Just over a month ago, five people were shot during a street occupation in Oakland – a lawless gathering also known as a “sideshow” where drivers block intersections, drive in lanes, accelerate and burn tires as large crowds watch.
Now, early Saturday morning, Oakland was hit by another street occupation, this time for an hour, with protesters firing guns into the air and the whole thing recorded on video, and shocked residents complaining that police were nowhere to be seen. KTVU-TV reported..
“We know we don't have enough police officers. … We can't afford it.”
You can watch the video report here They include what appears to be a cellphone clip showing people firing bullets into the air during a sideshow.
Residents told KTVU they're worried bullets could fly and hurt someone, or something worse.
“We heard gunshots. We heard gunshots from all sides and people were trying to hide. The shots were ringing in the air and you don't know where they're going to land,” a nearby resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the station.
In fact, the resident was one of several neighbors who told KTVU that these sideshows have become a common occurrence in front of their homes near 98th Street and Empire Boulevard.
“It was about an hour. No police came. I didn't hear any sirens. Some people were on the roof of a house. There were fireworks going off. There were blue laser beams and green laser beams,” a local resident told police.
Oakland Mayor Shen Tao and Police Chief Floyd Mitchell both attended a recent town hall meeting and pledged to do more to combat sideshows, according to KTVU, which said solutions include using new technology like drones and cameras, as well as working with the California Highway Patrol.
“We know we don't have enough police officers. We don't have the budget, but we're not going to use that as an excuse or a reason to not make people feel safe,” the mayor said at a recent town hall meeting, according to KTVU.
Mitchell noted that police are “working hard to stop this behaviour, with sideshow platoons out every Friday and Saturday”.
Mitchell also said a redesign of the intersection could help, but KTVU reported that residents near the sideshow venue on Saturday said they were still waiting for city leaders to follow through on their promises on that issue.
“I've lived here my whole life and it's changed. It's changed so much. It's frustrating because no one seems to care,” a nearby resident told the station.
KTVU reached out to police and the mayor's office for comment on the fear and frustration over local crime expressed by residents, but said neither had responded by time of going to press.
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