According the police officers association, crime statistics show a 45% increase year-over-year in shootings and murders in Oakland. These, include: completing internal affairs investigations within a required time frame, internal affairs complaint procedures, use of force investigations, tracking who OPD officers stop and why and consistency of discipline against OPD members. If lifted, however, the federal oversight would not stop immediately. And in the first month of this year, 15 Oaklanders were killed compared to 1 person over the same timeframe last year. (Initial media reports incorrectly identified the man as Asian; he is Latino.) Is Oakland Safe? [2022 Crime Rates And Crime Stats] Prior to this, the City of Oakland was experiencing a shift away from conventional policing, offering residents the opportunity to take part in outreach programs to protect the city. According to a police records, a witness contacted OPD and identified Muslim as the assailant in the Jan. 31 assaults. Like other cities, Oakland has seen a disturbing rise in shootings and homicides since March 2020. However the categorization that nothing has been done and no one is caring for our communities feels misguided. Is there evidence that what Chinatown has experienced in recent weeks is racially motivated? Oakland, CA Crime But Public Defender Brendon Woods said so far there is absolutely no evidence of xenophobia against Asian Americans, and that, connecting this case to a rise in racist violence against Asian Americans is not appropriate and it should not influence the district attorney and the courts as Mr. Muslims case makes its way through the system. Others have suggested that the scaling back of police forces in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests and riots may be contributing to the rising crime rates. The yearly bill In one recent incident caught on video, an Oakland man can be seen using a machete to defend his parents against four robbers acting in broad daylight. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your support is powering our newsroom! But reported crime can still be a useful way to compare changes to crime rates over time in different areas. That was also the case last year, when the countys homicide rate per 100,000 people was 12.7 in 2020 the states highest or about one for every 8,000 people. Here are some of the trends we observed: Capt. Crime, race, safety: what's really happening in Oakland Chinatown? | Eastmont Mall's history | OUSD union negotiations | We're now publishing free obituaries. Berkeley students who wanted to offer a source of impartial analysis on important issues. Some Oakland residents strongly oppose the lifting of Oaklands federal oversight. These trends arent limited to Oakland: California observed a statewide surge in gun sales over the pandemic, according to Department of Justice data. In his request to the mayor at a press conference, Chan asked the mayor to bring back the Asian-American liaison officer if possible. After that, violent crime increased from about 8,0008,500 per month to around 9,50010,000, where it has stayed since July 2021. Oakland ??? Even in similarly sized cities within the same state, crime rates can vary widely. Your donation makes this and all our other local reporting possible. It includes the police beat where each incident occurred, which is not available in Oaklands FBI reports, and allows a closer look at the geography of the citys reported crime. Ava is an American Studies major here at UC Berkeley with a concentration on Race, Politics and Public Policy in the United States. It includes where the incident took place, the incidents crime category (there are 50 categories, far more than the eight counted by the FBI) and a more detailed description of the incident. Preliminary data from four of Californias major citiesLos Angeles, Oakland, San Diego, and San Franciscoshow increases in property and violent crime numbers this past year. The recent physical assaults caught on camera have drawn international attention and response. Out of Oakland, a number of harrowing, grainy videos have caught widespread attention in recent weeks, showing elderly people in Chinatown being attacked or robbed while working or going about their daily lives. Oakland It shows that LGBTQ people and Black people reported being victimized because of their identities more than any other groups. Since Thursday, August 6, 2020, five people tragically lost their lives in our city to gun violence. My average monthly PG&E electric bill, excluding energy rebates, was $50.64 over the last 12 months. We excluded all incidents with either no police beat or no crime category from our final geographic data. The man was Latino. jumped more than sixfold in 2021, police say. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 barred Chinese laborers from immigration to the United States essentially until 1965, when the Immigration and Naturalization Act was passed. We need transformative justice to make changes to a system that is failing all of us.. If I use electricity, my bill would increase by 50-70%. [28], The Oakland Riders scandal involved a group of corrupt Oakland police officers who made false arrests, falsified evidence, and engaged in brutality. On Tuesday, September 21, 2021, Oaklands city council approved the implementation of a fifth police [8] Property crime in Oakland declined by 58% between 1988 and 2009, increased from 2009 to 2012 (a period when the property crime rate remained stable in comparable cities and statewide). The number of homicides in San Diego remained unchanged in 2021, while Oaklands jumped by 36%, and San Francisco and Los Angeles saw an increase of 17% and 13% respectively. ??????? There were 15 murders in He was taken from John George to Santa Rita Jail on Feb. 5. [1] The population numbers are based on U.S. Census estimates for the year end. Last year, the city experienced 102 murders, a 26% increase over the three-year average. Oakland police chief addresses recent crime spike, alarming [26], The Domain Awareness