Auto Burglary at Grand Lake Farmers' Market

Carolyn drove several miles to shop at the Grand Lake farmers' market on Saturday, Aug. 4. She parked in the lot by Lakeview School. Assuming many people would be coming and going to shop, she left her purse, cell phone, checkbook, datebook, clothes and various papers in the trunk of the car.

Farmers' market and parking lot

When she returned to her car, those belongings were gone.

While Carolyn was shopping, the burglars also smashed the windows of two other cars. Hearing the sound, Guardian Angels went into the lot, but the criminals were gone.

Some people might say this is unfortunate, but these things do happen. As assistant police chief Howard Jordan recently told the press, "We can't be at every corner at 2:00 and 3:00 in the morning." (San Francisco Chronicle, August 6, 2007) That is true, but if Oakland had more than half a police department, the increased deterrent effect could reduce the number of thieves, burglars, robbers, and vandals who figure all too correctly that the odds of getting caught in Oakland are pretty small.

The Oakland city council is fond of farmers' markets. On July 18, 2006, the council adopted a resolution for the Grand Lake market, waiving various fees in the city's master fee schedule that the Marin County Farmers Market Association would normally be required to pay.

While attending to feel-good fee waivers for the market, the council ignores what should be its first priority, public safety. The council has capped police staffing at 803 instead of the minimum 1,100 officers we need in this city of 400,000 residents. Instead, the council has been busy spending money on more bureaucratic staff for the mayor and for itself.

Carolyn, we are happy to report, used a Guardian Angel's phone to call her own cell phone, which the burglars had thrown away. She recovered the phone and her totebag but not her purse. Also, she still has her money and credit cards, which she had hidden under a floor mat.

Incidentally, the Guardian Angels, brought in by residents and merchants of the Grand Lake district in despair over crime in the area, will not be patrolling at the farmers' market this coming Saturday.