Formal inquiry into S.F. officers’ ‘graphic’ talk on body cameras

San Francisco police are investigating whether two of their officers violated department policy by having a “graphic” conversation that was caught on video and posted on Instagram in which they discuss what they would and would not want to be captured on body-worn camera footage in an officer-involved shooting.

Officials with the police officers union called reaction to the footage “completely overblown,” but Chief Greg Suhr said he expects his officers to “maintain the decorum and operate by an order of standards, policies and procedures.”

According to a reposting of the video, the officers were filmed at Happy Donuts at 24th and Church streets in the city’s Noe Valley neighborhood.

One officer, facing the camera, talks about not wanting to look “like a dumb ass.”

“What you want on video is a guy holding the gun still and going ...,” he said, imitating a person with a gun drawn getting shot multiple times and then adding, “still pointing at you.”

San Francisco police are investigating whether two of their officers violated department policy by having a “graphic” conversation that was caught on video and posted on Instagram in which they discuss what they would and would not want to be captured on body-worn camera footage in an officer-involved shooting. less San Francisco police are investigating whether two of their officers violated department policy by having a “graphic” conversation that was caught on video and posted on Instagram in which they discuss what ... more Photo: Instagram Photo: Instagram Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close Formal inquiry into S.F. officers’ ‘graphic’ talk on body cameras 1 / 4 Back to Gallery

In a second clip, the same officer raises his arms and points to spots on his chest as if getting hit by a barrage of bullets. He described that as what he would not want captured on video.

“Red splatter,” the other officer said, opening his fingers over his head as if signaling an explosion.

“Cherry pie all over the wall,” the first officer responded.

The person who reposted the two short clips criticized the officers for laughing “about the death of a surrendering civilian” and treating “the subject of murdering someone as a joke.”

“This is not the type of graphic conversation officers should be having, let alone in a public place,” Suhr said in a news conference. “We initiated an immediate investigation, identifying the officers ... and of course, anything that’s found to be outside of policy is going to make the officers subject to discipline as appropriate.”

Police Officers Association President Martin Halloran expressed concern over the chief’s response to the clips, saying the officers were having a private conversation that was taken out of context and the reaction was “completely overblown.”

While the subject matter may be gruesome, Halloran said that is what police officers have to contend with as part of their daily duties.

“I looked at the videos, and they were not commenting or joking about killing anyone,” he said. “I think these officers are discussing situations that may happen in their career or possibly could happen in their career. We deal with a lot of unpleasant situations out there.

“The public needs to be aware that there is a lot of guts and gore associated with this profession. The officers in the San Francisco Police Department, the vast majority of them are very professional and I believe those officers would not have been engaging in that conversation if they knew they were being secretly taped. They wouldn’t want to offend any civilian.”

A video posted by Estr3lla 'I' (@lastrella) on Sep 9, 2015 at 10:25pm PDT

The filmed conversation comes as the national discussion over officer-involved killings turns to fitting law enforcements officers with body cameras to record their actions — and after Mayor Ed Lee set aside more than $3 million in his budget to equip almost the entire department with the devices.

A video posted by Estr3lla 'I' (@lastrella) on Sep 9, 2015 at 10:23pm PDT

A working group presented a proposed policy for the department’s body-camera use to the police commission last week, and the city’s discussion over when and how officers are to use the devices is expected to continue at a public meeting Wednesday.

Halloran said it was natural for the officers to be discussing body cameras, as the devices are about to become part of their job. He is part of a working group developing the department’s body-camera policy along with Deputy Public Defender Rebecca Young, who said she did not think there was enough context to the clips “to jump to some grand conclusion about what they really feel.”

“What I’m hearing is a little bit of an expression of anxiety — ‘I don’t want to get caught on camera doing the wrong thing,’” she said. “If you have to blow off steam as part of your anxiety about your job, don’t we all do that? I don’t think that everything a cop says that’s off color needs to be the subject of a lawsuit.”

According to police, the clips were posted two days ago. An officer brought the video to the department’s attention on Thursday, Suhr said.

Suhr said that the clips appeared to be part of a longer video, and asked that the original owner of the video contact the Internal Affairs Division at (415) 575-5856.

Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @VivianHo