​Death At San Francisco General Hospital​ May Be Linked To Staffing Cuts, Deputies Union Says

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Sheriff's deputies responsible for security at San Francisco General Hospital say the death of a social worker who was stabbed multiple times may be linked to reduced staffing.

"This tragedy is exactly what deputies and staff warned would happen when the Department of Public Health cut deputy sheriff positions and shifted to a "response-only" security model," the San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs' Association said in a statement Saturday.

The statement came hours after the 31-year-old social worker was pronounced dead following the attack on Thursday. The name of the victim was not released by the San Francisco Department of Public Health, citing state and federal privacy laws.

A suspect, Wilfredo Tortolero Arriechi, 34, of San Francisco was taken into custody after the attack about 1:39 p.m. Thursday, police said.

"This was not a random, unforeseeable incident," union President Ken Lomba said in the statement. "Deputies, nurses, and social workers told DPH that pulling deputies off high-risk units/posts and replacing them with unarmed cadets and distant response teams would get someone seriously hurt or killed. On Dec. 4, that prediction came true."

The union urged the Department of Public Health to restore and increase deputy sheriff positions on high-risk units, in behavioral-health settings, vehicle/foot patrol and in HIV/positive-health clinics. A spokeswoman for the department didn't immediately respond to a request for comment emailed after regular business hours on Saturday.

The incident occurred in a hallway in Ward 86, according to a statement from the San Francisco County Sheriff's Office, which is responsible for security at the hospital. Ward 86 is the location of the HIV clinic at the hospital's main campus.

Hospital staff had already raised safety concerns about a patient and requested deputy protection after a doctor in Ward 86 received threats. according to the union. The deputy was in a nearby room when he heard a disturbance and saw the patient in the hallway stabbing the 31-year-old social worker with a kitchen knife.

The victim suffered wounds to the neck and shoulder. Medical staff performed lifesaving measures, including CPR, and the victim was taken to an operating room in critical condition.

Tortolero Arriechi was booked into San Francisco County Jail for attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, mayhem and being armed during the commission of a felony, police said. The San Francisco Police Department's Homicide Detail will be updating the charges upon review of the case, police said.

In reaction to the slaying, the Health Department said Saturday it had taken steps to improve staff safety such as adding more security, limiting access points, and speeding up the installation of weapons detection systems.

"We are also conducting a full investigation and are committed to making both immediate and long-term safety improvements at all our facilities," the department said in a press release.

"We have witnessed an extraordinary outpouring of love and kindness from staff, patients, and community members," it said. "Hundreds of people have come forward over the past several days to offer support, reflecting the profound impact our colleague had as a caregiver, friend, family member, and human being. Their dedication to serving others was evident in every aspect of their work, and they will be deeply missed."

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the San Francisco Police Department at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD.

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