It took two weeks of Council meetings for a vote to be held, but when the council members were finally polled, Oakland approved a one-year contract with William Bratton by a margin of 7 to 1.
Bratton’s contract is part of an overall push towards improving police efficiency and the impact of police services in a city that has experienced a sharp raise in crime. The 613 officers currently on City payroll weren’t enough to control the crime wave, which spiked 23 percent last year.
Bratton, who has experienced success and praise at other major municipalities, is also controversial. He is a staunch supporter of Stop and Frisk, a tactic that opponents say is ‘suppression policing’ and promotes racial profiling. One person who attended the council meeting was reported as saying that Bratton will destroy black and brown communities.
But before the final vote was taken, two measures were included that defended individual rights and reasserted the City’s opposition to racial profiling.
Read the full story at the San Jose Mercury News.