Salesforce CEO says San Francisco must 'refund' police

SAN FRANCISCO - Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff is calling on San Francisco to refund and empower its police department.

Benioff reacted to a local news report on Thursday about the San Francisco Police Department being barred from making pretextual stops —   stops in which officers use a minor traffic offense as an opening to investigate a driver for contraband or other crimes.

"San Francisco must REFUND the Police not continue to DEFUND the Police. Our Police need to be empowered now — not this new terrible decision to end pretext stops," Benioff wrote on X. "Our SFPD and Sheriffs are the absolute key to a safe and clean San Francisco every day."

In February, the San Francisco Police Commission chose to eliminate the controversial practice, which data over decades indicated disproportionately targeted Black and Latino drivers. This new policy took effect Wednesday.

As the San Francisco Standard reported, the San Francisco Police Officers Association has defended the practice, mentioning instances where minor infractions such as a broken tail light led to the discovery of drugs and guns.

Benioff, a San Francisco native, called for the city to increase its police force from 1,400 officers to over 2,000 within the next 18 months and for officers to "be fully empowered to enforce ALL laws."

He also called for quick action to restore safety to retail and residential areas.

Previously, Benioff contemplated withdrawing business from San Francisco due to the city’s struggles with homelessness and open-air drug markets. He had told the San Francisco Chronicle that his company's Dreamforce Conference, a big money maker for the city, could be relocated if these issues jeopardized it. Despite these concerns, last year's conference went off without a hitch and this year's event is scheduled to be in San Francisco in September.