Daytime Killing Two Blocks from City Hall

Leon Cooper, a 26-year-old man loitering in front of a liquor market at 14th and Jefferson Streets was shot and killed at 4 p.m., Monday, Dec. 10. (Oakland Tribune, Dec. 11, 2007)

He and several other men were in a group standing near the federal building and just two blocks from City Hall. Ironically, the federal building is named after Ron Dellums, the current mayor of Oakland who fiercely resists the demand for adequate police staffing.

Daytime murder occurred near Dellums Federal Building (Photo: Barry Muniz, courtesy Oakland Convention & Visitors Bureau)

The homicide was Oakland's number 116 this year. City officials will no doubt herald the decline since 2006, which saw 145 homicides. By comparison, if Oakland had the same homicide rate per population as New York City, there would be 24 killings per year.

A person who said he works less than a block away reports, "Sagging pants wearing, black hoody thugs are out there all day, everyday. So it's not a surprise someone finally got killed," adding that open dope dealing goes on in front of the federal and state buildings in the area.

A woman identifying herself as Rebecca said, "I had a friend get mugged (punched and thrown to the ground) on his lunch break in front of the Gap [13th St. and Broadway]."

ORPN has previously noted the lack of public safety downtown. A resident reported on the chaotic scene in front of DeLauer's news store a block away from City Hall.

In addition, "worried for employees' safety, consumer products giant Clorox Co. has led other building owners in asking police for answers about a recent spike in muggings and other robberies in downtown Oakland." (San Francisco Business Times, Jan. 27, 2006) That was almost two years ago, but nothing has changed.

(Update: Oakland police obtained a confession from Marlyn Ranson, 23, for killing Leon Cooper. The two men were associated with rival groups of drug dealers. The site of the killing is known as crack cocaine hot spot. Police credited help from Oakland Tribune research librarian Veronica Martinez. A witness told police that the killer was known for having been hit in an auto accident when he was three years old. Martinez found a Tribune report from June 23, 1988 describing the accident and naming Ranson. (Oakland Tribune, Dec. 29, 2007))

We cannot bring peace to downtown while ignoring the neighborhoods. We need a peaceful Dimond district, Adams Point, Elmhurst, Montclair – all the neighborhoods of Oakland, currently rated the fourth most dangerous city in the United States. The key priority must be a commitment to at least 1,100 police officers, up from 718 as of the beginning of this month. Currently, Oakland only has half as many police as most other major cities.

Another Downtown Killing

Less than three weeks later on Dec. 30, police were called regarding a disturbance at a nightclub near 14th and Franklin Streets. Near Webster Street they discovered a victim of a fatal shooting. The location is on the east side of City Hall, three blocks away. The city council, while posturing rather than dealing with the city's public safety crisis, recently considered how to make exceptions to regulations governing the location and closing hour of nightclubs.