Christiana Porter, the 34-year-old Black woman who was shoved against a wall by a San Francisco police officer last month, has filed a claim against the city for injuries that left her with a concussion and a separated shoulder, her attorney Treva Stewart said in a press conference on Thursday.
The city has 45 days to respond to the claim, which was filed Aug. 12 and alleges excessive force by SFPD officers, according to a press release from the San Francisco NAACP Youth Council. If the city rejects or fails to respond to the claim, Porter can then file a lawsuit. Porter has said she intends to pursue a civil case.
Porter was walking down Geary Boulevard on July 29 when SFPD officer Josh McFall stopped her near Second Avenue after she purportedly crossed on a red light. California law prohibits police from making stops for jaywalking unless the pedestrian creates a “danger of collision.” SFPD has not said why the officer made the stop.
Surveillance video from a nearby business shows that McFall slammed Porter to the wall around one minute after getting out of his vehicle and initially approaching her.
McFall later told onlookers that Porter refused to show him her ID and disobeyed his order to keep her hands out of her pockets and purse; the incident was also captured on onlookers’ phone recordings.
San Francisco NAACP Youth Council youth advisor Cheryl Thornton said at Thursday’s press conference, held over Zoom, that the council is demanding a “thorough investigation” and “immediate reform” of the police department.
In its press release, the council called for SFPD to be “held accountable for any violations of state law and unnecessary use of force that disproportionately impacts African American and other communities of color.”
The statement cites California’s Freedom to Walk Act, in effect since Jan. 1, 2023, which prohibits “a pedestrian who crosses or enters a roadway when no cars are present from being subject to a fine or criminal penalty until January 1, 2029.” No cars were present when Porter crossed the street.
Porter and her attorneys have additionally alleged that the stop was pretextual — a reference to the practice of police officers stopping people for minor offenses to conduct deeper investigations. The San Francisco Police Commission prohibited stops for a number of minor infractions — including jaywalking — earlier this year.
Mission Local has reached out to both SFPD and the City Attorney’s Office for comment.
Stewart, Porter’s attorney, said at the press conference that there was “no explanation” for what McFall did. “He had something, some gripe against Ms. Porter,” Stewart said, adding “Ms. Porter would not be believed” had the incident not been recorded. Porter said she was “terrified” during the stop and did not know what she had done wrong: “I’m still in shock that it even took place.”
Incidents like these erode public trust in the police, San Francisco NAACP Youth Council president and high school senior Rachel Alcazar said. Alcazar emphasized the need for “systemic change within the way that communities that are predominantly African American are policed.”
Porter was cited for resisting arrest during the stop. According to her attorney Adante Pointer, her court appearance is scheduled for Friday morning.
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