OAKLAND CITY OFFICIALS and organizers of Oakland First Fridays pushed back Sunday the Oakland Police Officers Association’s assertion that shootings early Saturday morning were connected to the festival.
The Oakland Police Department said Sunday that the initial investigation into shootings early Saturday morning that killed two people and wounded at least four suggested there was no connection between the outbreak of violence and the free festival that had ended hours earlier.
On Saturday, the president of the Oakland Police Officers Association blamed the crowd attracted by the festival and said big events like First Fridays could not be sufficiently secured by the police department.
Oakland First Fridays directors said they were “deeply saddened” by the violence but strongly objected to any association between the event and the shootings.
“We also regret that our event has been mentioned in relation to these incidents,” a statement provided by a spokesperson for Oakland First Fridays said, adding that there is a difference between the scheduled First Friday events and what happens after the event has concluded and the streets have been reopened.
“What happened was not part of Oakland First Fridays,” said the directors. “These incidents occurred outside of our event footprint and hours of operation. Unfortunately, our festival continues to be unfairly associated with violence that occurs well after our event has ended. This is not a ‘First Fridays problem’ — this is a City of Oakland problem that must be addressed with greater support, resources, and strategies to manage late-night activity and growing nightlife crowds. This is an issue that happens not just on First Fridays but every Friday,” the statement said.
Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee also offered caution on Saturday when reacting to the reports of violence and a purported association between the festival and the spate of shootings, which broke out between 2:15 a.m. and 3:45 a.m. She said the police department had not found there was any connection.
The Oakland Police Department affirmed that, as of Sunday, there was no evidence that the violence had anything to do with the festival, which can draw as many as 30,000 people, according to the festival’s website.
“At this time, investigators do not believe these tragic incidents are connected to the First Friday event, which ended more than four hours before the first shooting,” the department’s statement said.
Oakland Police Officers Association President Huy Nguyen said on Saturday that the event was unsafe because of cuts he said the mayor and city council had made to the police department, despite data from the mayor’s office saying the department’s budget has grown and will increase more over the next few years.
“There are not enough police to safely patrol the city or major events like First Friday,” Nguyen said. “It is with great concern that the public cannot be assured of safety even at large public gatherings.”
In a statement shared by Oakland First Fridays organizers, Oakland Police Captain Aaron Smith said the event was a good thing for the community and said officers enjoyed being assigned to it.
“First Friday is an overwhelmingly positive event for the community of Oakland,” said Smith. “The music, food, entertainment, classic cars and a variety of merchandise available from vendors attract people from all over the Bay Area. These visitors to our city enjoy this event and typically bring others along with them, resulting in a large, fun gathering.”
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