An off-duty San Francisco Police Department officer has been charged following a DUI collision in the Sunset District that left five people injured, one with life-threatening injuries. The incident occurred last Saturday. Ryan Kwong, the 28-year-old SFPD officer who is also in field training, was identified as the driver under the influence at the time of the accident, reported Hoodline.
Kwong now faces multiple charges, including four counts of driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury under VC 23153(a), and three counts of reckless driving causing injury (VC 23103(a)). His arraignment is scheduled for today, as stated in a press release from the San Francisco District Attorney's Office. According to the same release, officers determined that Kwong’s blood alcohol concentration was greater than .15%. The scene, at Sunset Boulevard and Rivera Street, is a known trouble spot within the High Injury Network, a collection of city streets with a high concentration of severe and fatal traffic injuries.
The involvement of a law enforcement officer in such a case has raised further questions about officer accountability and professional consequences following DUI charges. Penalties for DUI causing injury in California can include a range of outcomes, potentially affecting the individual’s employment within the police department, per Hoodline.
