October is off to a violent start in Oakland, following two suspected homicides over the weekend.
The month had barely begun when Dirk Tillotson, an education activist in the city, was shot and killed inside his own home in the Maxwell Park neighborhood on Friday. District 6 Councilmember Loren Taylor, who represents the area, remembered Tillotson on Monday as a prominent member of the community.
"He's a well-regarded, respected and revered champion for education here in Oakland and across the country," Taylor, who announced last week he would run for mayor in 2022, said of Tillotson. "He has impacted so many lives, including starting more than 12 schools."
Just a day later, police said a woman was shot and killed during a carjacking.
Both cases are under investigation. But Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong said in a press conference on Monday that his department continues to struggle with staffing shortages.
"It's only Oct. 4," Taylor said Monday. "We have received 10 additional departures, resignations, from the department in a four-day period. ... These numbers are dwindling fast."
Armstrong said those departures represent twice the number of officers who would leave the department in an entire month.
In a press conference two weeks ago, Armstrong said the department had 695 officers while being authorized to have 42 more. The Oakland Police Department last had fewer than 690 officers in the department at the beginning of October 2014, according to the city's sworn personnel demographics.
The Oakland City Council voted 6-2 last month to fund an additional police academy this year and explore funding another one in 2022. The council voted 6-2 to fund four police academies over the next two years earlier this summer, rejecting Mayor Libby Schaaf's proposal to fund six.
Related
