Mayor Libby Schaaf said Oakland officials have a plan to deal with the spike in violent crime seen over the past several months, something they say is a result of the pandemic.
It’s a far cry from last year, when Schaaf said her city made national headlines “by cutting gun violence in half in Oakland, something that very few cities have ever done so dramatically and in such a sustained way.”
However, violence has increased significantly this year, as have homicides.
Schaaf told KCBS Radio that six children are among the homicide victims, compared with none last year. She said this is because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We know that schools being closed and all the positive activities and adults that usually young people have around them, that is all off the table because of COVID,” the mayor noted.
So, the city is making some adjustments to the way it deals with violence, and using new tactics focused on intervention, such as what Schaaf called the triangle approach.
Schaaf said when using the triangle approach, trained violence interrupters will respond to the crime scene, where they can work with families, friends and neighbors to prevent any retaliation.
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