Paul Yep, the retired SF police officer whom incoming mayor Daniel Lurie tapped to become the new Chief of Public Safety in the Mayor's Office, was involved in a car collision several years ago in which he rear-ended a couple, and they accused him of being drunk at the time.

The incident happened in Burlingame eight years ago, in the fall of 2016, and Yep reportedly was driving an unmarked SFPD cruiser when he collided with a man pulling out of his driveway. The man, Timothy Hansen, never filed a police report, however in 2018, he and his wife filed a civil suit against Yep, saying that the collision had caused physical injury and caused emotional distress to them both, as Bay City News reports.

In a deposition in the case obtained by the Chronicle, Hansen accused Yep of driving under the influence and saying he could smell alcohol on Yep at the time.

"It was undeniable to me between how he was carrying himself and the smell," Hansen said. "It was absolutely not even a question. I knew what I was dealing with."

Hansen further accused Yep of initially refusing to share his identification, and telling him that he was a police officer. Hansen alleged that Yep had driven by his home after the crash, as well, which he considered to be intimidation.

Yep has denied all of this, and has said he was not drinking the day of the crash. Yep filed his own police report about the case, and it ended with him only being charged with driving at an unsafe speed. The civil case was headed to trial in early 2021, but ended up being settled in 2020 for an undisclosed sum — we only know that it was for more than $25,000.

A spokesperson for the Lurie administration tells the Chronicle this week that these accusations from 2018 were unsubstantiated and "wildly flung."

Yep, a 28-year veteran of the SFPD, was promoted to captain the year that this incident occurred, 2016. He served in several roles before retiring as commander in 2023.

Lurie named Yep last week to be his first Chief of Public Safety, a new deputy-like role that will oversee an array of agencies and departments, including the police and fire departments, Adult Probation, Police Accountability, and the Department of Emergency Management.

Last month, Lurie announced the creation of four such "chief" roles, an effort to delegate responsibilty for overseeing and coralling the city's large array of commissions, agencies, and departments, and creating points of contact who will have direct access to the mayor.

"The current way of doing business at City Hall is outdated, ineffective, and lacks focus on outcomes," Lurie said in a statement. "I am restructuring the office of the mayor so that your government is coordinated and accountable in delivering clean and safe streets, tackling the fentanyl crisis, rapidly building housing and ensuring a full economic recovery."

Previously: Daniel Lurie Names Paul Yep as New Public Safety Chief