Homeless mom reunited with her towed car in Oakland
OAKLAND, Calif. - Jade Burnett and Rev. Ken Chambers exchanged a tearful hug outside of Fat Cat Tires near the Oakland Flea Market on Monday, celebrating Burnett’s reunion with her car, which doubles as her home.
Burnett said she lives in her 2008 Pontiac Vibe with her 17-year-old autistic son and her nine-year-old daughter, but on Feb. 25, it was towed from 39th Street in Oakland.
Burnett told KTVU she left the vehicle there, after a women’s shelter in Berkeley placed her and her kids in a motel in Pinole for a couple of days to keep them safe during winter storms.
An Oakland Police Department spokesperson said the car was towed because it had an expired registration.
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On Thursday, Burnett got her registration paperwork taken care of and OPD released the car through the OPD Victim Tow Fund. "I’m relieved to have it out of there," she said.
It’s been a village of people helping her ever since the car was towed.
Chambers, who pastors the West Side Missionary Baptist Church and leads the Interfaith Council of Alameda County, was leading that village.
"Once [KTVU’s] story aired, we really got some movement and they waived just about $4,000 worth of fees for Jade, and we’re so appreciative of that," he said.
However, she said when arrived at the lot to pick it up, it wasn’t running and had some significant damage.
"There’s so much damage to the car, and it was not like that. I cried because there’re pieces missing off of my car," she said. "I wasn’t in an accident. There’s no reason for parts of my car to just be hanging off."
She said two of her tires were flat, the bumpers were hanging off, and the driver’s side window was smashed, but the community is not leaving her hanging.
After KTVU’s story about Burnett’s situation, the newsroom received multiple phone calls and emails from the public who wanted to help Burnett get her car back.
The owner of Fat Cat Tires, Al Perales, donated two tires and free labor. The tow service Rev. Chambers used also offered a discount, which he covered to get the car our of OPD’s storage lot. Chambers also purchased a new battery for her car.
"Helping out those who are not as fortunate as us or need a helping hand, you know if we all did that a little bit more, it might be a better place," said Perales.
It’s not clear how the damage was done to Burnett's Pontiac.
An OPD spokesperson said, according to the tow report, the tires were flat when the car was towed. The spokesperson went on to write in an email, "The tow report does not specifically indicate the rearview mirror being broken, or the windows smashed."
"I watched how they picked the cars up with the forklift and they were shaking these cars," Burnett said, disappointed.
The OPD spokesperson said, "The Victim Tow Fund was established to assist individual victims of crime (primarily stolen vehicles, carjackings, assaults, or families of homicide victims) whose vehicle was towed, and who are uninsured or underinsured, and unable to recover it without assistance," not specifically for people who may be living out of their cars.
Rev. Chambers is working with city leaders to change that.
"The hope out of all of this is that the city of Oakland and the county of Alameda come together to create a fund so that this does not happen again," he said.
Chambers said he is going to allow Burnett to park at his secure church parking lot in West Oakland as part of his Safe Car Park Program for the unhoused.
OPD’s spokesperson said Burnett can file a complaint with their victim specialist about the condition of her car when she got it.
KTVU reached out to Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan and the city of Oakland multiple times for comment regarding her proposed abandoned car plan, which works to fight blight by towing cars that have been left behind, but did not immediately hear back.