By Oakland City Attorney John Russo
For once Oakland is getting some news about crime that isn’t horrible.
Despite recent high-profile cases of violence, including the murder of four Oakland police officers in March, major crime in Oakland is down significantly this year.
Homicide is down about 20 percent, according to police department statistics. Assaults with firearms – down almost one third. Part 1 crimes – everything from assault to burglary – are down about 15 percent this year.
Credit is due to our police department – to the patrol officers who risk their lives and to the investigators and commanders who are using smarter and more effective tactics to fight crime during difficult times.
And whether or not it’s the popular thing to say, one other person deserves some credit – Mayor Ron Dellums. At critical moments, Mayor Dellums took a stand to reform policing in Oakland and to fully staff the police department, and it looks like those decisions have helped the department’s crime fighting mission.
In his 2008 state of the city speech, Dellums promised that the police department would have a full contingent of officers within 12 months. At the time, many thought it was an impossible goal. The city had been failing for years to recruit and train enough officers to fully staff the department.
But the Dellums administration increased the number of police academies and launched an unprecedented recruitment campaign featuring billboards in New York and outreach to military personnel. 10 months later, Oakland had the largest police force in its history – 837 officers, 34 above the number promised by the mayor.
Also important was the mayor’s backing of the new policing model proposed by Oakland’s former reformist police chief and continued by our current chief.
Under this model, the city is divided into three geographic areas, with a commander in charge of each area. Officers work 12-hour shifts so more cops are on the street during high crime hours. The former head of the police officers’ union bitterly opposed the plan both publicly and behind closed doors. But Mayor Dellums stood strong for the right of the police chief to manage the department. Now, those reforms seem to be working.
It’s impossible to know all the factors driving the crime rate in Oakland. Cities from Pittsburg to Anchorage are seeing drops in crime despite the economic crisis and historic jobless rates. Oakland may be part of this trend. Oakland police also credit citizens for working bravely with police and acting as witnesses.
But it’s undeniable that having more officers on the streets when crime is happening – and having more investigators solving violent crimes and locking up criminals – impacts major crime in our city.
Whether we can sustain the momentum remains to be seen. Right now Oakland is down to about 803 officers, the minimum number promised by the Measure Y parcel tax. We lose about five officers every month due to regular attrition, and no police academies are currently scheduled.
Whether this crime trend continues, and whatever the causes, the bottom line is that fewer families have been shattered by homicide, fewer bullets have been fired at human beings and fewer homes have been burglarized in our community this year.
The reality is that the mayor who rarely gets credit for anything took a stand when it mattered, and it’s making a difference in the area that matters most to many of us in Oakland.
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