The USF (University of San Francisco) hosted a two-day Law Enforcement Leadership Symposium with the SFPD on January 6 and 7, 2014. This year, members of the Department management were given the invaluable opportunity to hear and discuss with specialists and community leaders who work in DV (Domestic Violence) prevention.
DV affects every socio-economic segment of our society and is often cited as an underreported crime. Victims of DV can be of any age, race, culture, sex, and sexual orientation. Although California has some of the most stringent DV laws in the world, it has proven to be a persistent issue. Police officers routinely respond to calls for help when DV occurs.
The SFPD Administration and Management members–lieutenants, captains, and chiefs, met with community stakeholders, social activists, educators, and prosecutors to discuss in length about best practices. They covered a wide range of subjects related to DV such as: children exposed to violence, human trafficking, and family justice.
The USF Law Enforcement Leadership Symposium is an annual gathering of leaders, researchers, and educators in the Criminal Justice System. Each year, participants discuss a particular contemporary topic of interest. Specialists and experts in a particular topic of discussion are invited to educate, exchange, and update at the gathering. The Symposium is one of USF’s Criminal Justice Institute programs. The Director of the Institute is Dr. Anthony Ribera, former SFPD Chief of Police.
Dr. Ribera organized the Law Enforcement Leadership program in 1997. Since then, he was instrumental in building an academic approach to management training specific to public safety administration. He continues to teach criminal justice leadership not only to undergraduates, but to professionals as well. Countless law enforcement administrators and managers credit Dr. Ribera as being a mentor in their careers.
Dr. Ribera firmly believes trust-building between police officers and the people they serve is crucial to effective law enforcement. He reminds law enforcement leaders to be goal-driven from within and to be conscientious in making decisions that are ethical.
Some of the notable attendees of the Symposium were: SF (San Francisco) Mayor Ed Lee, SF DA (District Attorney) George Gascon, SFPD Chief Greg Suhr, Alameda County DA Nancy O’Malley, LA (Los Angeles) Superior Court Judge Scott Gordan, San Mateo Police Chief Susan Manheimer, and New Haven (Connecticut) Police Chief Dean Esserman.
San Francisco is truly privileged to play host to such an important meeting of community leaders and stakeholders. DV is an issue that needs to be continually addressed as a global rights issue. Chief Greg Suhr and members of his administration and management team believes DV prevention is vital to building and maintaining a healthy community.
