{"id":31469,"date":"2022-05-06T16:05:28","date_gmt":"2022-05-06T16:05:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/?p=31469"},"modified":"2022-05-06T16:05:28","modified_gmt":"2022-05-06T16:05:28","slug":"meet-the-4-candidates-running-for-alameda-county-district-attorney","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/2022\/05\/06\/meet-the-4-candidates-running-for-alameda-county-district-attorney\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the 4 candidates running for Alameda County District Attorney"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>\t\t\t<amp-position-observer target=\"page-position-marker\" on=\"enter:a_c059.start;\" once=\"\" layout=\"nodisplay\" class=\"i-amphtml-layout-nodisplay\" hidden=\"hidden\" i-amphtml-layout=\"nodisplay\"\/><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<amp-animation id=\"a_c059\" layout=\"nodisplay\" class=\"i-amphtml-layout-nodisplay\" hidden=\"hidden\" i-amphtml-layout=\"nodisplay\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<\/amp-animation><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<amp-analytics class=\"i-amphtml-layout-fixed i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" style=\"width:1px;height:1px\" i-amphtml-layout=\"fixed\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<\/amp-analytics><\/p>\n<aside>\t\t\t\t\t<amp-analytics class=\"i-amphtml-layout-fixed i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" style=\"width:1px;height:1px\" i-amphtml-layout=\"fixed\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<\/amp-analytics><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<aside>\t\t\t\t\t<amp-analytics class=\"i-amphtml-layout-fixed i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" style=\"width:1px;height:1px\" i-amphtml-layout=\"fixed\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<\/amp-analytics><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<aside>\t\t\t\t\t<amp-analytics class=\"i-amphtml-layout-fixed i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" style=\"width:1px;height:1px\" i-amphtml-layout=\"fixed\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<\/amp-analytics><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Last year, Nancy O\u2019Malley announced she would <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/2021\/07\/15\/alameda-county-district-attorney-nancy-omalley-legacy-victims-rights-police-accountability\/\" rel=\"noopener\">retire<\/a>, making the June 7 primary election the first time in decades that an incumbent DA, or a person appointed by a retiring DA, is not running for reelection.<\/p>\n<p>The position of DA holds great power. As the county\u2019s top prosecutor, the DA is responsible for representing the people of California in criminal, civil, and juvenile cases and decides whether or not a person should face criminal charges following an arrest by police.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>They oversee an office of hundreds of lawyers who have the authority to set policies like whether or not to seek prison or jail sentences for people convicted of drug offenses or theft or to divert these people into treatment programs or other alternatives.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Four candidates are running for the job. Two are members of the DA\u2019s office. One is a civil rights attorney. And one is a former prosecutor who has worked in San Francisco and Oakland politics.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The way the June 7 primary election works: if none of the candidates receives 50% or more of the vote, a runoff between the top two vote-getters will be held during the November general election.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>We interviewed each of the candidates about their priorities and where they stand on key issues, and we reviewed their records to gauge their experience and readiness for the job. We have listed the four hopefuls in alphabetical order.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-container-4 wp-block-group\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container\">\n<h2 id=\"h-pamela-price\">Pamela Price<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><amp-img width=\"1158\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-1158x1200.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-404718 amp-wp-enforced-sizes i-amphtml-layout-intrinsic i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-1158x1200.png 1158w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-579x600.png 579w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-768x796.png 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-1200x1244.png 1200w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-400x415.png 400w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela.png 1318w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1158px) 100vw, 1158px\" layout=\"intrinsic\" disable-inline-width=\"\" i-amphtml-layout=\"intrinsic\"><i-amphtml-sizer slot=\"i-amphtml-svc\" class=\"i-amphtml-sizer\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"i-amphtml-intrinsic-sizer\" role=\"presentation\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyBoZWlnaHQ9IjEyMDAiIHdpZHRoPSIxMTU4IiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIvPg==\"\/><\/i-amphtml-sizer><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1158\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-1158x1200.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-1158x1200.png 1158w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-579x600.png 579w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-768x796.png 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-1200x1244.png 1200w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela-400x415.png 400w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Price-Pamela.png 1318w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1158px) 100vw, 1158px\"\/><\/noscript><\/amp-img><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Price, a graduate of Yale and UC Berkeley\u2019s Law School, has decades of experience as a criminal defense attorney, beginning at the Bayview Hunters\u2019 Point Community Defenders\u2019 office in San Francisco. In 1991, she started her own firm and is perhaps best-known as a civil rights attorney.