The legal saga over key video which could prove damaging to suspended San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi's efforts to save his job, will continue on for another week.
According to the San Francisco Examiner, a Superior Court judge is delaying a ruling on whether the video will be used in Mirkarimi's misconduct proceedings. A decision will be made on May 15.
The City's Attorney Office wants to use the video as evidence during the hearing. The video, which was shot by a neighbor on New Year's Eve, shows the aftermath of a domestic fight between Mirkarimi and his wife Eliana Lopez. In it, you can see Lopez crying and showing bruises on her arm which developed after Mirkarimi grabbed her. Lopez has reportedly not been cooperative with the city and has denied any wrongdoing on her husband's part. Her attorneys filed the motion for a delay so they can file more briefs on the case. Mirkarimi has said efforts to oust him from office has been politically based and unprecedented.
San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee suspended Mirkarimi in March after he plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of falsely imprisoning his wife. Lee has been trying to remove him from office because Mirkarimi's guilty plea will keep him in probation for most of his term. After the City's Ethics Commission makes a ruling in the misconduct hearing, it will send its' recommendation to the Board of Supervisors who could vote to remove Mirkarimi from office. The next commission hearing is scheduled at the end of this month.
