The Trump administration’s strategy to tackle national crime and immigration issues is soon set to impact San Francisco. Despite a decline in violent crime, the city continues to grapple with significant challenges related to drug use and homelessness, affecting local neighborhoods.
According to a source on Wednesday, over 100 federal agents are expected to arrive in San Francisco as early as Thursday. The city, which is ranked 26th nationally for violent crime, has been preparing for months for potential federal intervention from the Trump administration.
The source revealed that federal officers, including those from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, have been deployed to Coast Guard Base Alameda. This development comes as no surprise to local officials who have been anticipating such a move.
In a pattern similar to actions taken in cities such as Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Memphis, where federal officers and the National Guard have been dispatched in recent months, the Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that federal agents would also be deployed to San Francisco. These cities, including San Francisco, were highlighted by Noem as places where significant challenges persist.
Administration officials have touted the success of federal law enforcement in slowing down crime in Washington and Memphis. President Donald Trump said this week that progress is also being made in Chicago, where federal officers and agents have been since early September as part of Operation Midway Blitz.
Now, without giving a specific date for federal officers to arrive, Noem said this week that Trump has directed San Francisco to be next.
San Francisco is lagging behind Memphis, which ranks No. 1 in the nation in both violent crime and property crime, while the city ranks 13th nationally. Local leaders acknowledge the city has a crime problem that needs addressing, but ahead of federal officers and agents being deployed, those officials are asking the Trump administration to work with them rather than being heavy-handed in its approach.
Brooke Jenkins, San Francisco district attorney, speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview in San Francisco, California, US, on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022. Jenkins has a message about the “lawlessness” she says she inherited in her city: “All crime in San Francisco is illegal again.” Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins calls the deployment of federal law enforcement unnecessary and, like elected officials in Chicago, is asking the administration for room for the city to handle its own problems.
“Yes, we have work to do we all know that,” Jenkins told . “We are asking for respect right now. This is about requesting respect for our city, for the officials who work each and every day to make this city better and to not wreak havoc here, not to bring chaos, not to do things to take our city backward. We’ve been through enough.”
Despite reported drops in crime, other issues, including the delivery of fentanyl from Mexican drug cartels, are hampering local neighborhoods. A business owner in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District told that he has suffered because of rampant drug use and the city’s issues with homelessness.
The business owner, who requested anonymity over fear of retaliation, said that his shop was once frequented by locals and tourists alike, but that he has seen business drop because of the issues plaguing the neighborhood. The retailer told that 40%-50% of his business came from tourists who are now staying away because of the known drug issues hampering the district. That’s no longer the case, he said.
“They cannot come here because every night, it’s just packed (with) drug users, fentanyl users,” he said, adding he has to fight off drug addicts and others just to open and close his doors each day.
Local officials also say that in addition to San Francisco’s ongoing crime issues, more trouble is seeping in from neighboring Oakland, which ranked behind Memphis as the most dangerous place to live in the country, according to U.S. News and World Report. The rankings are based on homicide and property crime rates per 100,000 people, based on FBI crime statistics.
Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee told a local NBC affiliate that despite the ranking, her city’s violent crime has dropped by 28% from 2024 and that overall crime is down by 31%
Like some in cities like Chicago, some community organizers and business owners in San Francisco believe that the presence of the National Guard would help. However, they told that the Guard would only be beneficial if their priority is cracking down on crime. But many fear that troops will also carry over into immigration enforcement operations, as has been the case in Chicago, where protesters and community members continue to clash with federal law enforcement.
Community leaders and Jenkins, the district attorney, worry the same will happen in San Francisco.
Edward Oscobar, the founder of Coalition for Community Engagement, worries that the presence of federal law enforcement could hamper local efforts to make life safer for local residents. He agrees that more resources are needed to curb crime and the city’s ongoing fight against drugs, but he isn’t certain the Trump administration’s plans are the answer.
“You have people that are dying, businesses that are dying and you have communities that are dying and it’s unacceptable,” Escobar told .
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