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Over the years, she has represented people in cases of wrongful termination, retaliation, and discrimination. With this background, she views the role of the District Attorney as a \u201cminister of justice.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s the best way for me to describe it to people,\u201d she told The Oaklandside. \u201cTo administer justice in a way that is fair and appropriate for the community.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Price has been here before. In 2018, she took on O\u2019Malley as the longstanding DA\u2019s first opponent, picking up an impressive 122,850 votes, or 42%. While Price won nearly every precinct in Oakland and Berkeley, except for some in the hills, O\u2019Malley won the primary by carrying most of the suburban parts of the county. That was enough votes to win without needing a runoff that November.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.acgov.org\/rovresults\/235\/indexA.htm\" rel=\"noopener\">election results<\/a> revealed a stark divide. Communities of color most impacted by crime and mass incarceration chose reform candidate Price, while more affluent suburban areas in the Tri-Valley and southern Alameda County voted for O\u2019Malley.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Price was one of multiple progressive candidates dissatisfied with how justice was being administered by District Attorneys. She viewed O\u2019Malley\u2019s office as being out of touch with values shared by many county residents to end mass incarceration and racial disparities in the county\u2019s criminal justice system. <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www2.oaklandnet.com\/oakca1\/groups\/cityadministrator\/documents\/report\/oak071073.pdf\" rel=\"noopener\">Studies have shown<\/a> Black and Latino people in Alameda County are incarcerated at far higher rates than white residents, and the same disparities are found in the state prison system.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Four years after her first campaign, Price doesn\u2019t believe much has changed.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn fact, it\u2019s been tolerated. The theme of the system has been that if you are poor or Black or brown and you don\u2019t have connections, you are prey to the criminal justice system of Alameda County,\u201d Price said. \u201cWe are going to respect the community we serve.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>She has the backing of families of people killed by police, from the mother and uncle of Oscar Grant to the parents of <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mercurynews.com\/2021\/08\/09\/pleasanton-will-pay-5-9-million-to-settle-police-restraint-death-suit-but-lawyer-says-family-turned-down-millions-more-for-meeting-with-police\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Jacob Bauer<\/a>, who died in a hospital in 2018 less than two hours after being restrained by Pleasanton police.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Bauer\u2019s father is by far the largest single contributor backing Price\u2019s candidacy. Records show he\u2019s donated $100,000 to an independent expenditure committee supporting Price, and another $40,000 directly to her campaign.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI understand the trauma they have experienced and how the injustice has impacted them,\u201d Price said. O\u2019Malley\u2019s office declined to press charges against the officers. Bauer\u2019s family sued Pleasanton and won a $5.9 million settlement from the city.. \u201cWhat has happened in Alameda County is our DA\u2019s office basically gives the police a pass, does not hold them accountable and families have had to turn to civil rights lawyers to get justice, to get accountability.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The seasoned civil rights attorney wants a more public-facing office, starting with various internal audits, and publishing quarterly reports on future charging decisions that would include a look at racial disparities. Currently, the DA\u2019s office doesn\u2019t share this kind of data. Price also suggested creating an online database that would allow the public to track and understand what charges a person was facing, what charges if any were ultimately filed, and the reasons behind those decisions.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For years, the District Attorney\u2019s Office has faced criticism over how long it takes for decisions on fatal officer-involved shootings, which the DA investigates to determine if the use of force by police was criminal or justified. A <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/2022\/04\/04\/no-criminal-charges-for-officers-who-killed-erik-salgado-in-2020\/\" rel=\"noopener\">recent decision exonerating<\/a> California Highway Patrol officers for the fatal shooting of Erik Salgado in East Oakland brought the issues back to light, but other controversial cases have sat on the shelf <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mercurynews.com\/2020\/07\/19\/new-records-in-oakland-police-shooting-raise-questions-about-das-role-in-investigating-cops\/\" rel=\"noopener\">for much longer<\/a>. Some have viewed this practice as politically motivated at the expense of victim families and police officers waiting for answers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe will not take months or years to provide reports to the public,\u201d Price told The Oaklandside.