Safety
The shooting of Arizona congresswoman, Gabrielle Giffords, and 20 innocent bystanders has shocked the nation. We took a video camera downtown Monday morning, where the American flags in front of all the government buildings flew at half mast, and asked passersby for their reactions to the shooting. Did they think the political climate contributed to the shooting, or was it an independent act? Could such a shooting happen here?
Still reeling from a shooting on the night of January 4, residents of an East Oakland neighborhood received surprise visitors on Saturday—Mayor Jean Quan and a retinue of volunteers. The mayor spent the morning going door to door through East Oakland’s police beat 33, talking with residents about new services and programs in the neighborhood, including the reinstatement of the neighborhood’s crime prevention council.
An Alameda County judge decided Friday to put off a decision about whether attorneys from Oakland law firm Siegel and Yee can represent a man who was named on a pending gang injunction. Lawyers from the Oakland City Attorney’s Office had brought up concerns regarding a conflict of interest within the law firm, where City Councilmember Jane Brunner practices, arguing that Brunner’s role in the firm could expose Siegel and Yee lawyers to the city’s confidential information.
Dozens of wooden crosses, painted white with a number and name hand-written across the front, stood in the front lawn of St. Columba Catholic Church on Friday. Behind, a big cement cross was hung with a pine wreath and a sign that read: “These crosses represent those killed by homicide in Oakland this year.” There were 94 crosses in total.
During the New Year’s holiday period, over 20 law enforcement agencies in Alameda county will be conducting checkpoints or patrols to catch drunk drivers. Meanwhile, many local groups are offering options to help those who’ve drunk too much to drive find a safe way home.
The Oakland Police Department wants to hold information sessions in 2011 to help the public better understand its policies and practices. What subjects would you like them to address?
The Oakland Police Department has identified the man shot and killed by two officers Monday afternoon in East Oakland after a car chase as 19-year-old Oakland resident Obataiye Edwards. At a press conference Tuesday, Assistant Police Chief Howard Jordan said that the department was trying to prevent a gang-related shooting which officers were informed was set to occur yesterday in a West Oakland neighborhood known as “the ACORN.”
Hot door knobs, swinging paint cans and pet Tarantula spiders may have defended the young Kevin McAllister against two burglars in “Home Alone,” but boobytraps may not be enough to protect your belongings during the holidays, when some kinds of crime typically increase.
On Monday afternoon, Oakland police shot and killed a man following a chase involving a car that was wanted in connection with a previous Oakland shooting.