Mayor Todd Gloria is leaning into a law-and-order stance like never before as he and fellow California Democrats launch anti-crime proposals at the start of an election year.
Like many of the others, Gloria has generally pursued public safety with a progressive tilt, but he took a harder tone in his fourth annual State of the City address Wednesday night.
“Let’s be clear: When crimes are committed, there must be consequences,” he said.
He then announced he will efforts to amend Proposition 47, the 2014 statewide ballot measure he ed that reduced certain drug and property crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. The measure was approved by 59.6 percent of voters.
“That law may have made sense at the time,” Gloria said in his speech.
Prosecutors and police agencies say the law has led to a growing trend of organized retail thefts — videos of which have frequently gone viral — because the culprits have little fear of repercussions. Public outrage over people openly stealing items from stores and fleeing uncontested has shaped political discourse.
There’s nothing to suggest Gloria’s focus on crime is anything but a sincere policy move, but campaign implications are hard to ignore.
The mayor’s two main re-election opponents are Geneviéve Jones-Wright, a social justice advocate who lost a race for district attorney in 2018, and police Officer Larry Turner. The law-and-order emphasis could appeal to voters considering Turner.
Gloria has most of San Diego’s Democratic establishment locked down, but many of his progressive allies have been frustrated by some of his positions. There’s certainly the potential for some of them to gravitate to Jones-Wright.
San Diego’s political class seems convinced Gloria won’t have a problem winning a second term. But there are private polls out there that suggest San Diegans increasingly feel the city is on the wrong track, in part because of rampant homelessness.
Looking beyond the November election, a role in trying to overhaul Proposition 47 this year again could put Gloria on the statewide stage. A former Assembly member, he has kept up a regular presence in Sacramento as mayor by advocating for changes in conservatorship law, CARE Courts for people with behavioral health issues and tougher laws to combat the fentanyl scourge, among other things.
That exposure could enhance his options after leaving City Hall.
Gloria and others who favor toughening the law find themselves at odds with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who continues to defend Proposition 47. Newsom helped defeat a 2020 initiative by law enforcement leaders to roll back Proposition 47.
But the governor is not immune to the growing clamor over crime — and Democratic political concerns about it. Newsom unveiled his own anti-property crime package last week, but stopped short of calling for changes in Proposition 47.
There may be a gap between reality and public perception when it comes to crime. Many crime categories are down across the nation and remain at historic lows, following increases during the pandemic.
The mass organized thefts and open drug markets prevalent in some cities are a real problem, but they are not as ubiquitous as the videos from San Francisco and Los Angeles may suggest.
In his speech, Gloria said things are different in San Diego. He stressed the city is one of the safest large cities in the country, and rattled off favorable crime statistics to buttress his point.
But he said crime remains a concern in San Diego and affects daily life.
“While San Diego hasn’t been hit as hard by these theft rings as other California cities, we’re still paying the price. Both at the cash and in time and convenience,” the mayor said.
“You shouldn’t have to flag down a Target employee to unlock a plexiglass cabinet just so you can get toothpaste. We should be locking up criminals, not laundry detergent!”
This tougher tone might not just appeal to certain voters, but to law enforcement as well. Gloria has given considerable to the San Diego Police Department.
Gloria was endorsed by the San Diego Police Officers Association in 2020 and he has backed higher salaries and benefits for officers, partly in an effort to reduce yearslong staffing shortages, as did his predecessor, Kevin Faulconer. The Gloria istration and POA currently are in contract negotiations.
Despite calls from some quarters to “defund” police in recent years, the mayor has fully funded the police budget and acquiesced to substantial increases in overtime pay.
With Gloria’s backing, the City Council approved a police surveillance system of streetlight cameras and automated license plate readers, over the protests of some privacy advocates.
As a candidate in 2020, Gloria wrote in The San Diego Union-Tribune, “The rapidly expanding and secretive use of digital surveillance of community is unconstitutional, and it should end.”
In his Wednesday speech, the mayor said the surveillance system has “clear rules of the road to protect San Diegans’ privacy rights.”
Early in his istration, Gloria proposed a series of police reforms. Police Chief David Nisleit said at the time the department had already made some changes, including efforts to reduce officer use of force.
The mayor didn’t talk about police reforms Wednesday night.
The public is always wary about crime, but not long ago a poll suggested it wasn’t close to the major concern among San Diego voters. In a July poll conducted by Public Dynamics, only 2 percent of likely voters surveyed cited “crime, gangs and drugs” as their top issue.
Homelessness and the cost of housing far and away were identified as the top issues, at 41 percent and 28 percent, respectively. None of the 13 other issues on the list rose above low single digits. It will be interesting to see if polls in the coming months show a change.
On Wednesday, Gloria talked about homeless and housing, along with infrastructure.
But crime and Proposition 47 came first.
What they said
Mercury News (@mercnews). Add your own skepticism.
“Can cannabis motivate you to exercise more? study suggests yes.”
