On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the California Highway Patrol and the California National Guard had been assigned to San Francisco as part of "a multi-agency enforcement operation," focusing on the Tenderloin.
There will be 75 CHP officers stationed in the San Francisco area, and 14 California National Guard members will be deployed as part of the operation, in which they will provide "criminal case support."
According to the governor's office, the California Highway Patrol, "will strategically allocate a new team of law enforcement personnel" to "focus on drug trafficking enforcement within key areas … including the Tenderloin." Meanwhile, California National Guard members will work to analyze drug trafficking operations in the city.
According to a recent report published by the state’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, there have been estimated 200 fatal overdose deaths in the first three months of this year. That marks an increase from the 188 overdose deaths in the final quarter of 2022.
The governor's office has yet to specify how substantial the new police presence in the Tenderloin and South of Market will be. But the number of officers deployed to San Francisco could change as the situation evolves.
