable'

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Published  February 10, 2022 6:05pm PST
Crime and Public Safety
KTVU FOX 2

Man at center of contentious SF police abuse case wants officer 'held accountable'

The man at the center of a police abuse case that’s created a widening rift between two top San Francisco law enforcement officials wrapped up his testimony in the contentious trial on Thursday.

SAN FRANCISCO - The man at the center of a police abuse case that’s created a widening rift between two top San Francisco law enforcement officials wrapped up his testimony in the contentious trial on Thursday.

Dacari Spiers spoke to KTVU outside court after his second day of testifying, in which he broke down recounting the beating he received from Officer Terrance Stangel in October 2019.

"Just held accountable -- held accountable. That’s all I want to see," Spiers said of Stangel, adding that he has since recovered from a broken wrist and leg. "Physically I’ll be OK. I’ll be alright physically. Mentally is what I’m working on."

But as the trial is expected to continue into next week at least, the political fallout is getting messy.

Police Chief Bill Scott last month pulled out of an agreement that gave authority to district attorney Chesa Boudin’s office to lead police use-of-force investigations.

The chief made the move after a DA investigator testified that she was pressured by the prosecutor to withhold evidence from Stangel’s arrest warrant

Boudin said his office did nothing improper and a judge in the case didn’t find Stangels due process righs were violated. 

On Wednesday night, the DA unexpectedly called into the weekly meeting of the city police commission on the public comment line.

"I don’t pick up my ball and walk off the field and go home," Boudin said of the chief’s actions. "I don’t go to the press. I call the chief and try to work it out."

Earlier in the meeting, Scott had accused the DA of violating the agreement – or memorandum of understanding – between the offices multiple times by failing to share information in a number of cases. 

"I’m telling this commission there’s been a serious collapse in trust," Scott said. "I haven’t heard any acknowledgement that there’s been a violation of the MOU."

The police commission asked the chief and DA to try to work out their differences and preserve their agreement -- or they'll have to step in.

Evan Sernoffsky is an investigative reporter for KTVU. Email Evan at evan.sernoffsky@foxtv.com and follow him on Twitter @EvanSernoffsky.