As District Attorney of San Francisco in 2005, Kamala Harris proposed a controversial plan that would have allowed drug dealers to avoid prosecution until their third arrest. The program, called “Operation Safe Streets,” was designed to have police detain and release drug dealers twice before charging them on their third offense. However, the proposal was immediately rejected by then-police chief Heather Fong.
In a letter to Harris dated October 24, 2005, Fong warned that this policy would lead to increased crime, particularly in areas like school zones where drug dealing often occurs. “This proposal asks us not to arrest, but instead detain and release observed narcotics sales suspects,” Fong wrote. She added that releasing drug dealers without prosecution could send the wrong message to children who regularly witness these activities.
Harris’s office defended the policy, stating that it would give prosecutors more time to build stronger cases against drug dealers. However, both police officers and defense attorneys criticized the plan as impractical and ineffective. Police officers feared the policy would demoralize the force and make their jobs more difficult, while defense attorneys called the plan “weird and unworkable.”
The proposal was eventually shelved, but it has resurfaced as Harris campaigns on her record of being tough on crime. Critics argue that her policies, such as this one, were actually soft on crime and undermined public safety.
