More than a month after being nominated by Mayor Todd Gloria to serve on the San Diego Ethics Commission, former Sheriff Bill Gore has withdrawn his nomination in the face of overwhelming opposition.
Gloria’s staff announced the withdrawal in a memo released late Monday — hours before the city council was scheduled to formally consider the recommendation.
The council will move forward with debate over a second nominee, Deval Zaveri, a former Navy lawyer who now works in private practice.
The three-page memo from Gloria to council members and the city attorney included a timeline that said Gore reached the decision over the weekend. The announcement was at the bottom of the lengthy timeline dating back to May.
“On Oct. 29, 2023, Bill Gore informed me that he is withdrawing his name from consideration for appointment to the ethics commission,” Gloria wrote.
The mayor’s office declined to comment on the decision beyond the memo, which notes that the mayor respects the former sheriff’s decision to withdraw. Gore did not respond to requests for comment.
Gloria’s nomination of the former sheriff last month generated immediate backlash from criminal justice reform advocates and family members of people who died in San Diego County jails in recent years.
According to sheriff’s department records, more than 170 people died in county jails on Gore’s watch since he was first appointed sheriff in 2009.
Gore, who spent more than 30 years at the Federal Bureau of Investigation before joining the sheriff’s department, subsequently was elected sheriff three times. He retired in midterm last year.
Criticism of the Gloria nomination began as quickly as the San Diego mayor introduced his selection.
“The sheriff’s department under his leadership was badly mismanaged,” said Darwin Fishman, a cofounder of the Racial Justice Coalition of San Diego and former member of the city’s community review board on police practices.
Gore “should not be rewarded for this abysmal record with an appointment to the ethics commission,” Fishman said. “We should set a higher bar for this commission and respect the work that is being done by this commission.”
In announcing the nomination late last month, Gloria praised Gore and his commitment to public service. He made no mention of the people who died in county jails, an issue that has received intense scrutiny in recent years.
“Mr. Gore has a 51-year career in law enforcement, which includes more than 12 years as sheriff of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department,” the mayor’s September statement said. “I thank him for his willingness to serve in this capacity.”
Gore stepped down as county sheriff in early 2022, the same day the California State Auditor released a report finding that conditions in San Diego County jails were so dangerous that new legislation was needed to impose reforms.
The mortality rate in San Diego County jails was the highest among all of California’s largest counties throughout most of that period, according to a six-month investigation published by The San Diego Union-Tribune in late 2019.
People have kept dying since Gore retired, with 20 people dying behind bars last year and 12 more fatalities so far this year. Department officials say they do everything they can to protect the people in San Diego County jails.
The San Diego Ethics Commission was created in 2001 for the purpose of monitoring and enforcing city elections laws.
The seven-member board operates as an independent body that does not answer to the mayor or the city council. Commissioners are recommended to the mayor by members of the council or the city attorney, then nominated by the mayor for council approval.
Since July 1, the commission has had three vacancies. That has prevented the commission from imposing penalties because five votes are required to issue a fine or other discipline. Four votes are needed to open an investigation.
Days before Gore was proposed for the commission, Gloria formally nominated Zaveri. She is a former U.S. Navy judge advocate who now works as an attorney for a San Diego technology firm.
The nomination of Gore to the ethics commission generated opposition in comments posted on the city website ahead of the Tuesday council meeting. All eight comments urged the council to reject the nomination.
“The nomination of Sheriff Gore to the ethics commission shows a tremendous disregard to the citizens of San Diego who value justice, fairness and ethical behavior, and will sully the reputation of the ethics commission,” commenter Alisa Miller wrote to the city ahead of the council debate. “The city council should reject this nomination.”
The city council is scheduled to consider the remaining nomination at 10 a.m. Interested members of the community can participate in the discussion in person or online.
The Gore withdrawal means even if Zaveri is approved, the commission will still have two additional vacancies to fill.
The Gloria memo on Monday reiterated a plea to council members and the city attorney to recommend people for those posts.
