Former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has been charged by the federal government of using her office to enrich herself, her boyfriend and Oakland contractors David and Andy Duong. The eight-count indictment, which was handed down by an Oakland grand jury on Jan. 9 and unsealed Friday, contends that a few weeks before she was elected mayor in 2022, Thao committed to helping David and Andy Duong extend the recycling contract their company, California Waste Solutions, had with the city, and worked…
California has reported 37 cases of human infection from avian influenza, about 56% of the country’s total. And on Monday, the Louisiana Department of Health reported that nation’s first human death from the infection. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there are still no cases of human-to-human infection, and that the risk of people contracting the virus is low. However, in the country’s only pediatric case, the agency has yet to determine how an Alameda County child picked…
UPDATE: Evacuation lifted for some after wildfire burns two homes, threatens others in Oakland Hills
Some of the more than 500 residents who were evacuated from the Oakland Hills because of a fast moving wildfire Friday were allowed back in their homes Saturday morning. The Oakland Fire Department remained on the scene Saturday as wind and warm temperatures threatened to reignite a blaze that started around 1:30 p.m. Friday, destroying two homes and burning 15 acres. About 200 firefighters were on the scene Friday, with assistance from an Alameda County strike team and air cover…
Oakland officer killed in line of duty was a Vietnamese immigrant on the force for nearly four years
An Oakland police officer was shot and killed Friday, responding to an overnight burglary on the 400 block of Embarcadero. Officer Tuan Le was in plain clothes and driving an unmarked car when he was shot around 4:30 a.m., police said at a news conference Friday. Le, 36, emigrated from Vietnam when he was a child and joined the force in 2020. He was the 54th Oakland officer to be killed in the line of duty. “I am truly devastated…
Shots were fired Tuesday morning on the Skyline High School campus, prompting a lockdown and leading to two arrests. No one was injured in the shooting, which happened around 11:20 a.m. Skyline will be closed Wednesday while police investigate the shooting. At a news conference Tuesday afternoon, Oakland police Capt. Jake Bassett said police recovered a handgun and other evidence on campus. He would not say where on campus the shooting occurred, how many shots were fired or if any…
After nearly 20 years staging shows for and with children, Bay Area Children’s Theatre shut down Wednesday, citing “unsustainable debt,” brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The nonprofit, which started in Oakland in 2004, announced the news on its website and on social media, prompting an outpouring of affection from parents whose children have benefitted from its programs. Many called the closure heartbreaking and a huge loss for the community. “BACT has been such a treasure to our family,” Krista…
Oakland Unified School District teachers will return to work Tuesday, 12 days after striking when the union and district could not come to an agreement on wages and other issues. The three-year tentative deal, retroactive to Nov. 1, 2022, includes a 10% raise and a $5,000 one-time payment, a compensation package that Superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammell called “historic,” at a Monday afternoon news conference. Under the contract, first-year teachers with a bachelor’s degree will earn $62,296. Other points that Johnson-Trammell highlighted…
Oakland City Council called a special meeting Thursday to proclaim a local emergency from a cyber attack that has ensnared the city’s computer systems for the past week. The resolution was needed for the city to take the next step in asking the governor’s office to issue a state of emergency that would enable Oakland to recover costs associated with the attack. Members of the public and the media expressed disappointment that city officials and the council didn’t answer more…
Mayor Sheng Thao fired Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong Wednesday, saying she lost confidence in his ability to lead the department. At a news conference Wednesday afternoon, Thao said she wasn’t firing Armstrong for cause, though an independent investigation found that he failed to discipline a police sergeant for a hit-and-run accident in 2021. A year later, that same officer fired his gun in a Police Department elevator and destroyed the evidence, investigators found. Thao stressed that she was not…
A federal judge charged with making sure Oakland implements police reforms it promised 20 years ago said during a hearing Tuesday that he was “profoundly disappointed” by a report showing the department has not complied. During a hearing via Zoom, U.S. District Judge William H. Orrick in San Francisco said “significant cultural problems remain unaddressed,” after the federal monitor overseeing the department’s compliance found evidence of police misconduct that went unpunished. Orrick instructed all parties involved in the 2000 civil…
Oakland officials acknowledged Thursday night that Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong was put on paid administrative leave in light of an investigation by a law firm the city retained to look into allegations that a sergeant was not disciplined for failing to report a car crash and firing his gun in the Police Department’s elevator. The city issued a news release hours after The Oaklandside reported Armstrong’s leave, citing confidential sources. “The decision was not taken lightly, but we believe that…
The Alameda County Registrar of Voters has acknowledged a mistake in the way votes were tallied in November, leading to a change in the District 4 Oakland Unified School District election outcome. Mike Hutchinson, who seemingly came in last place, actually won, Hutchinson announced on Facebook Dec. 28. That day, the registrar posted on the county election site that its ranked-choice voting system “was not configured properly” for the November election. It said that only one outcome was affected —…
Oakland’s Public Works department is gearing up for a series of powerful storms expected Wednesday, Thursday and into the weekend and next week, even as workers are still clearing downed trees, mudslides and debris from last weekend’s heavy rainfall. “OPW is identifying specific issues that can be addressed to reduce additional impacts, including clearing drains, inlets, and catch basins,” the city said in a news release issued Tuesday and updated Wednesday. The city is working with Alameda County Flood Control,…
Three California Highway Patrol officers involved in killing Erik Salgado during an arrest in 2020 will not face criminal charges, Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley reported Monday, nearly two years after Salgado was shot 16 times and died on an East Oakland street. O’Malley said that while questions remain about the force used against Salgado, there wasn’t enough evidence or witnesses to charge the officers. She said that if evidence or witnesses come forth, the case could be reopened….
This month, the Oakland Police Department will shift 48 officers to East Oakland and implement a new patrol plan in a section of the city that has been hit hardest by a sharp increase in violent crime. In a year-end news release, the department reported that it investigated 134 homicides in 2021, the most since 2012. Homicides were up 30% from 2020 and shootings were up 21%. “Many of the homicides and shootings involved gang and group members and conflicts,”…
Oakland Police Chief LeRonne L. Armstrong has established a special division to reduce violent crime.