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>She plans to examine if any DA members\u2019 relationships with police officers present conflicts of interest. For decades, many of the DA\u2019s inspectors responsible for investigating police shootings and other criminal wrongdoing by officers <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kqed.org\/news\/93940\/ex-officers-often-investigate-police-involved-shootings\" rel=\"noopener\">tend to be ex-police<\/a> who are friends with officers in the departments they\u2019re supposed to scrutinize. There has been a historic pipeline from the Oakland Police Department to that branch of the DA\u2019s office<\/p>\n<p>And Price hasn\u2019t ruled out looking back at previous controversial shootings to figure out any missteps. She has called for better screening of DA inspectors, who assist prosecutors in investigating police shootings and other crimes. .\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have to have some better screening and different standards about what type of investigators we are looking for,\u201d Price said. \u201cI imagine there will be some reassignments within that unit because I am not going to tolerate the cozy relationship that has existed and has not served this community. My standards are going to be different.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Her other priorities include expanding the office\u2019s integrity unit so it has the capacity to examine allegations of prosecutorial misconduct and instances where someone was later exonerated for charges filed by the office. Like some of her opponents, she wants to expand court diversion programs but with a focus on how charging decisions at the prosecutor level are driving racial disparities.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you make a mistake and you don\u2019t acknowledge it, you don\u2019t recognize it, you don\u2019t look at how it happened, you can\u2019t fix it. In Alameda County, we have made so many mistakes and we are not about fixing them. In order for us to move forward, we have to look back and see where we failed families and where we failed the public.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Price\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pamelaprice4da.com\/endorsements\" rel=\"noopener\">endorsements<\/a> includes scholar and activist Angela Davis, actor Danny Glover, civil rights attorney Carl E. Douglas, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, Anti-Police Terror Project co-founder Cat Brooks and other Oakland police reform advocates, and former Oakland Mayor Jean Quan.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-container-5 wp-block-group\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container\">\n<h2 id=\"h-seth-steward\">Seth Steward<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><amp-img width=\"1200\" height=\"1040\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1200x1040.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-405800 amp-wp-enforced-sizes i-amphtml-layout-intrinsic i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1200x1040.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-600x520.jpg 600w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-768x665.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1536x1331.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-2048x1774.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1568x1358.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-400x347.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" layout=\"intrinsic\" disable-inline-width=\"\" i-amphtml-layout=\"intrinsic\"><i-amphtml-sizer slot=\"i-amphtml-svc\" class=\"i-amphtml-sizer\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"i-amphtml-intrinsic-sizer\" role=\"presentation\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyBoZWlnaHQ9IjEwNDAiIHdpZHRoPSIxMjAwIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIvPg==\"\/><\/i-amphtml-sizer><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1040\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1200x1040.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1200x1040.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-600x520.jpg 600w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-768x665.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1536x1331.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-2048x1774.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-1568x1358.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/seth-steward-1-400x347.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"\/><\/noscript><\/amp-img><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Steward holds a bachelor\u2019s degree in public policy from Occidental College, a masters in public administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, and is a graduate of George Washington University Law School.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Currently, he serves as chief of staff to Oakland Councilmember Dan Kalb. But Steward has a background as a prosecutor serving in various roles in San Francisco. He told The Oaklandside he sees the role of DA as keeping the community and families safe, building trust in the office, and restoring fairness in the criminal justice system.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think the DA can do all of those things in Alameda County,\u201d Steward said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Like Price, providing the public with more data about the DA\u2019s office is one of his priorities. Steward said recent studies of the DA\u2019s office have indicated that data is limited due to how the office tracks\u2014or doesn\u2019t track\u2014case information. He pointed to Multnomah County in Oregon as an example of a public-facing data dashboard that should be replicated here. The <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mcda.us\/index.php\/data-dashboards\" rel=\"noopener\">dashboard can show<\/a> case outcomes, demographic and bias information, location of incidents, and breakdowns of why prosecutors decided to charge or not charge cases, ranging from incidents involving gun violence, protests, and bias-motivated crimes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is the kind of stuff that would be super helpful. You could do this for every single type of case so we know what\u2019s happening,\u201d he said. \u201cIt just takes investment and the courage to show the people who live and work in Alameda County what the DA office does.