San Francisco- Theresa Sparks, an openly transgender member of the San Francisco Police Commission, was elected its president last week during a hotly contested 4-3 vote that saw another member quit the panel one day later.
As reported on the Bay Area Reporter 's blog last week, Sparks, 58, is expected to take over June 6.
The election of Sparks, CEO of Good Vibrations, a sexuality product retailer, set off waves in City Hall last week because it means that for the first time, the Police Commission will be led by an appointee of the Board of Supervisors. As of press time, Mayor Gavin Newsom had yet to name a replacement for former President Louise Renne, who quit.
Newsom and Sparks met last Friday. Mayoral spokesman Nathan Ballard, who was not in attendance at the meeting, nonetheless characterized it as "a good meeting."
Sparks agreed that it was a good meeting, but said there was little of substance discussed.
"We said we'd do our best to work together," Sparks said. However, she said there were two areas of likely disagreement: she wants the city to fund significant changes in the Office of Citizens Complaints, and she wants more transparency around the city's violent crime statistics.
Sparks is a commission appointee of the Board of Supervisors, and was elected president Wednesday, May 9 after her two fellow board appointees and mayoral appointee Joe Alioto Veronese voted for her.
Newsom and Renne had wanted Commissioner Joe Marshall to be elected president. Renne quit the panel Thursday. Marshall is the commission's incoming vice president.
On Monday, Renne responded to her comment in the San Francisco Examiner last week that she could not serve on a commission under Sparks.
"When I was on the commission Theresa regularly took pot shots at me," Renne told the B.A.R. "I didn't respond in kind at the time and I'm not going to respond in kind now."
Renne told the San Francisco Chronicle last week that some commissioners who voted for Sparks put their own political aspirations ahead of the panel.
For her part, Sparks said last week that "it's really too bad she has to go there," referring to Renne's comments about other commissioners. And, Sparks said that she has seen no evidence that either Commissioners David Campos or Veronese – neither of whom have yet filed papers to run for office – are using their commission posts as a pulpit.
"This woman has been in politics for what, 35-40 years, and she's leaving because [she says] it's being political?" Sparks said.
Campos, who is openly gay, has said he is planning to run for the Board of Supervisors, as previously reported in the B.A.R . Veronese has indicated he is eyeing a run for the state Senate seat held by Carole Migden. Sparks has already endorsed Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), who is running against Migden for the Senate seat.
