Oakland’s Rise in Gun Violence Tied to Ceasefire Program Cuts, Report Reveals
A recent report blames the increase in murders and shootings in Oakland on the decline of the Ceasefire program which once successfully reduced gun violence, according to the report of THE OAKLANDSIDE. This decline began under former Mayor Libby Schaaf and worsened by 2020. The California Partnership for Safe Communities which helped start Ceasefire in Oakland found that the city leaders took away key parts of the program and redirected resources elsewhere. As a result, gun violence surged made worse by the pandemic. In response Mayor Sheng Thao announced plans to bring back the Ceasefire program including changes to the police department hiring more violence prevention staff and better coordination between city departments to restore safety.
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What is Oakland’s Ceasefire program?
Oakland’s Ceasefire program started in 2013 helped reduce gun violence by focusing on a small group of people causing most of the trouble. The program offered job training, counseling and social services to encourage them to stop the violence. Those who didn’t were targeted by special police teams. This approach led to a 43% drop in homicides and a 31.5% reduction in gun deaths by 2017. However, the program became less effective in 2019 and 2020 and gun violence increased again. An audit showed that key services were not reaching those who needed them most. As a result Oakland saw its highest number of homicides in 15 years in 2021 with around 120 murders each year for the past three years mostly involving guns along with many non-fatal shootings.
Organizational problems with the Oakland Police Department
A new report by the California Partnership for Safe Communities shows Oakland’s rise in gun violence is due to changes in the city’s strategy not the Americans involved. Analyzing 388 shootings in 2023 it found that the same groups—mostly Black and Latino men in gangs—are still involved. The report blames the weakening of the Ceasefire program on a 2016 police scandal and the creation of the Violent Crime Operations Center (VCOC) in 2021 which shifted focus from prevention to solving crimes. Former police captain Ersie Joyner called the VCOC a mistake. Oakland now plans to disband the VCOC and create teams to respond quickly to crime in each area.
A breakdown in communication
A recent audit found that Oakland’s efforts to communicate with people at risk of gun violence have declined in effectiveness. Direct outreach to these individuals has decreased and efforts to involve their family and partners have shown little success. Pandemic restrictions also disrupted crucial in-person meetings where at-risk individuals could receive support and learn about legal consequences. Participation in these meetings dropped significantly from 2019 to 2020 and recent sessions lacked important support from health experts and legal advisors that were previously beneficial.
Lack of focus from the Department of Violence Prevention
A recent audit of Oakland’s Department of Violence Prevention (DVP) found serious problems that are making it hard for the department to reduce violence in the city. The DVP was set up in 2017 to deal with different kinds of violence not just gun violence. But the audit says the department lacks clear focus and organization especially since its first leader left over misconduct claims. The audit suggests the DVP should concentrate more on gun violence and reorganize to better help people in Ceasefire who are typically older men involved in shootings. It also recommends increasing how often the department talks to these high-risk individuals. The city plans to make these changes soon but funding and support are still being figured out.