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>One troubling statistic he\u2019d like to see better explained to the public is the number of misdemeanor cases that do not end up in alternative or diversion courts. <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/meetyourda.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/acda.pdf\" rel=\"noopener\">A 2021 study<\/a> by Urban Peace Movement and the ACLU of Northern California showed that 71% of misdemeanors charged between 2017-2018 were considered \u201clow-level offenses that should not have been charged at all, or should have been directed to pre-plea division.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>However, ACDA data, which was described as unlikely to be comprehensive, showed that fewer than 2,000 people participated in diversion programs during that period. That\u2019s about 5.4% of all cases. In a number of misdemeanor cases, Steward said diversion programs should be where the cases end up because they result in lower recidivism rates, and because traditional court system proceedings take longer and cost more.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know crime goes down if people [go into diversion programs]. So basically we are creating more crime. That\u2019s one of the big takeaways,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we could reroute a chunk of that money to these different programs we are going to have more people be successful, less people committing crime, which means less victims of crime.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Steward said his background as a prosecutor, educator, and working on policies and budgets in local politics sets him apart from his opponents. He joined the San Francisco District Attorney\u2019s Office as an assistant district attorney in 2008, tried more than 70 jury trials, and worked in units including misdemeanor crimes, felony hate crimes, domestic violence, and behavioral health court.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He later enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, something he said was inspired by a desire to serve his country after witnessing the Boston Marathon bombing. Steward has flown in combat search and rescue helicopter missions in Iraq and Kenya and was part of the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XyWR3b-Dzws\" rel=\"noopener\">flight team that delivered COVID-19 test kits<\/a> to passengers of the Grand Princess ship idling off the California coast in early March 2020.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In 2019, he joined Councilmember Kalb\u2019s District 1 staff and around the same time began teaching a criminal law course at Oakland Technical High School through Merritt College.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>As a member of Kalb\u2019s staff, Steward drafted legislation that led to the city banning OPD from using chokeholds and carotid restraints. The policy <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2020\/07\/10\/oakland-police-commission-oks-landmark-ban-on-all-neck-holds-asphyxia\/\" rel=\"noopener\">passed by the Oakland Police Commission and City Council in 2020<\/a> came in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Steward said he was also instrumental in helping Kalb pass a ban on ghost guns\u2014firearms without serial numbers which can be built from mailorder kits at home and have been attributed to an <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/abc7news.com\/biden-gun-control-plan-joe-ghost-guns-oakland-crime\/10501827\/\" rel=\"noopener\">increasing number of crimes<\/a> in Oakland. One of his priorities as DA would be to reduce gun violence and focus on violent crime.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe should treat gun violence as a public health crisis,\u201d Steward said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to the DA\u2019s office investigating law enforcement, he said Alameda should create a firewall in the office between prosecutors who do the investigations and the rest of the office, a structure similar to what exists in San Francisco. He\u2019d like to work with law enforcement agencies around de-escalation training but doesn\u2019t think officers should be above the law.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>His platform includes establishing guidelines and practices to disclose to defense attorneys\u00a0 a police officer\u2019s history of misconduct, if applicable to a case they\u2019re working on. \u201cThe thing I would do is to have conversations with the people who are doing the work. It\u2019s critical to understand from their perspective what\u2019s working and what\u2019s not.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For victims, he is calling for the establishment of a crime victim advisory board reflecting the county\u2019s diversity\u2014including women, seniors, LGBTQ residents, communities of color, and disabled people.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Steward\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sethstewardforda.com\/endorsements\" rel=\"noopener\">endorsements<\/a> include state Assemblymember Mia Bonta, Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson, BART Director Bevan Dufty, Berkeley Councilmember Terry Taplin, and Emeryville Councilmember Courtney Welch.