SF Board of Supervisors agrees to $700K settlement in contentious police abuse case
Dacari Spiers was beaten by an SFPD officer at Fisherman's Wharf in 2019. The district attorney called it "excessive and unlawful force"
SAN FRANCISCO - The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday agreed to a $700,000 settlement for Dacari Spiers, one week after pausing the negotiated settlement amid a contentious fight between the San Francisco Police Department and district attorney's office.
In an 8-2 vote, the board agreed to pay Spiers the six-figure amount for the October 2019 beating by Officer Terrance Stangel on Fisherman's Wharf that left Spiers' with broken bones.
The board was set to vote on the settlement last week, but Supervisor Catherine Stefani raised questions about the agreement following testimony from an investigator in the district attorney's office who accused prosecutors of intentionally minimizing Spiers' conduct during the now-infamous run-in.
Supervisors Stefani and Rafael Mandelman both voted against the settlement.
The escalating political conflict began last month when DA investigator Magen Hayashi said she was told to withhold exculpatory evidence from the arrest warrant for Stangel, who is currently on trial for several crimes associated with the beating.
San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott then announced he was ending an agreement with the district attorney Chesa Boudin, which made the DA's office the authority in investigating police use-of-force cases.
Boudin's office fired back on Tuesday accusing the chief of violating the agreement, which has been amended several times since Spiers was beaten.
The city's police commission will take up the agreement – or memorandum of understanding – during what is expected to be a lively meeting on Wednesday night.
Evan Sernoffsky is an investigative reporter for KTVU. Email Evan at evan.sernoffsky@foxtv.com and follow him on Twitter @EvanSernoffsky.