By TIM JUE
Beat Staff Writer

As the clock ticks away in the search for outgoing San Francisco Police Chief Heather Fong’s replacement, new questions are being raised about the sudden demotion of a popular police officer who was viewed as a likely candidate for the department’s top job.

San Francisco Police Deputy Chief Greg Suhr, who was in charge of security at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, sank to the level of Captain last week at the orders of the outgoing chief because of an undisclosed personnel matter, the San Francisco Examiner reported.

Suhr was widely popular with rank-and-file officers, but after an officer was seriously injured during a riot in the Mission District in 2005, police brass reassigned him from heading up the department’s Field Operations bureau to the less desirable and less visible PUC security role.

His demotion last week was widely perceived as a move to prevent him from becoming a candidate for Chief of Police, union heads told the Examiner.

Morale in the department sunk even further upon news of Suhr’s demotion, which came without notice or explanation to some of his biggest supporters. Suspicions that the move was purely a political play to stain Suhr’s resume to keep him from becoming the city’s top cop did not sit well with many officers who are already dismayed with the handling of several high-profile demotions that have angered some within department.

Those demotions and reassignments include:

• Capt. Stephen Tacchini, who was demoted from a Deputy Chief position after allegations that he had “inappropriate contact with another SFPD investigator” who was looking into a dispute incident involving Tacchini’s son, who is also a SFPD officer. His son was exonerated of any wrongdoing in the incident.
• Capt. Denis O’Leary, who jumped from Southern District captain to lead the Ingleside District police station in a command staff shake-up. A community group lobbied to keep the popular Captain at the Southern precinct.
• Capt. Paul Chignell, transferred from being the longtime and popular head of the Ingleside District police station to the Taraval District station.
• Deputy Chief Morris Tabak, who headed up the Investigations Bureau of the department was transfered to the distant and less prestigious SFO Airport Bureau (known as “Siberia” within the Department).

“People wonder why morale is low and why this department is in such disarray,” San Francisco Police Officer’s Association President Gary Delagnes told the Examiner. Delagnes has been an outspoken critic of Fong and chalks up much of the low morale amongst his membership to decisions coming from the Chief’s office.

Fong, who announced in December that she was retiring from the force in April after 28 years with the SFPD, recently agreed to stay for another three-months while the process to find a replacement drags on. The San Francisco Police Commission is expected to make a final decision on who will be the new Chief of Police in June.

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