Ross Mirkarimi

Rostam Mirkarimi (born 1961) is an American politician and the former sheriff of San Francisco. Prior to being sheriff, he served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, where he represented District 5.

Mirkarimi is a co-founder of the Green Party of California. Elected as a supervisor, Mirkarimi received national attention in 2007 when he introduced the first legislation prohibiting the use of non-biodegradable plastic bags by large supermarkets and drugstores, making San Francisco the first city to do so.

In March 2010, Mirkarimi became a Democrat and he was elected sheriff in November 2011. He served from January to March 2012, at which time he was charged with domestic violence battery, child endangerment, and dissuading a witness in connection with a December 31, 2011 New Year's Eve altercation with his wife, and he was suspended from office pending an ethics investigation. Mirkarimi pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor false imprisonment, but was not removed from office. He lost his reelection bid to Vicki Hennessy in 2015. Mirkarimi became the first sheriff in San Francisco to lose their bid for reelection and the first person to be elected without ever serving with the sheriff office.