Update: Since this story was published, campaign finance records show that Ari Lurie has made a new contribution of $250,000 in support of “Daniel Lurie for Prop E.”
Emmett Shear, the founder of video game streaming company Twitch (and CEO of OpenAI for 72 hours), is among the newest funders of Proposition E, a ballot measure poised to expand the powers of the San Francisco Police Department, new filings with the Ethics Commission show.
Shear, 40, gave $49,000 to the “Committee for a Safer San Francisco 2024,” joining another tech executive, Ripple CEO Chris Larsen, who has already given $250,000 as the measure’s biggest donor. Shear was a co-founder of Twitch and served as the company’s CEO for more than 10 years. More recently, he stepped in as OpenAI’s interim CEO in November, after the company’s board fired Sam Altman.
Prop. E would allow the police department to more readily chase vehicles and install cameras around the city, as well as reduce their reporting requirements when they use force. It would also add new requirements where the Police Commission would be required to hold community meetings in each district before creating new policies for the department.
Records show that several other new donors gave tens of thousands of dollars each in recent days: Alison Gelb Pincus, founder of the decor firm One Kings Lane; Jeremy Liew, a venture capitalist; and Jonathan Adam Gans, a lawyer and head of Ironwood Capital Management, each gave $50,000; philanthropist Cathy Podell contributed $25,000.
That brings the total raised for Prop. E, an initiative from Mayor London Breed that takes aim at the Police Commission and loosens restrictions on the police department, to more than $664,000 total, making it the highest-funded ballot measure on the March ballot. (The police union has reportedly contributed $50,000, but this donation does not appear in campaign finance records.)
For
For
Against
Ron
Conway
$100,000
Chris Larsen
$250,000
ACLU of NorCal
$100,000
Jonathan Adam
Gans
$50,000
Emmett Shear
$49,000
Total: $100,000
Alison
Gelb
Pincus
$50,000
Jeremy
Liew
$50,000
Cathy
Podell
$25,000
Police union
$50,000
Other
$20,347
Total: $644,347
For
Ron
Conway
$100,000
Chris Larsen
$250,000
Jonathan
Adam
Gans
$50,000
Emmett Shear
$49,000
Alison
Gelb
Pincus
$50,000
Jeremy
Liew
$50,000
Cathy
Podell
$25,000
Police union
$50,000
Other
$20,347
Total: $644,347
Against
ACLU of NorCal
$100,000
Total: $100,000
Graphic by Kelly Waldron. Data from the Department of Ethics and reports of contributions.
Erickson founded Emerald Fund, a development company that claims, on its website, to be the most prolific developer in San Francisco history. The company was behind three major residential developments near Civic Center, and is reportedly moving forward with a major redevelopment of the California College of the Arts in Oakland.
Pincus was married to billionaire and Zynga founder Mark Pincus for nearly 10 years. She declined to comment on her contribution of $50,000.
The other donors could not be immediately reached.
Just last week, Police Chief Bill Scott said the department’s existing car-chase policy is “consistent with the trends of national law enforcement,” though he publicly supports Prop. E’s expansion of police powers to chase fleeing cars. The Department of Police Accountability said San Francisco’s car-chase policy is “about average” and not “crazy restrictive.”
But that has not stopped well-heeled interests from supporting the ballot measure. Last month, Larsen, angel investor Ron Conway, and the San Francisco police union became the measure’s first and biggest donors.
Larsen has also given $250,000 toward Prop. F, which could require drug screening for some welfare recipients, and $50,000 toward District 1 Supervisor candidate Marjan Philhour’s campaign for the Democratic County Central Committee.
A Breed opponent in the upcoming November election, mayoral candidate Daniel Lurie, also threw his support behind the measure this week. Some of the new donors — Gans, Pincus, and Podell — have contributed in the challenger’s name, under a new committee called Daniel Lurie for Prop. E.
Lurie said in a statement this week that the proposition “will ensure we use community safety cameras to catch repeat offenders and hold them accountable,” adding that “This is one of many steps that should have been implemented long ago, but it’s one we must stand up and take now to tackle the public safety crisis in our city.” Recent data shows that crime rates fell in 2023.
Just this week, the “Daniel Lurie for Prop. E” committee raised $125,000.
Breed’s campaign, meanwhile, criticized Lurie for piggy-backing on her ballot measure, calling it political opportunism.
The city’s ultra-wealthy often contribute heavily to political campaigns: Shear also donated $100,000 to housing-focused Prop. D in 2022, and $50,000 to GrowSF’s ongoing campaign against Supervisor Dean Preston. He also gave $1 million to support small businesses during the pandemic, and has contributed $10,000 toward potential District 5 Supervisor candidate Bilal Mahmoud’s campaign for the DCCC.