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-container-6 wp-block-group\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container\">\n<h2 id=\"h-terry-wiley\">Terry Wiley\u00a0<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><amp-img width=\"1070\" height=\"816\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-404714 amp-wp-enforced-sizes i-amphtml-layout-intrinsic i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry.png 1070w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry-600x458.png 600w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry-768x586.png 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry-400x305.png 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1070px) 100vw, 1070px\" layout=\"intrinsic\" disable-inline-width=\"\" i-amphtml-layout=\"intrinsic\"><i-amphtml-sizer slot=\"i-amphtml-svc\" class=\"i-amphtml-sizer\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"i-amphtml-intrinsic-sizer\" role=\"presentation\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyBoZWlnaHQ9IjgxNiIgd2lkdGg9IjEwNzAiIHhtbG5zPSJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnczLm9yZy8yMDAwL3N2ZyIgdmVyc2lvbj0iMS4xIi8+\"\/><\/i-amphtml-sizer><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1070\" height=\"816\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry.png 1070w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry-600x458.png 600w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry-768x586.png 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wiley-Terry-400x305.png 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1070px) 100vw, 1070px\"\/><\/noscript><\/amp-img><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Wiley, a graduate of UC Berkeley and the University of San Diego School of Law, is a 32-year veteran of the Alameda DA\u2019s office and currently the third-highest ranking member of the office as a chief deputy district attorney.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He has touted his experience working 21 different assignments within the DA\u2019s office and said it would be difficult for anyone without knowledge of the DA administration to step in and manage what he called a complex agency with a nearly $100 million budget.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen you look at the candidates in this race, all have their platforms and policies. You do have to look at experience. We all have ideas, but I\u2019ve actually been doing it,\u201d Wiley told The Oaklandside.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Joining as a deputy district attorney in 1992, Wiley spent the 90s and 2000s trying complex felony cases, including murders and gang-related crimes. He was the prosecutor in the second trial of the Riders, a group of Oakland police officers charged for allegedly planting drugs and brutalizing West Oakland residents while on duty. Both trials against the Riders ended in acquittals on some charges while jurors deadlocked on others.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Wiley said the courtroom experiences in the 90s left a mark on him, especially the defendants sent to state prison for marijuana crimes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>That is one reason why he and the NAACP began holding expungement clinics a few years ago at the Hayward Public Library. Wiley said they were able to expunge records for hundreds of individuals.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are more enlightened now in terms of understanding that we cannot incarcerate ourselves out of all the problems we have,\u201d Wiley told The Oaklandside. \u201cIf you\u2019ve been in the system for as long as I have, it\u2019s incumbent on us to correct some of the damage that was done.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Wiley pushed back on claims that the county\u2019s diversion and collaborative courts are being underused. The issue is more complex, he said, because those alternative courts are voluntary and sometimes the conditions set by the state court can be longer than probation so some people choose to take a deal through traditional courts instead.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The 17 various alternative courts, among the highest number for a county in the state, have served as a national model, he said. In 2013, Wiley was the head of the juvenile division, when the innovative restorative justice program was established. He said the success of the behavioral health and drug alternative courts at the juvenile level paved the way for expanding them to adult court.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAlameda County is one of the places that many people across the country come to find out what we are doing at diversion and collaborative courts,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Wiley said he has been involved in problem-solving at the highest levels. In 2020, during the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, the Judicial Council adopted an emergency bail schedule that set bail at $0 for most people. Local police agencies said this led to people who were booked into jail on firearms and other serious charges being released instead of detained until trial. Wiley said he wrote a memo to the Superior Court that successfully argued for returning to the pre-pandemic bail schedule for firearms-related crimes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He also assisted the local business community in petitioning to end zero bail for offenses shop owners said were hurting them, such as grand theft and vandalism. \u201cI think this is an example of what you can do as the DA of Alameda County,\u201d Wiley said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Over the course of the pandemic, he said there was \u201cabsolutely too much violence in the city of Oakland.