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In SF, stunning arrests but a familiar script

San Francisco’s district attorney announced the booking of former human rights honcho Sheryl Davis into county jail on Monday, March 30.

The case follows a familiar script: Government officials (or others) exploit taxpayer programs –– often under the auspices of helping disadvantaged groups –– and then, when caught, blame others and cry racism.

Davis, the former executive director of the city’s Human Rights Commission, now faces 17 felonies –– including charges of misappropriation of public funds, conflicts of interest involving government contracts worth more than $8.5 million, perjury, and accepting gifts from restricted sources.

Her longtime partner, James Spingola, former head of a San Francisco nonprofit, was charged with aiding and abetting her alleged grift.

The details released by authorities read like bad political satire.

Davis allegedly steered millions from the city’s troubled Dream Keeper Initiative (DKI), a roughly $120 million program launched by former Mayor London Breed in 2021, to Collective Impact, the group Davis’ live-in boyfriend ran.

Meanwhile, the funds allegedly helped bankroll her VIP lifestyle: first-class flights, concert tickets, luxury events, PR firms to promote her personal brand.

A city audit exposed $4.6 million in ineligible or questionable spending under her watch.

The DKI was born amid the emotional aftermath of George Floyd’s death. Marketed as a bold response to “systemic inequities,” it directed money away from police and toward black-specific programs.

During Davis’ tenure at the Human Rights........

© New York Post