Bay Area

Oakland NAACP Demands Investigation on Missed Deadline for Crime Fighting Funds from State

On Monday morning, community leaders including representatives from the Oakland NAACP chapter held a press conference at Acts Full Gospel Church to discuss their response to the city’s failure to meet the deadline for applying for state funding aimed at tackling organized retail crime.

Published

2 years ago

October 3, 2023

Magaly Muñoz

Top row, left to right: Terry Wiley, Greg McConnell, Jethroe Moore II, Bishop Bob Jackson and Noel Gallo. Second row: Robert L Harris, Cynthia Adams and Carl Chan. Photo by Magaly Muñoz.

By Magaly Muñoz
Post Staff

Last year Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bills 154 and 178 introduced by Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Alameda) allocating a total of $267,118,293 to fight organized retail crime, the largest-ever single investment by the state.

On Sept. 14, the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) awarded grants from the state budget to 55 local law enforcement agencies across California as part of the Governor’s Real Public Safety Plan. These grants, aimed at preventing, investigating, and prosecuting cases of organized retail theft, will be distributed among 34 police departments, 7 sheriff’s departments, one probation department, and 13 district attorney offices.

The application for the awards opened on April 14 and were due by July 7 at 5 p.m. (PST) through an online submission port.

In the Bay Area, law enforcement grants were awarded to San Francisco ($17.3 million), Fremont ($2.4 million), Newark ($986,444), Vacaville ($4.4 million), Santa Rosa ($560,653) and San Ramon ($5.6 million). In addition, $2 million in grants were awarded to the Alameda County District Attorney and San Francisco District Attorney.

Had Oakland made the application deadline, NAACP estimates that it could have received about $15 million for “extra police patrols, squad cars, and automated license plate readers to track down suspected perpetrators of crime.”

Participating on the press conference panel from the Oakland NAACP branch were Robert L. Harris, general counsel; Cynthia Adams, chapter president; Greg McConnell, lifetime member; Terry Whiley, legal redress committee chair; and representing the community was Carl Chan, former president of Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce; Bishop Bob Jackson, senior pastor at Acts Full Gospel Church; and Noel Gallo, Oakland city councilmember.

The panel said they don’t fully believe that the city accidentally missed the grant deadline, but just didn’t care to complete the application for unknown reasons that should be shared with the community. This has prompted the NAACP to ask for an independent investigation by the city auditor.

“Why wasn’t the application for a $15 million grant to fight retail theft not given the highest priority by the city administrator’s office?” Terry Wiley, a former district attorney with Alameda County, calling for an investigation.

Along with calling for an investigation, the NAACP announced a 10-point plan that they believe will create a safer environment in Oakland.

The points include ensuring 911 centers are fully staffed, installing surveillance cameras and license plate readers, implementing community policing strategies, and increasing the staff of the Oakland PD to 1,000 officers. The plan also proposes rehiring of former police chief LeRonne Armstrong, who was dismissed in February by Mayor Sheng Thao over allegations of mishandling officer misconduct cases.

Chan told the audience that the city’s ongoing crime spree has prompted business closures, as workers and community feel unsafe, deterring them from supporting local businesses.

“It’s pretty sad to see that many businesses are suffering, along with people, whether they’re driving down on the street, carjacking or home invasion,” Chan said. “Many of our seniors are afraid of walking down our own streets, and it’s not right, it’s not fair.”

Because of these business closures, Chan announced plans for a one-day strike by Oakland’s small businesses to signal to the city that “enough is enough” and more action is needed against retail crime.

The panel also shared that Mayor Thao has repeatedly declined to meet with the NAACP Oakland chapter to discuss their concerns and proposed plans to combat the crimes in the city.

ABC7 reported that in a press conference at Oakland Airport on Monday, the mayor said she thinks it’s “utter BS” and “not true at all” that the city did not want to apply for the grant. She said that the city will be receiving 300 surveillance cameras from the governor’s office and are looking to start launching large drones to track down perpetrators, awaiting the FAA’s approval.

Adams concluded the press conference by demanding a statement and an apology from the mayor for neglecting to apply for a state grant that could have benefited the Oakland community.

“What is going on in Oakland is a civil rights issue,” Adams said. “The buck stops with the mayor. This is the mayor’s fault. We need to hear a statement, we need to hear an apology from the mayor for what she did to the citizens of Oakland.”

Magaly Muñoz

A graduate of Sacramento State University, Magaly Muñoz’s journalism experience includes working for the State Hornet, the university’s student-run newspaper and conducting research and producing projects for “All Things Considered” at National Public Radio. She also was a community reporter for El Timpano, serving Latino and Mayan communities, and contributed to the Sacramento Observer, the area’s African American newspaper.

Muñoz is one of 40 early career journalists who are part of the California Local News Fellowship program, a state-funded initiative designed to strengthen local news reporting in California, with a focus on underserved communities.

The fellowship program places journalism fellows throughout the state in two-year, full-time reporting positions.

