crime

Would surveillance cameras help Oakland?

This morning’s Chronicle highlighted a column by Chip Johnson on, you guessed it, crime and fear in Oakland. The piece focused on worries amongst business owners in Chinatown over violent crime, presumably sparked by the murders of two Asian men earlier this year in other parts of Downtown Oakland.

As the Oakland Police Department lays off officers to cope with a budget gap, the private sector appears to be stepping in by hiring security guards and installing surveillance cameras to monitor the exterior of their properties. The Chinatown Chamber of Commerce told Johnson they currently have cameras on one hundred local businesses, and hope to involve 500 enterprises in their surveillance program. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Police, Politics, Chinatown, Chip Johnson, crime, fear, Oakland, San Francisco Chronicle, Surveillance

August 16, 2010 | 5:42 PM | By Ali Winston

Oakland crime dip continues, but grow houses still targets

Oakland Police Department

Oakland’s drop in violent crime, which we pointed out a few weeks back, shows no sign of letting up.

Crime statistics from August 1st to August 8 show 58 aggravated assaults, down 9 percent from 2009 and 24 percent from 2008.

55 robberies occurred in that span, 10 percent fewer than at the same point in 2009.

Although 19 shootings have taken place since the beginning of the month (11 from August 1 to August 8, and eight since), there has been only one murder, on August 10 in East Oakland.. To date, there have been 50 murders in Oakland, compared to 59 and 75 at this point in 2009 and 2008, respectively.

One notable crime trend is an increase in residential robberies (107 this year, up 45 percent) and burglaries (2,074 in 210 up 14 percent from 2009). Continue reading →