S.F. Mayor Proposes $17.5 Million for Police Reforms

San Francisco's mayor on Tuesday proposed spending an additional $17.5 million on the city's police to help the beleaguered department institute reforms and reduce violence.

Mayor Ed Lee announced the police reform package as part of his proposed budget for the next two fiscal years.

The U.S. Department of Justice is reviewing the San Francisco Police Department's policy and procedures after officers shot and killed a young black man armed with a knife. Since 2014, San Francisco police also shot and killed two other suspects not carrying guns, prompting the mayor to order an overhaul of the department's policy on the use of force.

San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr said he aims to reduce officer shootings by 80 percent through better training and stricter policies on when guns can be drawn and fired.

About $4.4 million would be given directly to the department to buy new equipment, possibly including 100 stun guns. The Police Commission is mulling whether to allow a pilot program to arm officers with stun guns. The commission has twice before rejected department requests to arm officers with stun guns.

The bulk of the proposed funding would be used to expand programs that help families victimized by violence and to work with young people to prevent violence.

The mayor is expected to introduce the reform package with his proposed budget to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on June 1.

Suhr Under Fire

A member of San Francisco's Ethics Commission says embattled Police Chief Greg Suhr should resign for the good of the police department.

Ethics Commissioner Peter Keane says he believes Suhr, for the most part, has done a good job, but has become a distraction.

"I think he should make the decision himself to just step aside," Keane said. "And I think if he did he would be doing something that would be in the interest of not just of the Police Department but of the city and county of San Francisco as a whole."

Protesters have also called for Suhr to be removed from his post after recent high-profile officer-involved shootings. A group of five activists, known as the "Frisco Five" (#Frisco5), went on a 17-day hunger strike calling for Suhr's resignation.

The department also faces allegations of bias after a series of racist and homophobic texts by SFPD officers were uncovered.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.