Center (DAC) is a joint project between the Port of Oakland and the city. Learn more about how to apply to the Berkeley Political Review here. The need for fact-based journalism and thoughtful analysis has never been greater. Alvina Wong is the Campaign and Organizing Director at the Asian Pacific Environmental Network, a nonprofit organization that organizes working-class Asian immigrant and refugee families to push for a clean and healthy environment. In November 2019, Muslim threw a chair at an Uptown bakery employee, cutting the mans face open. We examined crimes by police beats, but a small share of these incidents may have been labeled with police beats that do not actually correspond with their addresses, according to Belew. We amplify community voices, share the power of real information, and investigate systems, not just symptoms. Josh Stratton, the external This decision came after the city experienced its 100th homicide of the year. District officials have proposed about a 22% increase to the salary schedule starting next year, with a one-time $3,000 in back pay, putting Oakland teachers above average in pay across the region. Less than a decade later, one of Oaklands officers shot and killed community member, Jose Barlow Benavidez. Oakland is safer than 1% of the cities in the United States. Attorney General Bonta Releases 2020 California Criminal Justice Letters: Sunnyvale development | Glacial pace | Alzheimer's Oakland, CA Against a backdrop of an unacceptable increase in violent crime, including an alarming spike in homicides and shootingstragically, seven people have been killed in Oakland since last Thursday, and homicides and shootings are up nearly 45% over last year public safety in Oakland will be the focus of two important public Inside the San Francisco Bay Areas pandemic murder surge: No Prior to its publication, the Oakland Police Department published only 90 days worth of crime incident data at a time. He states, I am super supportive of the idea of MACRO, and its aim to mitigate potential police violence by removing them from areas that they dont have to deal with., However, noticing a substantial increase in crime rates from last year, Oaklands Police Officers Association President Barry Donelan attacked the citys limited, unconventional response, arguing that more officers are needed to combat the rising violence and bloodshed [witnessed] on the streets. In response to the Oakland City Councils previous rejection of a fifth police academy, Donelan stated, how about this strategy: support your hardworking police officers and act against violence. Some residents of Oakland have sided with Oaklands Police Department (OPD) and Police Association, similarly arguing for more police officers on the streets., While Association President Donelans demand for more police officers has been situated as a response to increasing city violence, his request also financially supports the Oakland Police Department. While Association President Donelans demand for more police officers has been situated as a response to increasing city violence, his request also financially supports the Oakland Police Department. The homicide rate is not the same as murder rate. Hes also a former Chinatown Clean Ambassador, a program started in 2017 by the Asian Prisoner Support Committee, Asian Health Services, and the Chinatown Improvement Initiative (which later became GoodGoodEatz), and partly funded by East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation and the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce. I guarantee you they are not going to agree [with lifting the oversight]. As of now, the Oakland Police Department still has failed to come into compliance with five out of the fifty-two tasks assigned to them under this federal mandate. [29] In 2003, the city settled more than 100 "Riders" allegations in a settlement approaching $11 million. Six years ago, an Alameda County superior court judge noted in a court hearing that Muslim has significant mental health issues. In 2020, he was enrolled for addiction issues at a recovery center in East Oakland. Comparing JanuaryOctober 2020 to the same period in 2021, violent crimes increased by 5%, ranging from close to 17% in Oakland to about 1% in Los Angeles. Time Initially, City Council members rejected this idea, asserting that resources and aid would be better concentrated in violence prevention and outreach programs. WebThe following table of United States cities by crime rate is based on Federal Bureau of Investigation Uniform Crime Reports statistics from 2019 for the 100 most populous cities in America that have reported data to the FBI UCR system. Oakland Police Departments Intelligence Division Sergeant Kathryn Jones has been investigating the account, but has little knowledge of who is behind it. Aggravated assaults also went up in all cities, by slightly more than 4% overall. The surge includes a This case should not be used to pit minority against minority.. We are spending so much resources solving crime but if we can prevent crimes from happening, then we dont have to spend all these resources.. Thank you. [18] A 2012 article in the East Bay Times attributed the low clearance rate in part due to understaffing of the police department and in part to the management dysfunction at the police department, and stated that "In a city where police officers consume more than 40 percent of the municipal budget, are among the city's highest-paid employees, and have exerted an outsized influence on Oakland politics, the department's ability to perform its core missions solve violent crime, catch criminals, and keep the public safe is highly questionable. Chronicle shows. The city's per capita homicide rate remains abnormally high and its murder solve rate is among the lowest in the nation, hitting just 36% last year. City of Oakland The surge includes a 150 percent increase in carjackings and a 115 percent increase in firearm-related assaults. Sad milestones in Oakland as deadly violence explodes in 2020, 2018 Review: Oakland