A former San Francisco department chief and her partner have been apprehended amid allegations of misusing city funds intended to benefit black communities for their personal gains.
Sheryl Davis, previously at the helm of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission, and her partner, nonprofit executive James Spingola, were detained on charges related to several felonies, including the misuse of public funds and conflicts of interest.
Davis was in charge of the Dream Keeper Initiative, a troubled program initiated by former Mayor London Breed in 2021 following the death of George Floyd in police custody.
This $120 million initiative was designed to reallocate police funding to support economic opportunities for disadvantaged black residents.
However, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins claims that Davis redirected these taxpayer funds for personal ventures and lavish events. Expenses reportedly included luxury flights, wine tasting events for black college students, concert tickets, and VIP event entries in Beverly Hills, Martha’s Vineyard, and New York City. Additionally, she allegedly hired multiple PR firms to boost her personal brand and promote her book.
Further investigation revealed that Davis played a significant role in channeling over $3 million to Spingola’s nonprofit, at one point insisting on the funding despite the organization’s poor evaluation scores by city officials.
Davis and Spingola, who headed a nonprofit Collective Impact that got city funds, lived together for years but the relationship was not disclosed to the city.
Davis has been charged with 17 felonies and two misdemeanors, including perjury and misuse of public funds. Spingola is charged with four felony counts of aiding and abetting Davis’ alleged conflicts of interest in doling out city funds.
Davis’ attorney, Tony Brass, suggested she was set up for failure and claimed she had asked for more oversight.
“They provided her with no guidance about transitioning into government bureaucracy and asked her to develop a robust system to help those in need to advance not only individuals but San Francisco as a city where the black community could thrive.”
“She asked for financial supervision, she asked for internal audits and when no one responded, she actually went to Board of Supervisors to ask for funding so that she could staff these positions,” Brass continued. “For the city to respond with a felony prosecution after 2 years is disappointing.”
