Former longtime Port of SF Director Elaine Forbes, who became Sausalito’s city manager three weeks ago, was arrested following an apparent mental health crisis onboard a yacht days after taking a leave of absence then being reported missing.<\/p>\n
Marin County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a noise complaint at the Sausalito Yacht Harbor shortly after 6 am Saturday, where they found Elaine Forbes aboard a 66-foot, three-story yacht that authorities say she did not own, as the Chronicle reported<\/a> Sunday. Officials allege there were empty alcohol containers on the vessel and said she was manipulating the controls as though she was attempting to take it.<\/p>\n According to KQED<\/a>, Sheriff’s Lieutenant Domenick Yazzolino said Forbes told deputies she was having \u201ca bad morning\u201d before insisting they get off \u201cher boat.\u201d She was arrested on suspicion of felony burglary and booked into the Marin County Jail with $50,000 bail.<\/p>\n According to an update from the Chronicle<\/a>, Forbes had been reported missing Friday morning, a day after the Sausalito City Council approved a leave of absence during a closed-session meeting. <\/p>\n Forbes, who became Sausalito’s city manager at the beginning of the month, was reportedly last seen Thursday in San Francisco after leaving her home to meet a friend, and both San Francisco and Sausalito police had unsuccessfully tried to locate her.<\/p>\n In a statement released through spokesperson Sam Singer, Forbes and her family said she was \u201cexperiencing a mental health crisis\u201d and urged the public not to \u201crush to judgment based on limited information.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs the facts become clearer and Elaine obtains legal and healthcare counsel in the coming hours and days,\u201d said Sam Singer, spokesperson for Forbes\u2019 family, \u201cwe hope people will respond with compassion, patience and respect for her and her family during an extraordinarily difficult time.\u201d<\/p>\n The city of Sausalito declined to discuss the circumstances but acknowledged the situation had been difficult for staff and the community. KQED reports that Assistant City Manager Brandon Phipps has since been appointed acting city manager.<\/p>\n Forbes spent nearly 25 years at the Port of San Francisco, including 15 years as deputy director for finance and administration before then-Mayor Ed Lee appointed her executive director in 2016<\/a>. During her nine years as executive director, Forbes oversaw major waterfront projects focused on climate resilience, post-pandemic recovery, and sea level rise.<\/p>\n When announcing her departure from the port last year, Forbes noted that the port was on solid footing with a steady stream of projects underway, as the Chronicle reported<\/a> at the time.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have broken records, restored visitor activity to pre-pandemic levels, created a safe, clean and thriving waterfront, and set the stage for the next generation of growth,\u201d Forbes said. \u201cNow it\u2019s time for me to consider what\u2019s next.\u201d<\/p>\n Forbes also said she was looking forward to serving a role with a smaller scope. \u201cI\u2019m tired, I want a job with fewer than 280 employees,\u201d she said, per the Chronicle. \u201cI don\u2019t want to run a port city anymore, but I sure did these last nine years.\u201d<\/p>\n