Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Batts Says He’s Going to Harvard
Politics / People / Law Enforcement & Crime Robert Gammon — Tue, Oct 11, 2011 at 4:28 PM
Oakland Police Chief Anthony Batts officially announced his resignation at a City Hall press conference Tuesday afternoon, saying he was taking a part-time teaching position at Harvard University, where he said he also plans to do research. Batts also blamed “city bureaucracy” for why he is leaving, essentially saying that he had too many bosses in Oakland.
Batts said that in any given week he has to check in with the federal court monitors overseeing Oakland police, the mayor’s office, the city administrator’s office, city councilmembers, the council’s Public Safety Committee, Measure Y officials, and the Citizens Police Review Board, among others. He said the police chief in Oakland is “held accountable, but does not have the power to make a positive impact.”
Batts has been unhappy in Oakland for some time. One year ago, before the mayor’s election, he quietly applied to be San Jose’s police chief. He ultimately did not get the job, but decided to stay in Oakland. Still, he has made it clear that he was upset about the police department losing 20 percent of its force in budget cutting moves. City tax revenues have been decimated by the recession and are down more than 20 percent in the past few years.
Batts also has struggled to live up to the reforms mandated in the Riders’ case. After the press conference, civil rights attorneys John Burris and Jim Chanin said they were disappointed that Batts had not made more progress in reforming the department since taking over in 2009. There also is a concern in the city that federal Judge Thelton Henderson may put the department into federal receivership in January because of the lack of progress.
City Administrator Deanna Santana and Mayor Jean Quan, who was on hand and who appeared to be visibly unhappy with Batts and his decision, said that there would be an announcement of an interim chief soon. Batts’ resignation comes just days before he and the mayor were supposed to hold a citywide public safety summit and less than a week before Oakland voters will begin voting on an $11 million annual parcel tax of which a substantial percentage is to go to police.
Comments (5)
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city lay backs and closed files but we still need some assistance while everyone is still counting their lucky stars "why not send her a card, better i will give it to her in person and tell her 'have sex and do it through the back door" and then i will announce her ominous stalking and revert it to friends since 1982 and others but i did attend harvard and do have a place here but she needs to be briefed i rule the west and she will have to deal with the east? I did receive your card and didnt think booty sex was approachable but i did send 'frisco kid' a package with a blanket and t's of hanna and friends but he disliked gesture and decided i was a lesbian again!and sounded off clubskirts needed to know this!"you like whites and you are my next obsession" how is the bayarea doing these days? quite sexy dont you think? who needs minnesota or cambridge if they arent willing to be openly sexy! i am not a lesiban but she asked me that too
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I say let the Feds take over! Quan and the City Council have basically tied Batts arms behind his back. They wouldnt support any of his suggestions to rid crime in Oakland yet they wanted him to take full responsibility for Oakland's ridiculous murder rate. OPD can be reformed the right way and crime...but not with poor leadership. Batts will be missed. QUAN MUST GO!
Why is this headline "Batts SAYS" he's going to Harvard, as if he might be lying? Why not just "Batts Is Going to Harvard"? Not subtle.
I have listened to both Mayor Jean Quan and Police Chief Batts and I thought they were, and believe they are, ideal for Oakland. What went wrong?
Could it be the salary was not high enough? Could it be that the Chief and the Police are being asked to "Give Up!" too much in these difficult times, that are likely to get worse, maybe even a lot worse, before they get better?
Would I, personally, abandon ship in its hour of need? "Say it ain't so!" Chief Batts, Harvard will never have a challenge that will challenge your talents to the maximum and, possibly, beyond. If you leave now, I would say, "You're Prudent", if you stay, we will all say "You are Brave, beyond measure!"
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