Charles Gain

Who is Charles Gain?

Charles Gain is a retired police official, who served first as police chief for Oakland, Calif., then as chief in San Francisco in the 1970s. He was born in Hanford, California.

In 1975, Gain was appointed to run the San Francisco Police Department by Mayor George Moscone and served 1975 to 1980. After Gain began implementing reforms, such as switching police cars from their traditional black and white paint scheme to baby blue, the Police Officers Association held a no-confidence vote on him. After Moscone was assassinated in 1978, the union was influential in engineering Gain's replacement after the resulting White Night riots.