7.13.2010

Oakland goes Mad Max

Don't bother calling the cops; they ain't gonna come:
Oakland's police chief is making some dire claims about what his force will and will not respond to if layoffs go as planned.

Chief Anthony Batts listed exactly 44 situations that his officers will no longer respond to and they include grand theft, burglary, car wrecks, identity theft and vandalism. He says if you live and Oakland and one of the above happens to you, you need to let police know on-line.

Some 80 officers were to be let go at midnight last night if a last-minute deal was not reached. That's about ten percent of the work force.

That last-minute deal was not reached. The greedy police union wouldn't budge:
The layoffs of 80 Oakland police officers became effective today after Oakland officials and the police union were unable to reach a deal.

"The city refused to accept our last offer," said Rocky Lucia, an attorney for the police union. "This is a very dark day for the Oakland Police Officers Association."

Oakland City Council President Jane Brunner said the city's final offer was for police officers to pay 4% of their pension this fiscal year and an additional 3% beginning July 1, 2011.

Officers had already agreed to pay 2% beginning in January 2013, meaning that OPOA members would have been contributing the 9% into their pensions that the city sought, Brunner said.

The council president also said the city guaranteed that it would not lay off any police union members for one year. The union wanted a three-year guarantee that the city said it could not approve.

"Given the City's financial situation it would have been financially irresponsible for the City to consider any 'no layoff' guarantee in excess of one year," Brunner said in a statement.

If you're going
To lawless Oakland,
Be sure to wear
A Ruger under there.


HT: T-Dub

UPDATE: JF points out that China has a solution for Oakland: lock the poor in their ghettos all night.

3 comments:

SarahB said...

I have never heard such an irresponsible statement out of a Chief of Police ever...even trumping many of the jems from LAPD. The Bay Area is a black hole.

Jr Deputy Accountant said...

That's why I am getting out before it seeps over to our "Utopian dream" over here in San Francisco.

Corporate Drone said...

"Any f-cking time, any f-cking day, learn to swim, see you down in Arizona Bay."

Seriously, time to head for higher ground, Aztlán is getting scary.

Happy Super Tuesday!