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Magaly Muñoz

A graduate of Sacramento State University, Magaly Muñoz’s journalism experience includes working for the State Hornet, the university’s student-run newspaper and conducting research and producing projects for “All Things Considered” at National Public Radio. She also was a community reporter for El Timpano, serving Latino and Mayan communities, and contributed to the Sacramento Observer, the area’s African American newspaper. Muñoz is one of 40 early career journalists who are part of the California Local News Fellowship program, a state-funded initiative designed to strengthen local news reporting in California, with a focus on underserved communities. The fellowship program places journalism fellows throughout the state in two-year, full-time reporting positions.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

Published

5 days ago

May 25, 2025

Oakland Post

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Chevron Richmond Installs Baker Hughes Flare.IQ, Real-time Flare Monitoring, Control and Reduction System

While the sight of flaring can cause concern in the community, flares are essential safety systems that burn pollutants to prevent them from being released directly into the atmosphere. They activate during startup and shut-down of facility units or during upsets or equipment malfunctions. The typical flare stack is about 200 feet high so that vapors are well above street levels.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 19, 2025

Oakland Post

Image courtesy The Richmond Standard.

The Richmond Standard

Chevron Richmond recently installed flare.IQ, a real-time, automated system that will improve the facility’s flaring performance.

The technology, developed by Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business, uses sensors to monitor, reduce and control flaring in real time. It collects and assesses data on refinery processes, such as temperature, pressure, gas flow and gas composition, and adjusts accordingly to ensure flares burn more efficiently and cleanly, leading to fewer emissions.

“The cleaner the flare, the brighter the flame can look,” said Duy Nguyen, a Chevron Richmond flaring specialist. “If you see a brighter flame than usual on a flare, that actually means flare.IQ is operating as intended.”

“A key element in Baker Hughes’ emissions abatement portfolio, flare.IQ has a proven track record in optimizing flare operations and significantly reducing emissions,” said Colin Hehir, vice president of Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business. “By partnering with Chevron Richmond, one of the first operators in North America to adopt flare.IQ, we are looking forward to enhancing the plant’s flaring operations.”

The installation of flare.IQ is part of a broader and ongoing effort by Chevron Richmond to improve flare performance, particularly in response to increased events after the new, more efficient hydrogen plant was brought online in 2019.

Since then, the company has invested $25 million — and counting — into flare minimization. As part of the effort, a multidisciplinary refinery team was formed to find and implement ways to improve operational reliability and ultimately reduce flaring. Operators and other employees involved in management of flares and flare gas recovery systems undergo new training.

“It is important to me that the community knows we are working hard to lower emissions and improve our flaring performance,” Nguyen said.

Also evolving is the process by which community members are notified of flaring incidents. The Community Warning System (CWS), operated by Contra Costa County is an “all-hazard” public warning system.

Residents can opt-in to receive alerts via text, e-mail and landline. The CWS was recently expanded to enable residents to receive notifications for “Level 1” incidents, which are considered informational as they do not require any community action.

For more information related to these topics, check out the resources included on the Chevron Richmond, CAER and Contra Costa Health websites. Residents are also encouraged to follow @chevronrichmond and @RFDCAOnline on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), where additional information may be posted during an incident.

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Oakland Hosts Town Hall Addressing Lead Hazards in City Housing

According to the city, there are 22,000 households in need of services for lead issues, most in predominantly low-income or Black and Latino neighborhoods, but only 550 to 600 homes are addressed every year. The city is hoping to use part of the multimillion-dollar settlement to increase the number of households served each year.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Magaly Muñoz

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department hosted a town hall in the Fruitvale to discuss the efforts being undertaken to remove lead primarily found in housing in East and West Oakland.

In 2021, the city was awarded $14 million out of a $24 million legal settlement from a lawsuit against paint distributors for selling lead-based paint that has affected hundreds of families in Oakland and Alameda County. The funding is intended to be used for lead poisoning reduction and prevention services in paint only, not water or other sources as has been found recently in schools across the city.

The settlement can be used for developing or enhancing programs that abate lead-based paint, providing services to individuals, particularly exposed children, educating the public about hazards caused by lead paint, and covering attorney’s fees incurred in pursuing litigation.

Most of the homes affected were built prior to 1978, and 12,000 of these homes are considered to be at high risk for lead poisoning.

City councilmember Noel Gallo, who represents a few of the lead-affected Census tracts, said the majority of the poisoned kids and families are coming directly from neighborhoods like the Fruitvale.

“When you look at the [kids being admitted] at the children’s hospital, they’re coming from this community,” Gallo said at the town hall.

In order to eventually rid the highest impacted homes of lead poisoning, the city intends to create programs and activities such as lead-based paint inspections and assessments, full abatement designed to permanently eliminate lead-based paint, or partial abatement for repairs, painting, and specialized cleaning meant for temporary reduction of hazards.

In feedback for what the city could implement in their programming, residents in attendance of the event said they want more accessibility to resources, like blood testing, and information from officials about lead poisoning symptoms, hotlines for assistance, and updates on the reduction of lead in their communities.

Attendees also asked how they’d know where they are on the prioritization list and what would be done to address lead in the water found at several school sites in Oakland last year.

City staff said there will be a follow-up event to gather more community input for programming in August, with finalizations happening in the fall and a pilot launch in early 2026.