I was wrong!
So I totally said there was no way OPD was going to be able to find 100 people to fill these two academies starting May 19th.
KCBS reports that 94 trainees will be starting the Academy today.
So, on the one hand, this is good. It means we have a shot at getting to 803 by the end of the year. (Of course, those projections are contingent on a bizarrely low Academy attrition rate, but who knows.) On the other hand, getting this many POTs in this short a time is completely inconsistent with multiple public statements from the Department over the past year, so either the department was just being incredibly inefficient before and finally got into gear, or there was some serious standards relaxation going on trying to fill these Academies.
Of course, this also means that once these Academies finish in November, we can look forward several months with no crime reduction teams and even further reductions in our already strained investigation and traffic units. Hey, the Mayor did say “Whatever it takes.” Clearly he meant it.
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3 Responses to “I was wrong!”
May 19th, 2008 at 10:19 am
With regard to the ‘bizarrely low attrition rate” I don’t think this is bizarre IF it is because they have extremely high standards and the work effort of the candidates is extremely intense and demanding. I have no information about whether that is true (and wish local journalists would try to give us information about that), but if it is, that would result in high attrition and be a good thing.
As to crime reduction as a result of getting the force up to 803: I am afraid increasing the number of cops is a prerequisite but definitely not sufficient to put a dent in the out of control crime situation in Oakland (today’s dumping of a body above Highway 13 at Lincoln Ave is number 53 so far this year, and only 7.5 months to go!).
To use NYC as an example (where they reduced their crime rate by 80% in the time Jane Brunner and Nancy Nadel have been in office), they increased their police force by 6,000 in 1992 (ironically, adjusting for population, that represents about 300 cops in Oakland—exactly what Patrick McCullough and others are demanding as candidates in City Council races, above the authorized strength of 803).
However, there were no changes in policing strategies or enforcement priorities until after 1994′s arrival of Chief Bratton. ONLY after his policing management and enforcement strategies were implemented did they start making a dent in the crime rate. In fact, there is an interesting quote in Bratton’s book (Turnaround) describing the crime milieu in NYC that describes Oakland to a “T” today. That describes NYC in 1994, 2 years AFTER the increase in police work force size. And, by the way, Bratton offered this promise to the mayor when he was hired in 1994: I WILL lower the crime rate by 40% in 3 years. And, btw, he did.
You know, in the time since Jane Brunner and Nancy Nadel have been in office, more than 1,250 human beings have been murdered in our city. Imagine if we reduced OUR crime rate by 80%: that would calculate at about 900 human beings that would still be alive. Since an overwhelming number of those are African American men, it certainly–by results of the policies for which the likes of Brunner and Nadel are responsible–a form of genocide. Of course what they say –sounds– so moral and so sympathetic to the underprivileged minority in our city. But the results are not. And their positions of power are the result of how we vote. So vote June 3 and turn this ship around! Patrick McCullough over Brunner, and Sean Sullivan over Nadel. Many human lives depend upon it.
May 19th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
OPD still won’t make it to 803 by the end of the year. According to SFGate tody, they expect a 70% graduation rate, which would just about make up for the 70 officers they are short right now – except for the retirement rate of 5 per month. So, roughly, they will end up with 760 t0 770 officers by the end of the year.
Maybe Dellums hopes to hire away 30 to 40 officers from other departments so they won’t need to go through the full academy training?
Even so, it will be an improvement from where we are right now.
May 23rd, 2008 at 10:16 pm
it is interesting to read all on opd.
i have just finished my first week in the academy and what i have seen in one week, along with my pre-academy research, has been truely enlightening.
in looking around at my classmates i see a diverse bunch of individuals from different backgrounds– 3-4 oakland natives like myself who want to do ‘their community right’…
for all who criticize and complain about this city- we take for granted how many folks are out there who really are trying hard to make this city a better place.
the quality of instruction i have received in week one is inspiring- college educated law enforcement professionals dedicated to this city and its citizens—
dont get me wrong- its still a bureaucracy- but there are 94 of us out there who think we can change this city- a bit at a time…
lets face it- till folks feel safe here, we will live in fear- there are many things that will not change in my lifetime- but i figure there are some really good folks out there who can use some help… and i intend to do my best to join the ranks of those who protect life, liberty, and property of oaklands citizens..
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