\u201d Oakland had 134 homicides in 2021, the highest number in a decade, and far more than neighboring cities. Wiley said the role of the DA is to work with law enforcement and community organizations to lower the murder rate and he plans to do so by focusing on gangs he said are committing one out of every two murders and the vast majority of robberies, carjacking, and other serious crimes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The pandemic shutdown, he said, created a worse situation for Oakland students that led to an uptick in crimes involving juveniles. He said more needs to be done to provide resources and help to youth before they fall behind in school. He recently met with Oakland Unified School District officials, the presiding judge of the juvenile court, and probation department officials to create a system where community organizations can be brought in to help students before they fall behind in school.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>As a high-ranking member of the DA\u2019s office, Wiley has overseen investigations of police officers involved in killings. For instance, Wiley led a team investigating BART Officer Anthony Pirone\u2019s role in the death of Oscar Grant in 2009. BART Officer Johannes Mehserle, who shot and killed Grant, was charged and ultimately convicted of involuntary manslaughter but Grant\u2019s family believed Pirone had instigated the situation and should have been charged.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Wiley defended the DA\u2019s decision to <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/sanfrancisco\/news\/update-alameda-county-da-says-no-charges-against-former-bart-cop-pirone-in-oscar-grants-death\/\" rel=\"noopener\">not charge Pirone<\/a> and said he was upfront with the Grant family from the start. \u201cI told the Grant family we would conduct a full investigation but do not get your hopes up and I will be completely transparent with you throughout the process. I am not going to B.S. you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He said how the office handles such cases is worthy of review, as well as how long it takes to release DA findings on whether officers used excessive force.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs DA, you have to keep arms distance from everybody. You can\u2019t be influenced by the police, you can\u2019t be influenced by the community. I\u2019ve had everyone upset with me,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s the heat you have to take as the DA of Alameda County. You have to make principled decisions on those cases.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Wiley\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/terrywileyforda.com\/endorsements\/\" rel=\"noopener\">endorsements<\/a> include Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, civil rights attorneys including John Burris, Congressman Eric Swalwell, several labor unions including the Alameda County Prosecutors\u2019 Association, and many county elected officials.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-container-7 wp-block-group\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container\">\n<h2 id=\"h-jimmie-wilson\">Jimmie Wilson\u00a0<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><amp-img width=\"1200\" height=\"880\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-1200x880.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-404717 amp-wp-enforced-sizes i-amphtml-layout-intrinsic i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-1200x880.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-600x440.jpg 600w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-768x563.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-400x293.jpg 400w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy.jpg 1306w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" layout=\"intrinsic\" disable-inline-width=\"\" i-amphtml-layout=\"intrinsic\"><i-amphtml-sizer slot=\"i-amphtml-svc\" class=\"i-amphtml-sizer\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"i-amphtml-intrinsic-sizer\" role=\"presentation\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyBoZWlnaHQ9Ijg4MCIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIHhtbG5zPSJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnczLm9yZy8yMDAwL3N2ZyIgdmVyc2lvbj0iMS4xIi8+\"\/><\/i-amphtml-sizer><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1200\" height=\"880\" src=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-1200x880.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-1200x880.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-600x440.jpg 600w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-768x563.jpg 768w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy-400x293.jpg 400w, https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Wilson-Jimmy.jpg 1306w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"\/><\/noscript><\/amp-img><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Wilson, a graduate of UC Berkeley and UC Hastings College of Law, got into the legal profession later in life. He says politics were never in his plans. Growing up in San Francisco\u2019s Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood, he became a union plumber after a football injury while playing for San Jose State University.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Another injury ended his 16 years as a plumber so at the age of 40 he enrolled at UC Berkeley. He told The Oaklandside that his experience sitting on five criminal juries influenced his decision to study law. He joined the Alameda DA\u2019s office as a deputy district attorney upon his graduation in 2004.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>His background and 18 years in a variety of prosecutor roles, he said, gives him a unique perspective.