Oakland mulls whether to loosen police pursuit policies
OAKLAND, Calif. - To chase or not to chase in Oakland?
OPD pursuit policy
What we know:
The Oakland Police Commission is considering whether to loosen the city's police pursuit policies. Currently, city officers cannot chase suspects for activities such as sideshows, reckless driving, burglaries, and other property crimes.
"They come and bust into your building, bust into your business, run into your house, and know they can run and not get pursued," said newly elected Oakland City Councilmember Ken Houston. He said the city should allow pursuits in more circumstances to combat an image of lawlessness on the streets.
"But if they have the option, and we have police officers that are trained, highly trained. People make mistakes, but they are highly trained. They'll make a sound judgment," Houston said.
Newsom wants change
What they're saying:
Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked Oakland to adopt less stringent pursuit policies, stating that CHP officers have witnessed suspects, aware of Oakland police policies, committing less serious crimes "right in front of a police officer, and the pursuit policy in Oakland says we cannot pursue that suspect."
The other side:
However, Cathy Leonard, former president of the Coalition for Police Accountability, said, "Why Oakland is being singled out is unknown to me."
Leonard added, "Chasing someone because of a vehicle stop just seems completely unreasonable to me, when you consider the risks that may occur to either the officer or innocent victims."
Geoffrey Alpert, a University of South Carolina criminologist, has conducted extensive research on police chases.
He said, "The more you chase, the more you're putting lives at risk, and I don't want my family or your family put at risk for chasing someone for a minor offense."
Big picture view:
In 2022, Lolomanaia Soakai, an innocent bystander, was killed in what his family says was an unauthorized Oakland police pursuit.
The CHP has less restrictive chase policies, even on Oakland city streets.
On New Year's Eve, KTVU went on a ride-along with two CHP officers in Oakland. Three days later, the same officers chased a man driving a stolen U-Haul box truck as he sped through 10 red lights, 11 stop signs, and drove the wrong way in East Oakland.
The suspect, Demille Joseph Perry, 36, remained in custody Friday at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. Alameda County prosecutors have charged him with evading arrest, evading while going the wrong way, auto theft, receiving stolen property, and hit-and-run for allegedly hitting a parked car. He has prior convictions for evading and auto theft, court records show.
Oakland police are barred under their current decade-old policy from chasing suspects accused only of stealing vehicles.
In the CHP chase, Oakland police officers asked for permission to assist CHP but were denied by a supervisor in accordance with city policy.
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan