Home Break-ins Go Daytime in Montclair District

A couple living in the Montclair hills reports that there are more home break-ins in the area, and they now occur during daylight. Brian writes:

My wife and I moved here over three years ago. Within a six-month period a neighbor walking on our street was beaten by four youths (never caught), houses in our neighborhood were burglarized, cars were stolen, and, to top it off, we called 9-1-1 twice over a 40-minute period to report a violent person (not a resident here) standing in a neighbor's yard, screaming obscenities and beating inanimate objects. OPD never came, and there was no follow-up.

Two years ago Brian's wife was the victim of identity theft. She tracked down the criminal through his transactions, providing his name and location to the Oakland police department. However, City Hall has deprived the department of most of its investigative capability; nothing happened.

Since then, we've paid more attention to events occurring in the Montclair district and surrounding communities. We have definitely noted a continued increase in all kinds of crime in this area – vandalism, auto theft, muggings, many bank robberies, and one heck of a lot of home break-ins, which are now beginning to occur during daylight. Last week there were three Montclair home robberies within 48 hours that we know of. One of them was reported on the Montclair Safety Improvement Council list, where a pregnant woman alone at home was present during a break-in, called 9-1-1, and waited 40 minutes for police to arrive and inspect her residence for the intruder.

The officers told the woman that thieves are becoming more brazen, going on the prowl during daytime hours. They told her about a break-in near her home the previous week; two white males in their thirties, with backpacks, were seen in the area.

Residents' shared knowledge of events in their area is a valuable addition to the incomplete crime data reported to the police department. However, Brian noticed by reading this website that council representative Jean Quan told Dimond residents two years ago when they demanded public safety that they were imagining things: "It doesn't appear to be a crime wave statistically. I just think awareness is up." Brian reports, "Last month she told us the same thing, claiming there wasn't really any increase in crime, just an increase in the internet awareness."

Councilmember Quan along with an official from mayor Dellums' office and assorted City Hall bureaucrats lectured a meeting of the Montclair Safety Improvement Council (MSIC) on August 9 in an effort to pacify discontent. Two days later Quan published a set of excuses for the severe understaffing of Oakland's police department. The official gobbledygook was full of errors and falsehoods. In fact, the MSIC meeting taught another section of Oakland residents how serious the lack of public safety is and how firmly City Hall refuses to address it.

Safety, peace, and property values are under attack all over Oakland, including the hills. (Shown: Thornill Drive)

Disruption and danger – inevitable consequences of City Hall maintaining only half a police department – have long been known to Oakland residents and merchants in the flatlands from West Street to Maxwell Park. Even hills residents who feel secure in their isolation need to consider the impact on the value of their homes. Montclair resident Brian summarizes the situation in all of Oakland, not only the hills:

The criminals surely are aware of the lack of security, and seem to become more brazen as time goes on and as crimes go unsolved or even untouched. ... We are, to put it conservatively, very dissatisfied with the leadership of this city, especially with our council representative.

Reader's Comment

What else is new? We had the same thing last week on Pelham Place.