The city’s police force of sworn officers now stands at 676, dipping below a 2014 voter-approved measure that required the police department to have at least 678 sworn officers. Both killings occurred in broad daylight. The deaths include a toddler who was napping in a moving vehicle when he was hit by a stray bullet on an Oakland freeway and a retired police officer who was shot while working as a security guard for a television news crew. Oakland has had 129 homicides this year, up from 109 last year and 78 in 2019. “If we allow it to be demolished here, we are giving fuel for faux progressives and right-wing folks to destroy the movement across the country.” “What’s terrifying about this is as Oakland goes, so goes the country,” said Cat Brooks, co-founder of Oakland’s Anti Police-Terror Project, urging the council to vote down increased police staffing. They have said there is no staffing shortage within the police department, and that officers should focus on the most serious crimes. Oakland is among several politically liberal cities reversing course on police funding amid a spike in violence, to the dismay of police critics who have said officers are ineffective at preventing crime and end up traumatizing residents, especially Black people. Schaaf applauded the vote in a statement, saying that residents "spoke up for a comprehensive approach to public safety - one that includes prevention, intervention, and addressing crime’s root causes, as well as an adequately staffed police department.” They will later consider hiring incentives for experienced officers. The proposal by Mayor Libby Schaaf to add two new police academies and unfreeze positions within the department to add 60 new officers passed with six members voting yes, one voting no and one abstention.Ĭouncil members ended up not voting on a separate proposal to offer one-time bonuses of at least $50,000 to recruit experienced officers from other cities and at least $20,000 to Oakland residents who become police cadets. SAN FRANCISCO - The Oakland City Council, a longtime leader in the Black Lives Matter movement to cut police funding, reversed course Tuesday and voted to hire more officers as it grapples with a surge in homicides and gun violence.
0 kommentar(er)