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve seen it from the outside. I\u2019ve analyzed my office from a different place. I\u2019ve seen what we are doing right and what we weren\u2019t doing right. The things we stopped doing that I want to get back to doing,\u201d Wilson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>One of those things is the DA\u2019s gang unit, which he prefers to call the crime suppression unit. Wilson worked in both the north and south county units before it was disbanded. He said he saw value in the unit\u2019s ability to work closely with the Oakland Police Department\u2019s Ceasefire program and share intel with other agencies to prevent gang violence before it happened.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He has called for the return of the unit, a countywide violence reduction task force, and a sharper focus on the prosecution of people who commit violent crimes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe knew about the beefs and proactively worked to get them to put their guns down,\u201d Wilson said of the gang unit. \u201cWhen you stop doing that you can\u2019t suppress crime. You surely can\u2019t suppress gun violence.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe got rid of our gang unit and did not replace it. It was predictable that violence and shootings in our community went up\u2014and they did,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Over the years in the DA\u2019s office, he\u2019s tried a multitude of cases, handling complex homicides, gang crimes, and sexual assaults as part of felony trial teams. Wilson also worked on the team investigating police officers for fatal shootings of citizens.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Along with NAACP activists, Wilson has led state-certified cultural diversity and bias training with local police agencies and would continue leading those training courses as the elected DA, alongside setting up and attending community forums about gun violence and violent crime.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Wilson is also worried about diversity within his own office. Too many deputy district attorneys do not reflect the diversity of the communities they work for and live outside Alameda County, he said. Because of high turnover, the DA\u2019s office is down about 30 prosecutors, Wilson added.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe live in a wonderful, diverse community. We need to hire people who are representative of the community, not just in the way they look but the way they think,\u201d he told us.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Wilson wants to collect crime and prosecution data to publicly present information on plea deals and charging decisions. While he prioritizes prosecuting violent crimes, he wants to expand the office\u2019s diversion and alternative court programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFirst we stabilize our community, then we establish ways to get people away from crime,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>As a trial lawyer working out of the Oakland, Dublin, and south county courthouses, Wilson has supporters and endorsements from throughout the county. <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jimmiewilsonforda.com\/endorsements\" rel=\"noopener\">His supporters include<\/a> current and former prosecutors, several criminal defense attorneys, members of the local NAACP, and several local elected leaders.<\/p>\n<p>He has also picked up the endorsement of police officer unions representing officers in Oakland, Berkeley, Emeryville, Hayward, San Leandro, Union City, Newark, and the Alameda County Sheriff\u2019s Office. Wilson has not taken money from the police unions, saying that would <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/eastbayexpress.com\/da-omalley-took-10k-from-fremont-police-union-before-clearing-fremont-cops-in-killing-of-pregnant-teen-2-1\/\" rel=\"noopener\">create a conflict<\/a>, but he welcomes their support.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou need to support police officers. We need to help them become better,\u201d said Wilson, who promises to help departments increase staffing levels. \u201cIn Oakland, we are down officers. One of the reasons why is there is no support within not just our political community but within my office.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside>\t\t\t\t\t<amp-analytics class=\"i-amphtml-layout-fixed i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" style=\"width:1px;height:1px\" i-amphtml-layout=\"fixed\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<\/amp-analytics><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<aside>\t\t\t\t\t<amp-analytics class=\"i-amphtml-layout-fixed i-amphtml-layout-size-defined\" style=\"width:1px;height:1px\" i-amphtml-layout=\"fixed\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t<\/amp-analytics><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<nav class=\"jp-relatedposts-i2\" data-layout=\"grid\"\/>\n<section id=\"newspack-ads-widget-10\" class=\"widget-odd widget-last widget-first widget-1 below-content widget widget_newspack-ads-widget\"\/>\t<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/oaklandside.org\/2022\/05\/06\/alameda-county-da-race-candidates-pimary-election-2022\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Last year, Nancy O\u2019Malley announced she would retire, making the June 7 primary election&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31469","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-cj-system"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31469","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31469"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31469\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31470,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31469\/revisions\/31470"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31469"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31469"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31469"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}