Sheryl Davis, the former executive director of San Francisco's Human Rights Commission, now faces 19 criminal charges — including felony corruption counts — and pleaded not guilty Thursday while postponing her arraignment.

Nineteen. Let that number sit for a moment.

This is someone who was entrusted with leading a city agency supposedly dedicated to justice and equity. And yet, if prosecutors are to be believed, she allegedly used that position to line her own pockets at taxpayers' expense.

But here's where the story gets uniquely, painfully San Francisco: her supporters are rallying around her like she's a political prisoner rather than a public official facing serious criminal allegations. The "ride or die" energy from Davis's allies isn't just misguided loyalty — it's a symptom of a deeper rot in how this city treats accountability among its political class.

Let's be clear about what's at stake. Every dollar allegedly misspent by a public official is a dollar that didn't go toward fixing our streets, addressing homelessness, or keeping neighborhoods safe. Corruption isn't a victimless crime. The victims are the residents of San Francisco who fund these agencies with their tax dollars and trust that the money is being used as intended.

The presumption of innocence is a cornerstone of our legal system, and Davis deserves her day in court. Full stop. But the reflexive circling of wagons by her supporters — before a single piece of evidence has been publicly weighed — tells you everything about how political tribalism works in this town. Loyalty to individuals consistently trumps loyalty to the public.

San Francisco spends more per capita than nearly any city in America. We have layers upon layers of commissions, departments, and oversight bodies. And yet somehow, alleged corruption still festers. Maybe the problem isn't that we need more government — maybe we need government that actually works, with real transparency and consequences when it doesn't.

Nineteen charges. The court process will play out. But San Franciscans deserve better than a system where accountability is treated as optional.