Category: News

Want up to the minute crime reports in your area? The Oakland Police have an interactive crime map running now at:
https://data.oaklandnet.com/Public-Safety/90-Day-Crime-Map/kzer-wcj5/data
You can zoom, pan, and click on each crime to get more info.. Check it out… -URNA

In June 2017, URNA announced that Patrols were changing. We liked our patrol service, however the company providing the patrols divested their business in Oakland, so we had to search for alternatives. One unique aspect of the URNA boundaries is that there are a lot of residences that contract for services with Bay Alarm – a long time provider of security services in Oakland. Bay provides patrol services as well with 24/7 patrolling in well-marked cars, GPS tracking, a local well organized dispatch center and multiple cars serving the N. Oakland area.

URNA has started a strategic partnership with Bay Alarm as of July 1, where Bay will provide the patrol services to our area and URNA members. The cost of the patrols is less than our previous “Full Member” rate and we have crafted an “Associate Member” reduced set of services too for the same rate as before. We think our members and residents of the area will appreciate the service and of course we encourage all URNA members to make the switch. Bay will also take over billing to free up URNA volunteers to do other security minded projects. We will transition to a contribution model for those services as well as using cash on hand and some referral fees from Bay.  

IF YOU ARE A URNA Member: you will have receive emails about how to make the switch and fill out required Bay Alarm paperwork.

IF YOU ARE NOT A URNA Member: You can still join URNA as a new member and receive a joining DISCOUNT (one month free) from Bay.

ALL URNA members will also be offered discounts on other Bay services as an option, such as alarm install or monitoring.

Bay provides excellent services and we encourage all URNA boundary households to consider joining the patrols services from URNA/Bay!

Please see the JOIN NOW tab for information on the differences between FULL and ASSOCIATE Memberships.  There are a lot more questions that you likely have as well, and many are answered in a followup email when you request to join URNA. There is of course no obligation to join by requesting.

Regards,

URNA volunteers

URNA Patrol services are changing! If you are an URNA member, you will receive several emails to this effect with instructions about how to continue your membership with these changes. Additionally THIS WEBSITE WILL BE UNDER CONSTRUCTION to reflect the changes for several weeks!

OPD has seen an increase of auto burglaries occurring throughout the day and evening hours. Please be advised of the following when parking your vehicle on the street:

• Never leave anything in public view: Phones, laptops, cords/adaptors, bags (diaper, gym, makeup), clothing, groceries, loose change, packages, mail/identity information, bank/credit card slips.
• Windows and doors: Roll them up, lock them.
• Keys: Never leave them in the ignition or in the car even for a quick errand.
• Anti-theft devices: Use them to secure steering wheel or brake pedal. They are proven deterrents.
• Alarms: Activate them when you leave the vehicle.
• Avoid parking in isolated or poorly lit areas.

Reporting
Inform the police immediately. For property crimes that have already occurred, call the Oakland Police non-emergency number (510) 777-3333 or submit a Crime Report Form online at www.oaklandpolice.com.

If a life is in danger or for crimes in progress call 911 or program your cell phone to (510) 777-3211.

Stay Safe,

Felicia Verdin
Oakland Police Department
Neighborhood Services

We made it into the news! Rockridge News anyway. This article appeared in May 6 issue and describes patrol efforts by Safer Rockridge and Upper Rockridge Neighborhood Association. Best way to read is using your PDF reader and the link below since it is a scanned image. Rockridge_News_Patrol_Article_May2017 in PDF…

Montclarion News reported that, at a recent town-hall meeting on the city of Oakland’s budget, a debate about police budget emerged. Two social justice groups urged the cutting of police budget, one suggesting by up to 50%. Vice Mayor Annie Campbell-Washington was resolute about maintaining OPD budget and URNA meetings with her have stressed the need for more OPD presence, not less. But it shows the range of opinions city-wide…

OAKLAND — Even though it’s the smallest Oakland police academy class in years, the 17 new officers who graduated Friday were hailed by Chief of Police Anne Kirkpatrick as “the best of the best.”

For the full story, please see its publication in the East Bay Times:
http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05/19/17-new-officers-join-oakland-police-ranks/

Community Resource Officer Anthony Hutzol from Oakland Police Department
Hello everyone,

I am the CRO for Beat 12 for those of you who don’t know me.

I am writing this message to advise the public in area 2 (Beats 8-14) that a very significant arrest in relation to a string of strong-arm and armed robberies occurred on May 7th.

Keen-eyed Oakland PD Officers working patrol in area 2 observed a vehicle which had been described by robbery victims as a “getaway vehicle.” They conducted a vehicle stop on the vehicle in the 3600 block of Broadway.

The vehicle turned out to be a stolen vehicle from Missouri.

The vehicle stop resulted in three arrests of Oakland adults for a variety of offenses including possession of a loaded firearm, warrants for robbery and burglary, and possession of stolen property, and the stolen vehicle.

Thank you for your attention everyone and please be safe.

CRO 2
Editor Note: We(URNA) are Area 2, Beat 13

Chief Anne Kirkpatrick, who took the helm on Feb. 27, has selected her deputy chiefs. As reported by Rockridge Patch here: https://patch.com/california/rockridge/police-chief-announces-command-staff

Did you know that there are SEVEN different Neighborhood Associations in the Rockridge area of Oakland? And we’re talking security-focused groups that hire patrols, offer security advice, etc., just as URNA does. What does this mean? Well, you probably know already – that our area could use more of a police presence to aid in crime prevention, but that is not the reality now, so we’ve all started efforts to make up the difference. There are a few good signs, and on April 29, URNA and six other Oakland neighborhood patrol groups met this with OPD Deputy Chief Darren Allison, Captain Randy Wingate, Our CRO (Community Resource Officer) Kristine Jurgens, City Council-members Annie Campbell Washington and Abel Guillen, a representative from Dan Kalb’s office (he was traveling), along with Patricia Rose – our NSC (Neighborhood Services Coordinator), to discuss crime trends and ways to improve coordination with OPD.
Some Oakland stats first – Good news/bad news:
The good news is that OPD is budgeted for 797 officers and staffing is currently up to 753 officers. Since Mayor Schaff took office the staffing increased from 600 – 753 officers! Good progress, although some analysis recommends 1200 officers for a city of our size.
The bad news is that Oakland faces significant challenges in its 2017-2019 budget, which projects a $32 million deficit. The budget does include a third police academy to bring staffing up to the authorized number. Other items:

OPD had monthly meetings with security companies in past and we’re looking into re-starting those, likely with a quarterly meeting frequency.
AREA CRIME Stats are available anytime on City web site. Here is the link for AREA 2 stats. (URNA: We are in Area 2 and Police Beat 13X – FYI)

Deputy Chief Allison and Captain Wingate also spoke about:

Citizen home camera video can be very helpful for identifying suspects in crimes! Urged all to use the Oakland CAMERA REGISTRY (click to see info below)
“Ceasefire” efforts focusing on the highest-risk individuals have helped drive down crime in Rockridge and the Oakland hills.
CHANCES OF ANOTHER OFFICER ON BEAT 13: New OPD Chief Kirkpatrick open to looking at the deployment model – in place since 1970s. So, it is possible, but hard to judge…
OPD Priorities: Obvious that they prioritize physical harm or the risk of it in responding to calls. If you call in a crime, make that your priority too. (Example: A robbery will have slower response than a robbery with possible robber on premises, etc.)