Violent crime in Oakland increased by more than 20% last year, while it decreased in other California cities, including LA. Robberies and burglary rates also increased, while motor vehicle thefts in the Bay Area city set a record. Now, Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price is teaming up with Governor Gavin Newsom, who recently announced plans to send the California Highway Patrol, the National Guard, and state prosecutors to address the issue.
Oakland has long been an outlier, with higher rates of crime compared to other cities, including its neighboring areas, says KQED Political Reporter Marisa Lagos. But despite its historic challenges with gun violence and gang issues, she points to a pulling back of public programs meant to reduce crime, including the Ceasefire program. Plus, there’s been dysfunction in law enforcement.
“The police department has been under a court receivership for decades. This was in regards, originally, to founded allegations of police essentially planting evidence and engaging in unlawful conduct. And we've seen a series of police chiefs come and go, including, most recently, when the most recent mayor was elected, she fired the current police chief,” Lagos explains. “We haven't had a permanent one there.”
DA Price and Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao are also facing recall campaigns over their inability to address public safety. Lagos says in some cases, the issues facing the area are coming from beyond the city’s borders, including cartel-driven crime involving drugs, guns, and retail theft.
“Even somebody in a progressive state like her and Mayor Sheng Thao, they're not going to have their jobs for long if they can't get their arms around this. So I think that they need the governor's help.”
Meanwhile, San Francisco Mayor London Breed has come out in favor of reforming Proposition 47, a 2014 law that reduced the punishment for drug possession and theft.
Lagos says she’s just one of the many officials who are facing blame for issues in cities statewide: “The pendulum does seem to be slightly swinging back after years of ‘tough on crime,’ and then a move in the other direction over the past decade. … A lot of stuff we tend to blame that ballot measure for goes well beyond its purview. It is an easy scapegoat for some of these things, especially if you're a local official facing the heat.”