A San Francisco oversight board president facing multiple abuse allegations allegedly gave drugs to a vulnerable woman and had sex with her over five days, claiming he was acting as her life coach in what he called a trauma-informed intervention.
Five Days of Drugs and Sex
William Monroe Palmer, president of the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department Oversight Board, allegedly spotted a 26-year-old woman smoking fentanyl in a public plaza on June 30. According to the woman’s account to the San Francisco Chronicle, Palmer approached her in a red BMW convertible and asked if she wanted to do drugs with him, specifically meth and fentanyl. The woman, who had left her family home after a dispute about her strip club job, spent the next five days at Palmer’s apartment.
A woman who wandered San Francisco during a mental health crisis said a city official coerced her into sex. The episode raises questions about why he remains president of a law enforcement board. https://t.co/J0ZqOA9LC0
— San Francisco Chronicle (@sfchronicle) August 21, 2026
During that time, the woman said she smoked drugs and had sex with Palmer. She reportedly required resuscitation after overdosing at one point. The woman told investigators she felt hesitant but complied when Palmer told her to remove her clothes, adding that the drug use left her unable to determine if she wanted to have sex. She never explicitly said no, she acknowledged, but questioned whether the encounters were consensual given her impaired state.
Police Intervention and Hospital Visit
The woman’s mother reported her daughter missing on July 3. Four days later, an unknown caller informed the mother her daughter was at an art studio near Market Street. Police responding to the location found both the woman and Palmer together. Officers handcuffed Palmer and placed the woman under a mental health hold, though Palmer was later released without charges. Palmer subsequently attempted to visit the woman at San Francisco General Hospital using his official position but was turned away by staff.
Palmer later contacted the district attorney’s office, expressing deep concern about how police had ended what he described as his trauma-informed intervention. He claimed he rescued the woman from a dangerous situation, took her to acupuncture sessions, and gave her a special drink that he said transformed people. Palmer refused to confirm whether he had sex with the woman or used drugs with her, insisting he served as her life coach.
Pattern of Troubling Allegations
The drug and sex allegations represent the latest in a series of accusations against Palmer. He previously posted antisemitic rants on social media while serving on multiple City Hall boards. Four different women have accused him of abusive behavior in relationships. Palmer also claimed homelessness to avoid paying 97 parking tickets totaling nearly $10,000 in fines. Despite growing pressure from city officials demanding his removal, Palmer remains in his position on the oversight board, which he joined in 2021 as part of an initiative to include people with lived experience in jail reform efforts.