Oakland business owner says ‘best deterrent’ to ‘multi-tiered’ crime problem is ‘light’
Open Mind Music owner Henry Wimmer discusses the crime crisis plaguing Oakland and shares what he believes is the solution on ‘America Reports.’
The Oakland, California chapter of the NAACP voiced frustration Monday after the city missed a deadline to apply for millions of dollars in grant funds to combat retail theft, a crime that has plagued the Bay Area and other parts of the state, and other offenses.
"Oakland got nothing," Cynthia Adams, president of the Oakland NAACP, said at a news conference.
The city planned to apply for the Real Public Safety Plan grant and provided material for it. However, the City’s Economic & Workforce Development Department (EWDD) failed to submit the application in a timely manner, the city said last week.
"Obviously this outcome is unacceptable," the statement said. "The City and department are reviewing everything that happened to ensure it does not happen again, and will take appropriate action. EWDD leadership is already implementing internal protocol changes to prevent future issues like this one."
Oakland NAACP and other local leads at a news conference to express frustration that the city missed a deadline to apply for millions of dollars in state funds to help combat crimes. (KTVU)
Adams and other local leaders, including Carl Chan, a Chinatown community leader, gathered to demand Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao declare a public safety state of emergency, Fox San Francisco reported.
"It's sad to see that many businesses are suffering along with people, whether you're driving down on a street, carjacking, home invasion," Chan said. "It's not fair. They feel unsafe. Many of the employees working in all businesses, they feel that they are very, very unsafe."
The city missed out on part of $200 million in state grant funds that were given to other cities and counties to fight organized retail thefts, more commonalty referred to as smash-and-grab robberies.
In Oakland, the funds would have been used for extra police patrols, squad cars and automated license plate readers, among other resources, to track down suspected perpetrators of crime, the news outlet reported.
Pamela Price, then a candidate for Alameda County District Attorney, talks to the Chronicle editorial board on Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in San Francisco, Calif. (Lea Suzuki/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
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Last week, San Francisco received $17 million. Chan said businesses plan to go on a one-day strike because "we are under siege," the news report said.
The missed deadline comes as Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price faces a recall effort over her progressive policies. Fox News Digital has reached out to the city.
Despite not getting any money, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao said Gov. Gavin Newsom offered six California Highway Patrol officers to help patrol Oakland streets and more than $1 million for a city-wide camera network.
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