Oakland Police Say Protests Hinder Crime-fighting Efforts

Oakland police who already lost Thanksgiving Day with their families so they could keep an eye on street protests could wind up spending Christmas Day on the job as well. Assistant Police Chief Paul Figueroa, while declining to tip his hand on the department’s response, said, “We are prepared to make sure adequate staffing is on hand — and if that means extending shifts and calling in additional staff, we will do it.” Anytime we are taken away from our regular work, it has a ripple effect in our ability to stay ahead of gun violence. The city’s community policing has been especially hard hit, as neighborhood cops have been routinely reassigned to protest duty. California spent almost as much last year on employee health care as it did on the state’s entire community college system. According to the Department of Finance, the state paid more than $2.7 billion in health coverage for current workers and another $1.7 billion-plus for retired workers, for a total of $4.5 billion. By comparison, the state spent about $4.7 billion on the community college system and $3 billion on the University of California. In a report released last week on the skyrocketing costs, state Controller John Chiang said the health care bill for retired workers “has quietly grown to rival or even eclipse the funding gap associated with public pensions.” State Deputy Finance Director H.D.