By Alex Gronke The reporting and writing on the Oakland Police Department continues. In an effort to be transparent and bring the public along - I wanted to write an update with some thoughts and to ask for yours.
This story has taken longer than originally intended but for valid reasons. We are hoping to wrap this investigation up by the end of April.
Why the delay?
The story has become very sensitive and Alex Gronke has stuck with it. As a community of concerned citizens - I think we should recognize and applaud Alex for this.
After the Oscar Grant shooting, police enforcement in the East Bay has been under a microscope. The chief of police has stepped down and only a few weeks ago four police officers were murdered in a hail of gunfire.
Needless to say - things have not gotten better at the Oakland police department and an already touchy issue has become emotional and requires more context. I don’t believe Gronke ever intended this to be a story that merely wags a finger at the Oakland PD and tells them to “do better.” That would be too easy and in truth can be said of any police department in a major metropolitan city.
From my understanding - Alex’s piece will be a look at morale issues within the department itself. I’ve asked him for an update and hope to pass along word soon.
In many respects I’d say this story is indicative of the larger story for the entire city of Oakland at the moment. As Zennie62 put it “Oakland doesn’t seem to have enough umf, it seems to be dead in its morale…”
Almost every resident I speak with in Oakland tells me that their number one concern right now is the violence and while Alex continues reporting - we want to hear from you.
Kara Andrade and I will be doing what we can to collect input from the community and provide ongoing context where we can.
Posted by Spot. Us on 04/09/09
