Oakland Mayor Touts Improving Violent Crime Statistics
OAKLAND (KCBS) - Oakland has had a remarkably peaceful summer, with its longest murder-free stretch since the late 1990s and a dramatic drop in homicide and other violent crime, Mayor Jean Quan said Wednesday.
There has not been a killing in Oakland since Aug. 2.
"We're now going into our sixth week without a homicide in Oakland, and that hasn't happened for over 15 years," Quan said.
There also has not been an officer-involved shooting in 15 months, she said, noting that the homicide rate is the lowest it's been since 1999, with just 48 murders in the city so far this year.
"And that's still way too much," Quan said, but the Oakland Police Department deserves recognition for some significant strides in curbing several types of violent crime.
Robberies are down 37 percent and home break-ins are down 31 percent, according to Police Chief Sean Whent, who credits more officers, more cooperation from the community, and Operation Ceasefire, the program that focuses police efforts on the most violent offenders.
"We have a long a way to go, but we have to look at what results we're having to see if our strategies are working. And they do appear to be working," Whent said.