Eye on the Hills: Concerns heard at Oakland ‘Coffee with a Cop’ event

Daylight Saving Time has ended and with that comes an inevitable uptick in crime. Statistics suggest that as evenings get dark earlier, robberies and burglaries increase under cover of night. It was one of the many safety issues that Oakland police Capt. Aaron Smith discussed with citizens at Sunday’s “Coffee with a Cop” event at Peet’s Coffee & Tea in the Oakland hills’ Montclair Village district.

Neighbors had a wide range of questions for Capt. Smith, an affable public servant who seemed genuinely interested in connecting with the community. At one point, he was almost fatherly in his advice to a senior who shared how she confronted a man who was trying to steal a shelf full of toothpaste at the local CVS.

“Nobody did a damn thing, which really upset me,” the woman said.

“It should make you angry,” Smith replied. “But I want to remind you of something that happened right here in Montclair. There was a gentleman sitting in Starbucks on his laptop … .”

He was referencing a case that still haunts Montclarions today — the December 2019 death of a man who tried to retrieve his stolen computer and was run over by a speeding getaway car.

“It was the most devastating thing,” said Smith. “But that’s why. That’s why it’s important not to stop thieves like this. Even in a store, we know from the investigations we’ve done, that people who do this kind of thing are often armed.” Then he made the senior vow not to confront a criminal again. “I never want you to be a victim, because CVS can replace it. Promise me that you won’t do that again.”

Smith listened as people shared stories of how crime from car thefts to sideshows has affected them personally. On behalf of my neighbors, I asked what could be done about a rash of sideshow activity at the wide intersection at Skyline Boulevard, Manzanita Drive and Pinehurst Road near Shepherd Canyon Road. His answer was practical, given the fact that Oakland has a severe shortage of officers.

“So before, we just threw a bunch of officers out there to chase them around, towing vehicles, writing citations. It just wasn’t effective.”

The new strategy, he said, is to design intersections to discourage sideshows, like the city of Oakland did at the wide intersection of Coolidge Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard.

“Now it’s got delineators and square speed bumps,” he said. “So if you do doughnuts there, there’s a very good likelihood that your tires will come off the rim.”

Smith sayid the street design has in effect eliminated sideshows at that intersection. Of course, the squeaky wheel gets the grease, which means neighbors need to file complaints by calling 311 to get the attention of the Oakland Transportation Department.

Cameras are also becoming increasingly effective in fighting criminal activity. Smith related a Montclair Village case in which thieves were targeting motorists picking up their morning beverages.

“If you order coffee on your app, you’re going to park, throw on your flashers, run in real quick and grab your coffee and come back. Well, what did you leave in the car? Your laptop, your purse, all these things. And so, we had people just getting hit,” he said.

Police were able to catch the perpetrators by using the Montclair Business District’s high-quality license plate readers.

“They (the perpetrators) were jumping on (Highway) 13, then (Highway) 24, going into Lafayette in their little downtown. But it was that technology, that partnership (that caught the perpetrators).”

In every case, Smith reiterated that the partnership between citizens and police was also critical. He added that no crime is too small to report and that every report, even on the nonemergency line, is recorded.

“There’s suspicious behavior, and then there’s criminal action. My job as an area captain is to educate you, the resident and the business owner and the citizen, on the difference.”

He added that neighbors who communicate with each other and share resources like Ring camera footage can help police solve crimes.

Ginny Prior can be reached at ginnyprior@hotmail.com and followed on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, Facebook and at ginnyprior.com.