murders dip to lowest level since 1999; major crimes fall regionally, Oakland sees biggest drop in homicides since 2004, Oakland killings down in 2014 but still way too many, Oakland: Rash of homicides in late 2016 push year's toll to 85, Oakland Leaders Attribute Drop in Homicides and Shootings to Ceasefire Program, "With gun violence on the rise, Oakland ends the year with 134 homicides", Oakland Murder Investigators Worry About More Cuts, "Crime in Oakland: Perception, reality or both? Walking through Chinatown, especially when were not in a pandemic, is a joyful, sweet experience of pink pastry boxes shared between grandparents and grandchildren theyre picking up from school, small groups of elders laughing together as they stroll to the park or get dim sum, she said. Many Oakland residents, on the other hand, are wary to accept help from the Oakland Police Department. "[29], A 2020 report by the UC Berkeley School of Law's International Human Rights Law Clinic, Living with Impunity: Unsolved Murders in Oakland and the Human Rights Impact on Victims' Family Members, criticized the OPD's interactions with the families of homicide victims, writing that the department had failed to make victim services available to the family members of victims; that "law enforcement's treatment of family members at critical momentsduring death notification, at the crime scene, and during the subsequent investigationoften generated mistrust, frustration, and stigma"; and that Oakland police made arrests in approximately 40% of Oakland homicides involving black victims, but approximately 80% of homicides involving white victims. Help support our mission. Instead they fall under crime types including domestic violence, other or other sex offenses.. WebOakland crime rates are 175% higher than the national average. According to Armstrong, officers on the Oakland force withstand constant criticism and feel as though no other city faces the same criticism that they face. But Masouredis, the aforementioned UC Berkeley student, argues that there are in fact likely some good cops who probably just get jaded, because they join [the department] and are immediately blindsided by all these people that hate [them], but they dont hate [them], [these residents just] hate the past officers that wronged them. Speaking from experience, Masouredis, who has had his own confrontations with the Oakland Police Department, stated, its not like this [hatred] isnt warranted.. A mural reading "Yellow Peril Supports Black Power" in Chinatown, one of many murals in the area supporting Asian and Black American unity. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education, rise in anti-Chinese sentiment and physical and verbal attacks, A new fund to help Oakland Chinatown businesses survive and thrive, Rising crime, calls for solidarity: a deeper look at whats happening in Chinatown, Mayor and City Council president collide over policing, with focus on crime in Chinatown, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. But Wong says its impossible to divorce the pressure and fear residents have been enduring for over a year from the massive outcry over whats happening now. Sakhone Lasaphangthong works at Family Bridges in Chinatown as director of housing services, working with unhoused residents by providing meals and helping people apply for IDs and access healthcare and other resources. The data could be skewed by some groups feeling more comfortable reporting incidents to the police than others, language barriers that prevent accurate reporting, and other problems. Having grown up in Oakland, Masouredis was unsurprised by the citys activism. [8] In 2012, there was one robbery per 91 residents, the highest rate in the United States. November 2021 - 1-year-old Jasper Wu was killed in an Oakland freeway shooting. In particular, the troubling increase in homicides that we saw in 2020 appears to continuehomicides in these cities are up by about 17% in 2021. Civilian-led foot strolls through Chinatown have been organized by groups like the Oakland Chinatown Coalition, Asians with Attitudes, Compassion in Oakland, and the Chinatown Chamber of Commerce. Big weather shift headed to California. The Oaklandside relies on reader support to remain free for everyone in our community. Chinese people already living in the U.S. also could not gain citizenship. We amplify community voices, share information resources, and investigate systems, not just symptoms. The increase in vehicle theft (by 10%) is also notable, as auto thefts went up in 2020 and account for the other third of the increase in property crimes in 2021. Californias Major Cities See Increases in Homicides and Car Thefts Although MACRO is still fairly new, residents frustrated with Oaklands Police Department are witnessing real change. One of those organizations, Youth Alive!, intervenes directly with young people to try to reduce their risk of getting into a gun-related altercation or, if theyve already been in one, to reduce the likelihood theyll be involved again. Were independent and cant be cancelled. ??????? Oakland stands out as the only city examined that saw an increase in aggravated assaults of about 10%. The data also sheds light on recent geographic trends in Oakland crime. What is the crime rate in Oakland, CA? After the footage went viral and international, actors Kim and Wu teamed up to offer a $25,000 reward for what they have repeatedly described as an example of rising hate crimes targeting Asian-Americans. Your donation goes beyond supporting our journalism. Crime rates have surged in major cities across the United States since mid-2020. Will it help reduce violent crime? While researchers are not entirely sure why, he said one likely factor is that used car values exploded during the pandemic, increasing the incentive to steal them. Oakland released detailed historical crime data. Heres Meanwhile, auto burglaries and petty thefts decreased sharply in 2020, likely because people were out less due to stay-at-home orders and other pandemic health measures.