Correction: An earlier version of this story noted a $20,000 donation from Silvanus Osborn “Oz” Erickson, a real estate developer, based on public campaign filings. In a phone call, Erickson said he did not donate to Prop. E, but had instead donated to Prop. C, and later clarified that the initial filing had been made in error.
Dear Mission Local: With the demise of the Bay Guardian, there has not been an intelligent progressive media organization to analyze ballot issues.
I hope this can be you. Right now I plan to vote for this because reducing crime is our No. 1 problem. But if there’s a legitimate reason not to, I can be persuaded. Please don’t make this a simple matter of left versus right. I expect the left in SF these days to be against anything regarding the police. Please be deeper than that. The city needs it. Thank you.
MAGA billionaires trying to buy San Francisco government. San Francisco hasn’t had a progressive mayor since Art Agnos’s term ended in 1992, yet everything is always the progressives’ fault.
I’m a retired Reform School teacher and I’ve spent decades watching the San Francisco Criminal Justice System.
SFPD is outta whack and no amount of money will change that.
Whatever you give the present department will be wasted or abused and usually both.
I can’t wait to hear the buzz of drones over my neighborhood (bordering 16th and Mission) scanning faces to find anyone on their enemies list.
Or, to see what kind of kids your teenagers are hanging out with.
The kids from the Dolores Park Hill Bomb party are in there now.
So are you and everyone else as the technology improves.
Fact is that the Money from Prop E will make your life more miserable and not a wee bit safer.
But, the Politicians will be able to say they spent more on cops.
A better move and an International Trend Setter would be to offer everyone you arrest Ten Grand to get sterilized.
The Addicts and Poor immigrants would jump at it.
Then, give the newly neutered $1,000 a month for Life as UBI.
The UBI was tried on a pilot in Stockton a few years back at $500 a month and it worked stupendously.
The sterilization would be an SF first and I can’t wait to hear the Pope.
How’s that help?
Well, you’d see the results within a year or two in our emergency rooms and in the Books of our Social Service Agencies.
Bottom line there is that you’re quickly spending less on the same people and they aren’t making what are likely to be more of the same kind of people.
Pay attention and repeat after me …
The best way to get rid of crime is to stop making more criminals.
Then there’s the cops.
Approach their Union leaders like you’re dealing with a Rogue Motorcycle Club licensed to carry military level weapons and high speed vehicles.
Union leaders for SFPOA have been aggressive loud-mouthed knuckle draggers for the past 20 years.
Our mayors have taken their money and endorsements and given them pretty much what they want.
Don’t like Foot Patrols ?
OK, stay in your cars your entire shift and the only people you meet or victims and criminals and your partner.
Police Kobans at BART stops too dangerous ?
OK, stay in your cars and let the people take their chances.
If you do go to 16th and Mission take a half dozen other cops with you and maybe a bunch of DPW workers who are now wearing badges.
The department needs a complete revamp beginning with the way our Police Chief is chosen.
Let the People choose the Chief just as we choose our Sheriff and Public Defender and DA and City Attorney.
Vote for the one whose Platform most matches you values.
Public Safety begins with the Police Department’s new hires.
I had a friend’s kid turned down out of college cause he smoked pot in high school they said.
He ended up a Navy Jag advising the base Commander at Guantanamo.
Instead, they are filling their ranks with ‘Lateral Hires’ who are often rejects from other agencies where they were too violent or trigger happy.
SFPD is a stop on the Underground Railroad of Cowboy Cops.
Too many words …
h.
FYI,
Generally cops and firefighters give nothing to these candicates and causes.
They are ‘beards’ for Lord Voldermott’s folks.
Cops don’t have as much this time as their cash cow in Santa Clara got busted cause she had an international drug ring running out of the Police Union Headquarters in a little noticed case.
lol
Really, their cop reps were laundering their drug receipts through SFPOA to back items pushing a crack down on our dealers.
Competition ?
Go Niners !!
h.
Nope,
The cops don’t do their jobs anyway and giving them more power is stupid.
Same for the Mayor who is an old fashioned Spoils Politician.
All the wealthy donors (et tu, Daniel ?!?) are combining to bring on a fascist City political culture where the People have little input (et tu, Aaron ?) and Big Business rules the day.
All protected by a brutal Police Force.
Their push for a return to a City-Wide elected BOS seeks Lackies funded by the Rich.
When I arrived under that format the Supes’ aides made more than the supes who cashed in at around $35k which qualified some of them for Food Stamps.
We need to Elect our Police Chief and get back on the path of Criminal Justice Reform.
Reform works and Revenge doesn’t.