News from The Oakland Police Department - City of Oakland

News from The Oakland Police Department
Oakland area). Captain Toribio, who is the Commander for Area 1, used this as an
opportunity to organize the affected community by enlisting the help of 8-10 Pastors
from the area and asking them to become more involved in solving the problem. The
Pastors accepted the challenge and immediately began working with the community by
organizing block parties to bring the community together and take a stand against the
violence. They also convinced several citizens to walk the streets as part of their efforts
to bring awareness to their cause and revitalize certain parts of West Oakland. The
Pastors even agreed to help some less fortunate members of that community find jobs.
These efforts by the community along with several crime reduction strategies, have
helped to reduce the number of shootings in West Oakland thus far.
A more recent example of community involvement comes from the incident of
involving Mr. Tiensheng Yu, who died from injuries sustained as a result of a brutal
attack near the Fox Theatre on April 16th. After learning about this senseless act of
aggression committed against two innocent citizens, the community became enraged
and began to galvanize around this issue. There were several calls to the Chief's office
from citizens who were fed up with the violence and wanted to do something about it.
With the community's help, homicide investigators were able to identify the suspects
after their pictures were posted in the news media. The level of support for the Yu
family from all sections of the community has been nothing short of remarkable. Both
suspects were eventually charged with the murder of Mr. Yu.
There are hundreds of crimes that go unsolved each year in Oakland; however, the
capture of the two men responsible for killing Mr. Yu is an example of how community
involvement is vital to making our community safe and free from violent criminals.
Simply stated, we (OPD) can not do it alone - we need you, the community, to help us
in our mission to "provide the people of Oakland an environment where they can live, work,
play, and thrive free from crime and the fear of crime." In exchange for your support, we will
do our part to foster trust with residents, maintain open lines of communication, and
continue to build community relationships. By working together, we can solve more
crimes and make Oakland a safe place to live, work, and play.
Sincerely,
Howard A. Jordan
Assistant Chief of Police
http://campaign.constantcontact.com/render?v...V7e-WLpglg5oEJ9_WDzSOtIl6RLuPmAOSXvihQbTI%3D (2 of 15) [5/20/2010 9:18:11 AM]