SFPD Chief Wants Name Cleared, Calls Prosecutors Racist

San Francisco Police Chief Earl Sanders is seeking to clear his name after more than four months of silence. He wants a judge to declare him “factually innocent” of conspiring to cover up a street brawl involving three off-duty rookie officers. He also says his indictment resulted from racially motivated misconduct on the part of prosecutors.

District Attorney Terence Hallinan withdrew the charge against Sanders 11 days after a grand jury criminally indicted him. But, Sanders said that´s not enough to restore his reputation.

Sanders, in an interview with the Associated Press, described his prosecution as racist. “That´s how white men have always handled black men who dispute them,” he said. He also called the case a “pseudo-scandal” and “a figment of some people´s negative imaginations.”

Hallinan declined to comment, saying he´s still reviewing the petition.