A passion for Jeff Adachi, who defended the public

JAdachi was a complicated man.

He was the only elected public defender of the state, a position he had held since 2002. It was a job that he would exercise until he decided not to do it or that higher powers intervene, and it occurs on Friday night: Adachi dies. unexpectedly at just 59 years old. Some time after having dined at North Beach, Adachi would have been out of breath and stopped breathing. He was resuscitated by emergency personnel and transported to CPMC Buchanan, but the doctors at this facility were not able to save him.

Unfortunately, Adachi is not the first American-born lawyer and politician of American descent, originally from San Francisco, to have died too early from a heart attack apparent: Mayor Ed Lee ended in December 2017, at just 65 years old. Lee's legacy is tangible: It's the skyline; it's the economy; it is affordable housing that he did create; it is the manifestation, for better or for worse, but especially for the real, of the great technological wealth accumulated in this city like a high tide.

But Adachi's legacy is harder to detect. And it's because he lives in people, society does not want to see. The marginalized The oppressed. The homeless. L & # 39; accused. Homeless. The railroad. Money-poor men and women who rot in prison, unable to pay their bail. L & # 39; innocent. Guilty party. the incredibly guilty.

But this is not the substance of the case. It's about defending the public.

Jeff Adachi defended the hell out of the public.

And he would have defended it better. If we let him do it. Four years ago, I asked Adachi when he would be recognized for his efforts to combat another problem that society is anxious not to see: tax reform and pensions.

He laughed at this question, regretfully. This quest cost him.

His answer: "After I'm dead."

To Watching Jeff Adachi in court was like seeing Barry Bonds, at his peak, racking up 3-1 with runners. Adachi was aggressive, he was a showman, he was a man who, for the whole world, seemed to be put on this earth to do what he was doing.

It is hard to exaggerate the number of lives that he has touched here in San Francisco. Men and women freed from incarceration through his office's particularly aggressive approach to public defense could probably move his coffin from 850 Bryant to Colma by hand.

But it goes further than that. Coverage of the San Francisco Police Department's "Textgate" scandal – a group of officers caught exchanging horribly racist messages – often forget that these messages were brought to light only because of successful federal corruption investigation from the police department. And this probe only came about because Adachi videos posted on YouTube cops who enter residential hotels without a warrant or consent as a sort of Stasi.

Putting these videos where they could be viewed by everyone was indicative of the relationship between Adachi and the powers in place in this city. San Francisco is, for lack of a better term, run like a cartel. The term "City Family" applies shamelessly. Adachi was on the outskirts of this family – Skynyrd's cousin who drove the Cougar, if you prefer.

Elected officials complained to me that Adachi had brought in a documentary cameraman while he appeared to be asking for funds so that immigration lawyers could strengthen his office. The staging that marked the behavior of the Adachi courtroom did not stop outside the Hall of Justice. This displeased his colleagues in City Family. But, last year, Adachi $ 1.9 million guaranteed for immigration lawyers. His legal team has allowed dozens of immigrants to get out of jail and reunite with their families.

Ask them how they Adachi brings a cameraman to the town hall.

Adachi more than doubled the budget of the Office of the Public Defender during his term. He fought for these dollars: Adachi mayor's mandates denied reduce his operating expenses, saying that he would be forced to entrust his business to private lawyers, which would more expensive – and an audit has backed it up. When Mayor Gavin Newsom's favorite project, the Community Justice Court, was launched without any funding for public defenders, Adachi – both the lawyer and the politician – the staff itself.

Jeff Adachi had a transformative effect on the public defender's desk. Far from the reputation of a "dump truck" attached to overcrowded, underpaid, dubious public defenders, Adachi's office is not afraid to sue. This office is composed of elite defense lawyers. It's a national lighthouse.

With so many despairing politicians trying to touch the bottom of the Black Lives Matter movement garment, one would think that someone like Adachi – who has not just talked about social justice, but the only one – has been talking about it. lived and helped realize – would have been a natural fit for a higher office in this city.

But, never forget that it is San Francisco.

In 2011, San Francisco channeled $ 423 million fund its pension obligations. At the time, it was considered a huge sum and a worrisome warning for the difficult times ahead. This helped to stimulate Adachi, already a pension crusader, in the race for mayor 2011.

He did not win. He did not place. He did not show.

Let the disk show that, during the last year recorded, the city has injected $ 552 million into pensions. The year before, he had spent $ 527 million. And the year before, he spent $ 593 million. And that comes after The so-called "pension reform" adopted by San Francisco residents – pension reform has been refined and made more acceptable to voters because of Jeff Adachi's harsh advocacy for more extreme solutions. Voters were assured that it was the consensual measures that would withstand court challenges, unlike crazy Proposals put forward by Jeff Adachi.

They did not do it.

Adachi was not wrong to err 10 years ago when he warned that the structural fiscal problems were getting worse and needed to be addressed. Meanwhile, the huge amounts of money flowing through the city like a high tide and helping to meet San Francisco's pension obligations are causing overwhelming societal pressures.

These are pressures that Adachi, who served the poor of the city, was all too aware.

Nevertheless, his obsession with Ahab for pension reform left him a revolted figure among the organized workers of this city. It is a problem if you are a leftist politician. Jeff Adachi certainly did not get a penny from downtown, technology or real estate, which meant his scarlet union letter left him nowhere to go.

A progressive politician like Adachi, with impeccable and forward-thinking social justice skills, should have been a prime candidate for leadership. But, instead, he was an outcast.

Because that's how San Francisco rolls.

JAdachi was a complicated man.

His personal and professional lives were not without tumult. His ethical convictions did not put him on the easiest path. Adachi's view of social justice was ahead of the curve. As for his point of view on tax reform, his prophecy was correct – and came too early.

His laurels in this business will have to come after his death. There is no other way now.

The successor to Adachi will be appointed by the mayor of London Breed. We will all vote on this as soon as possible. There are still so many political stories at play here, but it's a problem for another day. Today we remember. Today we think. About Jeff Adachi – and the city he's served.

"I share the same shock that every one of you must feel upon learning this news," said Matt Gonzalez, Adachi 's number two in the Public Defender' s office, at the staff on Friday night. "Jeff leaves a wonderful legacy as a dedicated public servant who has worked tirelessly to advance the cause of justice. "

"We always take for granted that we will be here tomorrow. Jeff's sudden death reminds us that we should cherish all the time we have. "