APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY
________________________
CITY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL
RESOLUTION NO. _______________ C.M.S.
INTRODUCED BY COUNCILMEMBER KALB
RESOLUTION PRIORITIZING PUBLIC SAFETY AND DIRECTING THE
CITY ADMINISTRATOR TO TAKE SPECIFIED ACTIONS TO IMPROVE THE CITY OF OAKLAND’S RESPONSE TO CRIME, INCLUDING
EVALUATING OPTIONS FOR INCREASING STAFFING AND RETENTION FOR 911 DISPATCHERS AND POLICE OFFICERS, INCREASING SUPPORT
FROM LOCAL, STATE, AND FEDERAL A GENCIES, EXPANDING THE CITY’S VIOLENCE PREVENTION/INTERVENTION EFFORTS, AND
CREATING A GRANT PROGRAM FOR THE CITY TO FUND THE
PURCHASE OF SECURITY CAMERAS FOR LOCAL BUSINESSES
WHEREAS, addressing and creating public safety in our communities requires a comprehensive approach that includes a myriad of prevention, intervention and enforcement strategies; and
WHEREAS, as a part of the FY 2023-2025 City Budget, Councilmember Kalb submitted and the Oakland City Council adopted, a Budget Directive directing the City Administrator to prioritize hiring, training and retaining 9-1-1 dispatchers to improve response time; and
WHEREAS, the Alameda County Grand Jury analyzed the Oakland 9 -1-1 dispatch response time and determined that the response rate was problematic, and that while the California Office of Emergency Services mandates that 90% of emergency calls for service be answered by a live person within 15 seconds, only about half of calls answered in Oakland were within 15 seconds; and
WHEREAS, residents seeking emergency medical care or reporting a fire could be at increased risk if they endure a long wait time to get a dispatcher on the phone, and the City of Oakland risks losing some state funding if 9-1-1 response times do not improve; and
WHEREAS, lateral police academies can bring in experienced sworn officers to OPD in fewer months and at a lower initial cost that a new recruit police academy; and
WHEREAS, for several years the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has worked to assist the Oakland Police Department (OPD) Criminal Investigations Division in investigating and solving homicides and violent crimes involving gunfire; and
2 WHEREAS, high quality security cameras placed on freeway on -ramps can improve OPD’s ability to obtain evidence and investigate and solve certain serious crimes; and
WHEREAS, high quality security cameras located on commercial private properties along retail business district corridors in Oakland can improve OPD’s ability to obtain evidence and investigate and solve crimes; and
WHEREAS, Oakland Police beat officers provide community presence, improve community relations and can deter criminal activity; and
WHEREAS, Ceasefire is considered a successful program that brings together law enforcement and nonprofit social service and faith-based organizations to guide past violent offenders away from violent criminal behavior, and has led in the past to reductions in shootings and homicides in Oakland; and
WHEREAS, bringing reentry services to scale throughout Alameda County would help more people in need while reducing recidivism in our communities; and
WHEREAS, MACRO has been functioning as a pilot program for almost 18 months and only handles a relatively small number of 911 calls for service, and it is noted that MACRO was intended to take a higher number of nonviolent 9-1-1 calls; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs City Administrator to return to City Council with a report no later than December 2023 evaluating options and feasibility analysis to implement additional measures and procedures to increase recruitment and retention of 9 -1-1 dispatchers, with the focus on retention of trained dispatchers, address ing the Grand Jury’s recommendations, and reducing 9-1-1 hold time so residents can access emergency services in a timely fashion; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to return to City Council with legisla tion that will authorize and fund a lateral Police Academy class during this current two-year budget cycle, with appropriate safeguards as to who is accepted into the lateral academy; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to urgently request that the FBI expand the number of FBI investigators working with OPD to solve violent crimes in Oakland; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to ask the C alifornia Highway Patrol (CHP) to expand the number of CHP officers available to provide assistance to OPD to deter crime in Oakland and to ticket drivers who are engaged in reckless driving and dangerous speeding on our streets; and be it
3 FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to: (1) request that the California Department of Transportation work with the City of Oakland to place high quality security cameras on freeway on -ramps (and possibly off-ramps) to improve OPD’s abilit y to investigate and solve serious crimes in Oakland , and (2) ensure that any applicable legal requirements for the City are addressed , such as the Surveillance Technol ogy Ordinance (Oakland Municipal Code Chapter 9.64); and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to return to City Council no later than December 2023 with options and recommendations for the creation of a City grant program for Oakland small businesses, merchant associations and Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) to purchase high quality security cameras that can assist in OPD’s ability to investigate and solve crimes in Oakland; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to evaluate and analyze the development of a permanent walking beat officer deployment plan, and report back the findings, options and recommendations no later than December 2023; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council directs the City Administrator to request additional assistance from the appropriate federal agencies and other local jurisdictions to step up coordinated operations in confiscating illegal guns and getting gun off our streets.
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hearby directs the City Administrator to explore and analyze an expansion of the CeaseFire program and report back the findings, options and recommendations no later than December 2023; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council shall send a letter to federal and state elected officials requesting additional resources and funding to Alameda County and the City of Oakland for reentry services and programs; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council shall send a letter to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors requesting Alameda County allocate more resources and funding to the County Probation Department and to the City of Oakland and Oakland nonprofit organizations for reentry services and programs; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to analyze the use of MACRO teams, compare to other jurisdictions with similar programs, determine if substantially fewer calls are being referred to MACRO than otherwise should be , suggest ways to increase the number of appropriate calls referred to MACRO, and return to City Council with a report including options and recommendations; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby directs the City Administrator to identify funding to allocate to cover the costs for the programs, priorities and initiatives outlined in this Resolution and return to City Council as soon as possible with recommendations; and be it
4 FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Administrator may include all the information specified in this Resolution in one report that would return to City Council no later than December 2023
IN COUNCIL, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA,
PASSED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:
AYES - FIFE, GALLO, JENKINS, KALB, KAPLAN, RAMACHANDRAN, REID, AND
PRESIDENT FORTUNATO BAS
NOES –
ABSENT –
ABSTENTION –
ATTEST:
ASHA REED
City Clerk and Clerk of the Council of the
City of Oakland, California
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