Last week, the city’s Board of Supervisors approved a bill that would have let police use remote-controlled robots with deadly weapons.
San Francisco Police Chief William Scott assured the robots will be used as a last resort in life-and-death situations.
Scott said in a news release that "We live in a time when unthinkable mass violence is becoming more commonplace. We need the option to be able to save lives in the event we have that type of tragedy in our city."
Following the announcement, about a hundred citizens joined by civil liberties groups, gathered in front of City Hall to protest against the bill.
Among them were three Supervisors, who rejected the decision from the beginning.
One of them, Dean Preston told ABC News in a statement, "there have been more killings at the hands of police than any other year on record nationwide. We should be working on ways to decrease the use of force by local law enforcement, not giving them new tools to kill people."
The bill will now be sent to the Board of Supervisors rules committee for potential revisions, before another vote next week.