Violent melee at Emeryville's Bay Street Mall spurs concerns from area workers
EMERYVILLE -- The Bay Street Mall in Emeryville was transformed from a bustling shopping destination to a scene of chaos this past Sunday afternoon, leaving area workers and business patrons shaken.
What started as a group of young people causing a disturbance at the East Bay mall turned violent with one young person getting hospitalized after being stabbed and reports of gunshots.
Bobby Barry, a manager at Arthur Mac's Little Snack, a pizza place located a stone's throw away from the turmoil, shared his account of the unsettling events.
"Everybody here that's working aside from me, they're all like very young females. And just knowing that kind of danger can happen, they were pretty scared. And all the people in the kitchen were confused, like, 'What's going on out there?'" said Barry.
The situation unfolded in what authorities described as a "civil unrest." The stabbing during the incident triggered a large emergency response. Barry expressed frustration about the violence and specifically over the lack of communication from law enforcement or security regarding the incident's aftermath.
"Look at what happened now. They thought it's OK, 'Let's bring 400 of the homies and let's get [into] a brawl.' And then, next thing you know, a lady gets stabbed in the neck and somebody is shooting a gun. We don't get a sorry; no apologies and no information from the police nor the security here," explained Barry.
He underlined the sense of uncertainty it created among his staff.
"It kind of worries over the fact that like this could happen again. I don't know whether they will put any new policies here to prevent such a situation from happening again," he said.
The incident left people who work in the area and their customers bewildered.
"We were walking to the pizza place before going to the movies, and it was just chaos. We've seen kids running all over the place. It was mayhem. And we pretty much minded our business and went to the movies. It was chaos," said Oakland resident Ali Akbar.
The community seeks answers and reassurance in the wake of the incident. Councilmember Kalimah Priforce expressed his intent to facilitate conversations between residents, business owners, and authorities to address the issues arising from the event.
"I'm bringing Madam DA Price to have these conversations with residents and business owners about what's going on and the possibility to use modern tools to face modern crime issues," explained Priforce.
Priforce addressed concerns of crowd control measures, emphasizing his commitment to collaboration with the community to find constructive solutions.
"I'm gonna get on my bike, and I'm going to visit every business at Bay Street and talk to them. The protocol was for council members not to do anything, so I'm gonna break protocol because these are my people. I've been here for over 12 years and I know they're frustrated. And I want them to know that there's a council member that cares," Priforce added.
As the investigation continues, Bobby Barry remains hopeful that law enforcement will consider his recommendations for improved patrol and response times.
"A better patrol, having the actual police department come on time. I don't understand how it takes 35 to 40 minutes until after the incident for them to get here and then just patrol and chill out. I get it, they're busy. But that's serious," Barry concluded.